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Feb. 13, 2004

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Iowa (12-9, 5-5) hosts Michigan (13-7, 4-5) Saturday, Feb. 14 in the second of two home games this week. Iowa plays three of its next four games at home. Game time is 1:32 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500). Iowa lost to Wisconsin 54-52 Wednesday in Iowa City, while Michigan lost at Minnesota 81-78 Wednesday. Michigan defeated Iowa 90-84 Jan. 28 in Ann Arbor.

ON THE AIR
Radio: Iowa games are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network. Gary Dolphin handles the play-by-play with color commentator Bob Hansen. Television: ESPN Regional will carry the game to a network of stations throughout the Big Ten Conference viewing area, including KGAN in Cedar Rapids. Jim Barbar and Bill Hosket will call the action.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,302 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Overall Iowa’s record is 1,371-931 (.596). That includes an 856-302 (.739) record in home games, a 515-629 (.450) record in games away from Iowa City, a 653-642 (.504) mark in Big Ten games and a 262-76 (.775) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

IOWA IN CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa has compiled a 262-76 (.775) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa is 125-63 (.664) in Big Ten games and 137-13 (.913) in non-Big Ten games. Iowa has drawn over five million fans for men’s basketball games since the arena opened in 1983, surpassing the five million mark when 14,268 fans saw Iowa defeat Ohio State Jan. 24, 2004. Iowa has posted a 54-21 (.720) home record under Coach Steve Alford, including a 33-4 (.892) mark in non-conference home games.

WORLEY SURPASSES 1,000 CAREER POINTS
Senior Glen Worley has scored 1,003 points to become the 35th player at Iowa to reach 1,000 career points. The native of Coralville, who attended Iowa City West HS, played in all 101 games during the first three years of his Iowa career before missing the first four games of this season due to injury. He is averaging 8.5 points over the 118 games he has played for the Hawkeyes and he had a season-high 20 points in Iowa’s double-overtime win at Indiana.

Worley has also totaled 508 career rebounds, becoming the 20th Hawkeye player to surpass both 1,000 points and 500 rebounds. Worley is also the third Iowa player to reach 1,000 career points while playing for Coach Steve Alford. The most recent addition to Iowa’s 1,000-Point Club was Reggie Evans, who scored 1,054 points and had 794 rebounds during his two-year career (2001-02). Dean Oliver (1998-01) ranks seventh on Iowa’s career scoring list with 1,561 points. Oliver played his final two seasons under Alford and reached the 1,000-point plateau near the end of his junior season.

HORNER EARNS BIG TEN HONOR
Sophomore guard Jeff Horner has been named Big Ten Conference Player of the Week for his efforts in Iowa’s two games last week, an 84-82 win in double overtime at Indiana and an 89-72 loss at Michigan State. Horner played all but one minute in the two games.

A native of Mason City who has started all 51 games in his Iowa career, Horner hit the game-winning basket with one second remaining in the second overtime period at Indiana. He had made two free throws at the end of regulation and at the end of the first overtime, each time giving Iowa a three-point advantage in the final seconds.

Horner had 17 points, 10 rebounds and six assists vs. Indiana, recording his second scoring and rebounding double-double of the season and third of his career. Horner did not miss a field goal or free throw attempt in the final 30 minutes of action.

In the loss at Michigan State, Horner played all 40 minutes, scoring 21 points and collecting six rebounds and two assists. In the two games Horner made 12-19 (67%) field goal attempts, including 8-13 (62%) three-pointers, and all six of his free throw attempts. He averaged 19 points, eight rebounds and four assists in the two games.

IOWA VS. RANKED FOES
Having played five games against ranked opponents this season, Steve Alford has posted a 15-22 record against ranked opponents as Iowa’s head coach, including a 5-4 mark in Iowa’s last nine games against ranked foes and a 2-3 mark in 2003-04. Iowa, this season, defeated 16th-ranked Louisville 70-69 in overtime and 24th-ranked Purdue 71-61 in Iowa City. Iowa lost at 22nd-ranked Missouri, 76-56, at 25th-ranked Illinois, 88-82 and lost 54-52 to 14th-ranked Wisconsin in Iowa City.

Alford’s Hawkeye teams are 5-8 when playing teams ranked in the top 10, including wins over top-ranked Connecticut (70-68 in 1999-00), 2nd-ranked Missouri (83-65 in 2001-02), 5th-ranked Ohio State (67-64 in 1999-00), 7th-ranked Illinois (78-62 in 2000-01) and 8th-ranked Illinois (68-61 in 2002-03). The eight losses to top 10 teams have been once to top-ranked (Duke, 2001-02), once to 3rd-ranked (Illinois, 2000-01), twice to 4th-ranked (Michigan State, 1999-00 and 2000-01), twice to 5th-ranked (Tennessee, 2000-01 and Missouri, 2001-02), once to 9th-ranked (Kentucky, 2000-01) and once to 10th-ranked (Illinois, 2002).

In the 37 games against ranked teams, Alford and his Iowa team are 6-6 in home games, 6-7 at neutral sites and 3-9 when playing ranked teams in their home arena.

IOWA VS. RANKED TEAMS
These are Iowa’s most recent wins vs. nationally ranked opponents: At Home: 71-61 over 24th-ranked Purdue, 1/7/04; On the Road: 67-63 over 20th-ranked Tulsa, 12/28/02; Neutral Court: 0-69 (OT) over 16th-ranked Louisville; at Wooden Tradition in Indianapolis, 11/29/03

IOWA COACH Steve Alford
Steve Alford (pronounced ALL-ford) is in his fifth season as the head coach at the University of Iowa and his 13th season as a college head coach. Alford holds a career record of 241-144 (.626), including an 85-67 (.559) record at Iowa, a 78-29 (.729) record in four seasons (1992-95) at Div. III Manchester College and a four-year record (1996-99) of 78-48 (.619) at Southwest Missouri State. He is 30-44 (.405) in Big Ten games at Iowa. Career win No. 200 for Alford came in 2002 in a 78-53 win at Iowa State. Alford is 8-5 in the NCAA Tournament (3-2 in Div. I and 5-3 in Div. III) and 2-3 in the NIT.

Alford led Iowa to the 2001 Big Ten Conference Tournament title and into the second round of the NCAA Tournament in his second season with the Hawkeyes. Iowa earned a return trip to the title game of the Big Ten Conference Tournament in 2002 and advanced to the NIT in post-season play in both 2002 and 2003. The Hawkeyes set a Big Ten Conference Tournament record with seven straight wins over two seasons (2001-2002) before a last-second loss in the first round of the 2003 tournament. Alford’s record in the event is 8-3 in his four seasons.

Alford led Southwest Missouri State to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 1999 and in 1995 Manchester advanced to the NCAA championship game before suffering its first defeat of the season.

Alford is a 1987 graduate of Indiana, where he led the Hoosiers to the 1987 NCAA title. Alford was a member of the 1984 U. S. Olympic team that earned the Gold Medal and he was the 26th player selected in the NBA Draft following his senior season. Alford played four seasons in the NBA before beginning his coaching career.

At Indiana, Alford started 120 of 125 games in four seasons. He served as team captain in 1987 when the Hoosiers were 30-4. Steve concluded his college career as Indiana’s all-time scoring leader with 2,438 points and he holds the Indiana record for career steals with 178. He was a consensus first team All-American and the Big Ten MVP as a senior.

Alford is a member of the Manchester College M Association Hall of Fame and the Indiana University Athletics Hall of Fame. In 2001 he was named one of the “Top 50 Athletes” in the history of the state of Indiana and was selected as a member of the 15-man Indiana University all-Century team.

Alford is 2-5 vs. Michigan and 1-2 vs. Wolverine Coach Tommy Amaker.

ALFORD NAMED TO ESPN TEAM
Iowa Coach Steve Alford was recently named to ESPN’s Big Ten Conference Silver Anniversary team, honoring Big Ten players from the past 25 years. Alford led Indiana to the 1987 NCAA championship and was a member of the 1984 USA Olympic team that won the gold medal.

Other members of ESPN’s team are Kevin McHale, Minnesota, Glenn Robinson, Purdue, Mateen Cleaves, Michigan State and Jim Jackson, Ohio State.

MICHIGAN COACH TOMMY AMAKER
Tommy Amaker is in his third season as the head coach at Michigan and his seventh season overall as a college head coach. Amaker is 41-38 at Michigan and his career mark stands at 109-93. He posted a 68-55 record in four seasons as the head coach at Seton Hall. Amaker graduated from Duke University in 1987, where he earned all-America honors and was named National Defensive Player of the Year as a senior.

Amaker scored 1,168 points during his playing career and ranks second in Duke history in career assists and steals. Amaker was a member of the Blue Devil coaching staff from 1989-97, serving as associate head coach in his final two seasons before taking over at Seton Hall in 1997-98.

Amaker is 2-1 against Iowa and Hawkeye Coach Steve Alford.

THE SERIES
Michigan holds a 78-51advantage in the series that began with a 19-15 Wolverine win in 1912. Michigan defeated Iowa 90-84 Jan. 28 in Ann Arbor and won the only meeting last season, 70-62 in Ann Arbor. Iowa scored a 76-56 decision in Iowa City in the only meeting in 2002. Michigan has won seven of the last 10 meetings.

Iowa holds a 32-31 advantage in games played in Iowa City, including an 11-8 advantage in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa has won two of the last three games in Iowa City and three of the last five.

Michigan’s 77-66 win in the 1998 Big Ten Conference Tournament marks the only game in the series that has been played at a neutral site.

BOTH IN HALL OF FAME
Iowa Coach Steve Alford and Michigan Coach Tommy Amaker are both members of the Athletic Hall of Fame of their respective alma maters. Alford attended Indiana, where he is a member of the Indiana Hall of Fame and a member of Indiana’s all-Century team. Amaker is a member of the Duke University Hall of Fame.

GAME NOTES
Iowa and Michigan both lost close games Wednesday evening after failing on a final shot attempt. Iowa lost to 14th-ranked Wisconsin 54-52 in Iowa City when Jeff Horner’s three-point attempt was off the mark in the final seconds. Michigan dropped an 81-78 decision at Minnesota after a three-point shot be Dion Harris was off target with one second left in the game.

Iowa and Michigan are two of five teams that have won the Big Ten Conference Tournament. Michigan won the inaugural tournament in 1998 and Iowa earned the tournament title in 2001. Michigan State won the event in 1999 and 2000, Ohio State won in 2002 and Illinois won in 2003.

Steve Alford and Tommy Amaker met once as players, with Alford’s Indiana team defeating Amaker’s Duke team 88-82 in the regional semi-finals of the 1987 NCAA Tournament. Duke had played in the championship game the previous year, while Alford and the Hoosiers went on to win the NCAA title in 1987. Alford had 18 points, five assists and two rebounds in the win over Duke, while Amaker led the Blue Devils with 23 points.

Iowa Coach Steve Alford was named to the all-Final Four team in 1987 when Indiana won the national title. Michigan Coach Tommy Amaker was named to the all-Final Four team in 1986 when Duke lost to Louisville in the NCAA title game.

Michigan assistant Coach Charles E. Ramsey, in his third year on the Wolverine staff, was an assistant coach at Drake University in Des Moines in 1995 and 1996. Iowa defeated the Bulldogs in both of those seasons. Michigan assistant Coach Chuck Swenson, in his third season with the Wolverines, previously served as a graduate assistant at Indiana. He was an assistant at Duke when Steve Alford and Indiana defeated the Blue Devils in the 1987 tournament, he was an assistant at Duke when the Blue Devils defeated Iowa in 1996 and he was an assistant coach at Penn State from 1996-2001.

MICHIGAN WON FIRST MEETING
Michigan used an 11-2 scoring run to start the game and a 13-2 spurt to close the first half to gain control, then held off a late rally in taking a 90-84 win over Iowa in Ann Arbor Jan. 28. The Wolverines built a 31-20 advantage in the first 11 minutes before Iowa used a 15-0 run of its own to take a 35-31 lead. Iowa held Michigan without a point for nearly seven minutes as Glen Worley and Pierre Pierce each had three baskets during the scoring spree.

Several Iowa turnovers led to Michigan’s run to close the half, which ended with the Wolverines holding a 44-37 advantage. The Hawkeyes were guilty of 13 turnovers in the first 20 minutes as Michigan scored often in transition and shot 56% from the field in the first half.

The Wolverines maintained their advantage in the second half, leading by as many as 14 points, 70-56, with 10 minutes left to play. Iowa rallied from that point, but came up short. The Hawkeyes were able to get as close as four, 88-84, with less than five seconds to play, but Michigan sealed the verdict with its two final free throws. Iowa shot a season-best 58% from the field, including 43.8% (7-16) from three-point range, and added 19-26 (73.1%) free throws. The Hawkeyes cut down on the turnovers in the final 20 minutes (just five), but came up with just one steal and forced just three Michigan turnovers in the second half.

Michigan won the rebounding battle by a 30-27 margin. The Wolverines shot 53.4% from the field and 45.5% from three-point range.

Iowa had five players score in double figures, with Pierre Pierce scoring 23 to lead the way. Glen Worley added 18 points, Brody Boyd and Greg Brunner scored 13 and Sean Sonderleiter added 12. Worley and Pierce led Iowa with seven rebounds apiece and Brunner added five.

Lester Abram scored 24 points to lead the Wolverines, while Courtney Sims added 16 and Daniel Horton scored 15.

AFTER THIS
The Hawkeyes play at Ohio State on Wednesday, Feb. 18 and host Illinois Wednesday, Feb. 25.