IOWA CITY — Officially, exhibitions don't "count." Don't tell that to the new-look Iowa Hawkeyes and their high-octane effort Wednesday night.

Junior forward Hannah Stuelke and freshman wing Teagan Mallegni led Iowa with 18 points apiece as Iowa overwhelmed D-II Missouri Western, 110-55, in the Hawkeyes' lone exhibition game of the season. Iowa hounded the Griffons into shooting 28% from the field, forced 19 turnovers for 28 points and out-rebounded them 55-24 on the night.

Transfer guard Lucy Olsen added 14 points, six rebounds and a team-high six assists as she takes over the reins of the Hawkeye offense. Olsen was an astonishing +57 in 27:39 of court time; no other Hawkeye was better than +41.

"We just moved the ball really well on offense, really played as a team," said Olsen. "We finally got to play a game, and we were all super excited, and we just played off each other really well."

1. No brake pedals on this racecar. Anyone expecting a downturn in tempo with Jan Jensen taking over the reins from mentor Lisa Bluder will be sorely mistaken this year. Iowa scored 33 points in the opening stanza en route to doubling up the overmatched Griffons, and the game was simply never competitive.

"I'm grateful for a lot of reasons," said Jensen. "For the past — to have all the experiences that I've had, that's prepared me for this moment. I'm grateful to have a team that did what they should have done tonight. It'll be a little different feel when the games count and we start playing our caliber of people. That starts Wednesday, and then blossoms after that."

Though Iowa enjoyed an obvious, substantial edge in size and talent, the Hawkeyes also simply outworked their vertically challenged foes, forcing 19 turnovers and 28 points off the miscues.

Mallegni, who shared the team lead with Kylie Feuerbach with two steals, credited Iowa's defensive effort for unlocking the transition game Wednesday.

"We feed off our defense, and we've been really emphasizing that in practice," said Mallegni. "I think we did a great job sticking to it, getting stops, forcing turnovers, and I think that really feeds into our offense."

Feuerbach filled up the score sheet with 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting, seven rebounds along with the pair of steals.

"That's what Kylie can be capable of," said Jensen. "She's one of our best defenders, if not the best. And then she puts a consistent three-ball with it. So I was particularly pleased with her play tonight."

2. The rotation takes shape. The minute load in an exhibition is never particularly instructive, but after the starting five, the following reserves came in:

- Ava Heiden (6:57, 1Q)

- Taylor Stremlow (6:53, 1Q)

- Teagan Mallegni (5:10, 1Q)

- Jada Gyamfi (1:53, 1Q)

- AJ Ediger (7:22, 2Q)

- Callie Levin (5:03, 2Q)

That's the full complement of players, all seeing court action by the middle of the second quarter; guards Sydney Affolter, Aaliyah Guyton and Kennise Johnson were all in street clothes as all continue to recover from knee surgeries.

O'Grady's start was a bit of a surprise, though Jensen said it had to do with Heiden dealing with a recent illness as much as anything.

"Addi had gotten a lot of great reps [while] Ava was under the weather," said Jensen. "She has a little bit more experience, she knows what we want a little bit more. I really want [the center race] to be more competitive, and to reward that. [...] But we're going to need them both."

Still, O'Grady made the most of her 15 minutes of court time, with eight points, a pair of rebounds, a block and a particular crowd-pleasing stretch of defense when the 6'3" post locked down 5'4" guard Alyssa Bonilla on the perimeter, forcing a missed shot and drawing one of the loudest bench reactions of the game.

Whether this is a one-off start for O'Grady remains to be seen — but Jensen also doesn't want the distinction to matter as much as it often does.

"We have to go back to not glorifying the starters," said Jensen. "I try to call them sometimes, 'people who begin games.' We're going to need them [both]. Foul trouble; some nights, someone might have it, the other person doesn't; so that's what went into that."

Perhaps most encouragingly, though, the team had stretches where everyone looked like a veteran team together, typified by the play above. Stremlow inbounds to O'Grady, who starts a series of passes around the perimeter that finds a wide-open Feuerbach, who drains one of her three triples.

A few new faces; vintage Iowa.

"There was one play in particular that I would like to hope will always be indicative of Iowa basketball," said Jensen. "It touched everybody, and I think Kylie hit the three. I think that's why people have liked Iowa basketball."

3. Teagan Mallegni: Weapon X. Though Heiden is the crown jewel of the 2024 recruiting class, fellow freshman Teagan Mallegni may be just as important to the Hawkeyes' success this season, if for no other reason than her unique skill set. At 6'1", Mallegni can play and defend positions 1 through 4, and her quick-release three-ball led to four three-pointers in her debut appearance, including a back-to-back pair of early triples.

"I think it was really good for me," said Mallegni. "But the confidence my teammates and my coaches have in me has been the biggest impact on my game."

Mallegni's defensive effort, along with fellow freshman Stremlow, disrupted the Griffons' backcourt all game long and tantalized the raucous crowd. While neither are likely to start this season, especially once Affolter is back from a minor knee procedure in November, their energy and scoring prowess should be major weapons off the bench as both begin their Hawkeye careers.

Don't miss out on any of our exclusive football, basketball, and recruiting coverage. Sign up with Hawkeye Beacon here.