WBB Notebook: at Nebraska

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IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa women’s basketball team opens the Big Ten Conference schedule on the road at Nebraska on Saturday. The Hawkeyes take on the Cornhuskers in Lincoln, Nebraska, in Pinnacle Bank Arena, and tip-off is set for 1 p.m. (CT), and the game will stream on BTN+.
 
WATCH/FOLLOW ALONG

• Saturday’s contest will be streamed on BTN+. A subscription is required.
• The game can also be streamed on the Fox Sports Go app (subscription).
• Live stats are available on the women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.

 
AUDIO COVERAGE

• Jim Albracht and Jim Davies will call the action on the Hawkeye Radio Network. A link to the broadcast is available on the women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.

 
SCOUTING NEBRASKA

• Nebraska is 10-1 on the season — it’s one loss was against Creighton, 79-74.
• The Cornhuskers are leading the Big Ten in blocked shots (5.9 per game), second in offensive rebounding (42.2 per game), and third in free throw percentage (71.9).
• Junior center Kate Cain is second in the conference, blocking 3.0 shots per game.
• Sophomore forward Leigha Brown leads Nebraska and ranks 11th in the Big Ten in scoring (14.7 ppg) after her season-high 25-point effort against Manhattan (Dec. 22). Brown added five rebounds and four assists against the Jaspers to earn a spot on the Big Ten Weekly Honor Roll (Dec. 23). She is the only non-starter in the Big Ten averaging more than 12 points per game.
• Two additional Huskers are averaging double-figure scoring, including sophomore guard Sam Haiby (10.7) and Cain (10.1).
• Sophomore forward Ashtyn Veerbeek averages 6.4 rebounds per game, leading Nebraska. Cain follows with 6.2.
• As a team, Nebraska averages 74.2 points per game, while holding opponents to 59.4.
• Amy Williams is in her fourth season with the Cornhuskers. Williams captured 2018 Big Ten Coach-of-the-Year honors after the Huskers earned a bid into the 2018 NCAA Tournament and finished with a 21-11 record – a nation-leading 14-game turnaround in the win column over 2016-17.

 
SCOUTING NEBRASKA — THE SERIES

• Iowa and Nebraska are tied all-time, 14-14.
• Last season, the Hawkeyes swept the Cornhuskers, winning at Pinnacle Bank Arena, 74-58, on Feb. 25, 2019 and at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, 77-71, on Jan. 3, 2019.
• The Hawkeyes are 6-5 at Pinnacle Bank Arena, winning three of the last four contests on the Huskers home court.

 
HAWKEYES RANK B1G

• In the Big Ten, the Hawkeyes are leading in assists, averaging 21.0 per game. Iowa ranks second in scoring offense (79.6 ppg), free-throw percentage (.724), and 3-pointers made (93), and are third in field goal percentage (.475), 3-point field goal percentage (.377), and assist/turnover ratio (1.4).
• Three Hawkeyes rank in the top 10 of the Big Ten for points per game, including senior Makenzie Meyer (15.9), senior Kathleen Doyle (15.5), and sophomore Monika Czinano (15.1). The Hawkeyes are the only team with multiple athletes in the top 10 for scoring.
• Czinano is leading the conference in field goal percentage (.723), making 73 of 101 shots taken.
• Doyle is leading the Big Ten in assists per game (6.5) this season.
• Senior Amanda Ollinger is ranked fourth in rebounds per game, tallying 8.7. Ollinger averages 6.0 defensive rebounds per game, ranking third.

 
NATIONALLY SPEAKING

• Iowa is ranked fifth in assists per game (21.0) in Division I women’s basketball.
• Sophomore Monika Czinano is leading the country in field goal percentage (.723).
• Senior Kathleen Doyle ranks seventh in the NCAA with 71 assists on the season.

 
ON THE SEASON

• Iowa closed out the nonconference schedule, 9-2, with its most recent win over in-state foe Drake, 79-67.
• Senior Kathleen Doyle recorded her first double-double of the season against the Bulldogs, scoring 19 points and assisting 10 baskets.
• Senior Kathleen Doyle (15.9), senior Makenzie Meyer (15.5), and sophomore Monika Czinano (15.1) lead the Hawkeyes in points per game.
• Senior Amanda Ollinger leads the Hawkeyes in rebounds, averaging 8.7 per game. Ollinger recorded a career-high 20 rebounds against Iowa State on Dec. 11.
• Czinano is leading the Hawkeyes in shooting percentage (.723).

 
CAN WE GET SOME ASSISTANCE

• Senior Kathleen Doyle ranks second all-time at Iowa in assists, tallying 588 career assists.
• Doyle recorded nine assists against NC Central (Dec. 14), surpassing Cara Consuegra (576).

 
B1G HONOR ROLL

• Two Hawkeyes have earned Big Ten Women’s Basketball Player of the Week Honor Roll, including seniors Kathleen Doyle (Nov. 25) and Makenzie Meyer (Dec. 16, Dec. 23).
• Meyer registered a game-high 24 points, shooting 9-for-14, while adding five assists and four rebounds in the Hawkeyes’ home victory over in-state foe Drake (Dec. 21).
• Meyer averaged 18.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists per game with a .632 field-goal percentage last week in the Hawkeyes’ wins over in-state rival Iowa State (Dec. 11) and North Carolina Central (Dec. 14).
• Doyle challenged for a triple-double in the Hawkeyes’ overtime win over Princeton on Nov. 20. She finished the game with 21 points, seven rebounds and nine assists.

 
WELCOME TO THE 1,000-POINT CLUB

• Senior Makenzie Meyer scored her 1,000th career point in the Hawkeyes, 79-67, win over Drake on Dec. 21. She currently has 1,001 points at Iowa.
• Meyer is the 38th Hawkeye to reach 1,000 points, following Doyle, who accomplished the career mark earlier this season.
• Senior Kathleen Doyle scored her 1,000th-career point in Iowa’s 85-53 win over Florida Atlantic on Nov. 14. She put up seven points in the first quarter to break into the 1,000-point club against FAU.
• Doyle is the 37th Hawkeye to reach 1,000 points and now ranks 27th all-time at Iowa (1,164).

 
TICKETS

• Single-game tickets are also available for purchase. Tickets may be ordered online at hawkeyesports.com/tickets, in person at the UI Athletics Ticket Office in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, or by calling 1-800-IA-HAWKS.

 
PRESEASON ALL-BIG TEN

• Senior Kathleen Doyle earned unanimous preseason All-Big Ten recognition, the conference office announced Oct. 21.
• Doyle, a 2018-19 first team All-Big Ten selection (coaches), earns the second preseason honor of her career. The LaGrange Park, Illinois, native finished last season ranked 15th nationally in assists per game (5.9) and tied for 31st in total assists (170). The senior led the Big Ten with 6.3 assists per game in conference action last season. She scored in double figures 20 times in 29 games, and dished out five or more assists on 21 occasions.

 
2018-19 RECAP

• The Hawkeyes won their first Big Ten Tournament Title since 2001 and advanced to their first Elite Eight since 1993.
• Iowa tied the highest win total in program history (29 wins, 1987-88).
• The Hawkeyes went undefeated in Carver-Hawkeye Arena for the first time since 2014-15 (18-0).
• Last season, Iowa registered seven wins over ranked opponents (No. 20 West Virginia, No. 20 Minnesota, No. 14 Rutgers, No. 21 Michigan State, No. 7 Maryland, No. 8 Maryland, and No. 10 NC State).
• The Hawkeyes set the Big Ten record for assists in a single-season with 775 assists, crushing the previous record of 694 set by Maryland in 2016-17.
• Iowa set a Big Ten record with 392 assists in conference play, topping Ohio State’s mark of 356 set in 1984-85.
• The Hawkeyes averaged 21.8 assists per game during Big Ten contests, passing Iowa’s own Big Ten record of 20.8 assists per game during the 2000-01 season.
• Iowa set new school assists records in back-to-back games, dishing out 34 assists against Western Kentucky (Nov. 13), before besting that mark with 36 against N.C. Central (Nov. 17).
• The Hawkeyes finished the 2018-19 season with a 29-7 overall record.
• Iowa registered its 13th upper division finish in conference, placing second.
• Iowa has advanced to the postseason in 12 consecutive seasons (10 NCAA and two WNIT).
• The Hawkeyes finished the 2018-19 season ranked first nationally in field goal percentage (51.5), second in assists per game (21.5), third in total assists (775), fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.55), 12th in free throw percentage (77.3), 13th in fewest fouls per game (13.6), and 14th in scoring offense (78.4).

 
ROSTER AT A GLANCE

• The Hawkeyes return nine letterwinners, including two starters in All-Big Ten selection Kathleen Doyle and Makenzie Meyer. Alexis Sevillian made 12 starts last season.
• Doyle led the team last season in assists, averaging 5.9 per game – a mark that led the Big Ten and ranked 15th nationally. She also led in steals, averaging 2.3 per contest – the second-best mark in the Big Ten. She ranked third on the team in scoring, averaging 12.0 points per game.
• Meyer led the team with 62 3-pointers made and recorded 143 assists.
• Guard Megan Meyer enters her freshman season after averaging 24.9 points per game, 4.6 rebounds, and 4.5 assists as a senior. Meyer is a four-time all-state honoree and two-time Globe Gazette Player of the Year (2017, 2018).
• Guard/forward McKenna Warnock joins the squad from Monona Grove where she was the all-time leading scorer (boys and girls) and all-time leading rebounder.
• Guard Gabbie Marshall enters her first year after leading Mount Notre Dame to a 2019 Ohio State Championship title, recording 73 steals and shooting 42.6 percent from 3-point range.
• Edwardsville, Illinois, native, Kate Martin will make her debut after redshirting last season with a knee injury. The first-team all-state honoree averaged 16.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 2.1 steals per game as a senior.

 
GUARDS ON DUTY

• The Hawkeyes are experienced at the guard position, returning seniors Kathleen Doyle, Makenzie Meyer, and junior Alexis Sevillian.
• Together, the trio accounted for 131 of Iowa’s 201 3-pointers made (65 percent) and collectively averaged 78.9 percent from the free-throw line last season.

 
MEET THE CAPTAINS

• For the third consecutive year, senior Kathleen Doyle has been named captain by her teammates along with senior Makenzie Meyer and junior Alexis Sevillian.
• Doyle, a first team All-Big Ten selection, returns for her senior season after leading the Big Ten with 6.3 assists per game in conference play.

 
UP NEXT
Iowa hosts its first Big Ten game of the season on Dec. 31 as the Hawkeyes take on Illinois at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Mediacom Court. Tip-off is set for 2 p.m. (CT), and the game will be streamed on BTN+.