Iowa women’s basketball is hosting former UCLA guard Elina Aarnisalo for a weekend visit.
Edwin Arocho of Prep Girls Hoops reported that Aarnisalo had made her way to Iowa City to take in what head coach Jan Jensen and the Hawkeyes have to offer her and how she could fit into Iowa’s future plans.
A 5-foot-10 guard, Aarnisalo just completed her freshman season with the Bruins where she played in 37 games and started 10. Aarnisalo averaged 5.1 points, 3.4 assists and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 43.7% from the field and 27.0% from 3-point range.
During her 10 starts, Aarnisalo’s averages were up to 8.6 points, 5.3 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game. Aarnisalo’s shooting efficiency also ticked upwards during her starts. The Finland guard shot 54.7% from the field and 42.8% from 3-point range in games she started during her frosh campaign.
As Iowa looks to restock a backcourt that sees Lucy Olsen and Sydney Affolter depart, Aarnisalo could step right in as a starting point guard for the Hawkeyes. That would allow five-star and incoming McDonald’s All-American Addie Deal to slide to the off-ball position for Iowa and morph into more of a scorer.
Plus, the Hawkeyes also inked four-star guard Journey Houston and Iowa returns a nucleus of guards that features Taylor McCabe, Kylie Feuerbach, Teagan Mallegni and Taylor Stremlow.
Here’s a look at some of Aarnisalo’s highlights:
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