The Iowa women's basketball star is likely to return

(This story has been updated to add new information)

IOWA CITY — As inappropriate as Lucy Olsen’s freak accident at the Cancun Challenge was, Iowa women’s basketball has seemingly dodged all the long-term bullets.

The Hawkeyes’ starting point guard is expected to return Saturday when Iowa faces Tennessee in the Champions Classic at Barclays Center in Brooklyn. Olsen missed both Cancun Challenge games after she tripped while exiting the elevated court at the Hard Rock Riviera Hotel Maya, resulting in a large wound to her knee that required multiple stitches.

“It’s more likely that Olsen returns because she’s so strong,” Iowa coach Jan Jensen said Tuesday. “I think we’ll just have to wait and see how it responds (Tuesday) with a lot more reps and what it looks like (Wednesday). I’m optimistic, but I’ll feel even better (Wednesday) when I hear this.” report that it responded fairly well.

More:See where Iowa women’s basketball ranks in the Associated Press Week 5 Top 25

Considering Olsen and newbie Aaliyah Guyton couldn’t go through the description of the incident without laughing, it feels like all the damaging elements have been overcome. When Olsen met with the media on Tuesday, she was only wearing a bandage, but not a large bandage or brace on her knee.

“It’s so silly,” Olsen said. “We were about to train (in Cancun) and I stumbled off the field because it was a little elevated.

“I kind of just fell down and got back up. I wanted to go to the bathroom, so I went to the bathroom anyway. When I was on the toilet I looked at my knee and thought, ‘Oh shoot, that’s it.’ “It doesn’t look good.” At that moment I thought, “Um, I need help.” There wasn’t any blood right away, but I could see something white. They told me it wasn’t my kneecap, but I think it was my kneecap, there was blood pouring out. I couldn’t watch it anymore after that.

Although the Hawkeyes’ trip to Mexico suddenly caused chaos, Iowa (8-0) handled the adversity well. Jensen’s group earned a 69-62 victory over Rhode Island on Thanksgiving and topped BYU 68-48 the following day. Although Iowa committed more than 20 turnovers in each contest, the Hawkeyes increased their point guard performance with two freshmen who grew in confidence as the game went on.

More:BYU’s Iowa women’s basketball cruises cap off a perfect week at the Cancun Challenge

Taylor Stremlow started in place of Olsen, while Aaliyah Guyton assisted on the bench in her first extended appearance of the season. Guyton, who is considered Iowa’s backup point guard after recovering from a torn ACL behind her, scored 18 points and five treys in 39 minutes in Cancun.

“It was easy to come in because we trust each other and we already have each other’s backs,” Guyton said. “It was just like, ‘Okay, Lucy’s out. We just have to think about the next man.’ Everyone had to take another step when it comes to the way we play the game. But we already trust each other so much that it was pretty easy to adapt.

However, Iowa is certainly happy to have its offensive leader back. Olsen was exactly what the Hawkeyes were hoping for when they brought her out of the transfer portal for one final season. The Villanova transfer is averaging 17.3 points, 5.3 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 49% from the floor.

Dargan Southard is a sports trends reporter who covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.

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