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Taylor McCabe injury: Iowa starter carried to locker room during first quarter vs Ohio State

Barkley-Truaxby: Barkley Truax01/25/26BarkleyTruax

Iowa guard Taylor McCabe was injured and left the game 23 seconds into the first quarter vs. Ohio State with what appeared to be a non-contact injury while playing defense. She was quickly carried off the court by Iowa staff after gripping her left knee.

McCabe slapped the floor in frustration after the play. Coming into the game, had started all 20 games the Hawkeyes have played this season.

She was ruled out before the start of the second quarter, emerging from the locker room in street clothes. As of this writing, it remains to be seen how significant of an injury the longtime Hawkeye is dealing with.

Losing McCabe for any amount of time hurt the Hawkeyes, especially considering she’s a career 40.7% 3-point shooter. She’s also a four-year Hawkeye, joining the program during the 2022-23 season.

This season, she’s averaging 8.5 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Sunday was her 105th game as a Hawkeye, making her 39th start overall.

Despite McCabe’s early exit, Iowa took a 24-14 lead after the first quarter. They finished the quarter on a 16-3 run including leaving the Buckeyes to 33% from the floor.

Freshman Addie Deal was given extra minutes in the first quarter after McCabe’s injury. She made the most of her time on the floor with eight points (4-4 FG) in nine minutes, including two rebounds and an assist. Deal was the No. 15 overall player and the No. 6 shooting guard in the 2025 recruiting class, per the Rivals Industry Rankings.

For McCabe, she is a program mainstay. Instead of hitting the portal, she’s worked her way up in the program after not starting once in her first two seasons (51 games) before going on to start in 19 of 33 appearances last season.

Her 3-point shooting has helped Iowa amass a 17-2 record (8-0, Big Ten) through 19 games. However, it appears her teammates have stepped up early and often to help cover he absence.

Iowa is one of two teams in the Big Ten that entered Sunday with a perfect record against the conference. UCLA (18-1, 8-0 Big Ten) is the other. Meanwhile, Ohio State and Michigan boast 7-1 records as well, so a loss against the Buckeyes on Sunday would certainly shake up the top of the current standings.