IOWA CITY -- The Iowa women's basketball team made a notable lineup change two weeks ago against Nebraska.
After head coach Jan Jensen experimented with lineups throughout the season, the Hawkeyes returned junior forward Hannah Stuelke to the five spot with a the rest of the spots in lineup occupied by guards.
Following the game against Nebraska, Jensen indicated the move would remain permanent.
"Now, I have three centers," Jensen said. "The minutes when Hannah is playing as well, that is where I have to try to figure out. ... That is the next challenge. But, it is really fun to be able to work with those three centers. You just do not have enough minutes sometimes."
Despite Jensen's postgame comments, the change received a temporary pause as Stuelke sustained a concussion against the Huskers and missed the next two games.
According to Iowa assistant coach Randi Henderson, who met with the media over Zoom on Monday, the program hopes to have the junior return for Tuesday's matchup against Northwestern.
"Hannah is looking good," Henderson said. "We should expect to see her contribute in the game.
"I assume she will be full practice (on Monday). She is going to have to come off not practicing and doing some stuff for a little bit, but Hannah is great. She is resilient, she is strong, she is powerful. She is going to produce in a positive way for us."
With her return, Stuelke is expected to reassume her spot at the five in the Hawkeyes' starting lineup despite back-to-back strong performances from senior Addison O'Grady, who returned to the starting lineup in place of Stuelke, and freshman center Ava Heiden.
Thus, Stuelke's return once again creates a minutes crunch between Stuelke, O'Grady and Heiden.
Despite the logjam, Henderson said the coaching staff sees returning Stuelke to the five, where she spent the majority of her time last season, as a beneficial long term for Iowa.
"I think Addi has played extremely well and has been pretty consistent for us," Henderson said. "Ava has some super bright spots and super fun and powerful and explosive to watch. Then, Hannah, I think the thing is Hannah is probably one of our best fours and our best five. That has been something that we have gone back and forth with. She is just really an elite athlete. She is disruptive offensively and defensively. At the end of the day, we want to play a little bit faster. Hannah at the five allows us to rim run a lot more, and opens up the floor for our guards as well.
"We are having a little bit of trouble with ball movement. Coaches, we try to find solutions. We always can see the problems, and we just keep trying to find solutions. This is something that we felt like could potentially help us in the long run."
Henderson also noted O'Grady and Heiden both responded tremendously to the change in their minutes and the team's lineup.
"Addi and Ava are both really good team players," Henderson said. "Even if it is hard to hear the truth, it is important to hear the truth. ... They have both made tremendous responses. Neither on of them have let down or backed up.
"We needed both of them this weekend. So, I think it will be true for the rest of the season that way. It is hard to sub three really good post players in one position. There are going to be different times for different matchups, but it is a good problem to have."
The Hawkeyes (13-7, 3-6 Big Ten) face Northwestern (7-11, 0-7 Big Ten) at 7 p.m. on Tuesday with broadcast coverage provided by Big Ten Network and the Hawkeye Radio Network.
3 Takeaways from Iowa women's basketball: Hawkeyes break skid in big way
Why Iowa men's basketball coaches will wear special pullovers against Ohio State