Hawkeyes Host Northwestern Saturday Evening

Feb. 11, 2005

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THE SETTING
Iowa (15-7, 3-6) looks to snap a two-game losing streak when the Hawkeyes host Northwestern (11-11, 4-6) Saturday. Game time is 7:04 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500).

The Hawkeyes lost to #20/21 Wisconsin 72-69 in Madison Wednesday night, while the Wildcats scored a 55-53 win at Minnesota. Northwestern defeated Iowa 75-74 in OT Jan. 26 when the teams met in Evanston.

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 that includes KGAN Cedar Rapids, KDSM Des Moines, KCAU Sioux City, KYOU Ottumwa and KWQC Quad Cities. Larry Morgan and Mac McCausland will call the action.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,332 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Overall Iowa’s record is 1,390-942 (.596). That includes an 869-305 (.740) record in home games, a 521-637 (.450) record in games away from Iowa City, a 660-651 (.503) mark in Big Ten games and a 275-79 (.777) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

IOWA IN CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa has compiled a 275-79 (.777) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa is 130-66 (.663) in Big Ten games and 145-13 (.918) in non-Big Ten games. Iowa has drawn over five million fans for men’s basketball games since the arena opened in 1983. Iowa has posted a 67-24 (.736) home record under Coach Steve Alford, including a 42-4 (.913) mark in non-conference home games.

IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa is listed among teams receiving votes in both the Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today coaches polls. The Hawkeyes were ranked for nine consecutive weeks, reaching as high as 14th in the Associated Press poll on Jan. 3. Iowa began the season receiving no votes in either poll. The Hawkeyes are 47th in the RPI rankings and 26th in the Sagarin Ratings.

IOWA HAS FAST START
With 12 wins in its first 13 games, Iowa enjoyed its best start under Coach Steve Alford. Iowa, in 2001, posted a 10-1 mark to start the season and ended the year with a 23-12 overall record. Iowa began both the 1997-98 and 1998-99 seasons with a 13-1 record.

Iowa’s nine-game win streak during non-conference action matched the best streak for an Iowa team under Alford, as the Hawkeyes opened the 2000-01 season with nine straight wins. The Hawkeyes also had six-game win streaks in 2003-04 and 2001-02.

Iowa has 12 non-conference wins (not including post-season) for the first time since 1988-89.

ILLINOIS START TIME MOVED UP
The start time of the Illinois at Iowa contest on Saturday, Feb. 19 has moved to 11:06 a.m. The contest was originally slated to begin at 11:17 a.m.

The game was originally selected as an ESPN Plus game to be telecast throughout the Big Ten area. The game will now be televised nationally on ESPN. The game will be shown on the usual and customary ESPN Plus regional outlets in Iowa and Illinois, and on ESPN throughout the remainder of the country.

DATE SET FOR MICHIGAN GAME
Iowa’s final regular season game at Michigan will be played Saturday, March 5. The start time is 11:17 a.m. CT. ESPN Plus will televise the contest throughout the Big Ten Conference viewing area.

RECOGNITION ON THE NET
Iowa’s basketball program was well recognized on the internet for its play during the non-conference portion of the season.

• On espn.com, ESPN analyst Dick Vitale selected the Hawkeyes as his “Team of the Week” for their 83-53 win over Texas Tech.
• CollegeInsider.com selected sophomore guard Adam Haluska as its “Star of the Week” for his play in the win over Texas Tech. Haluska matched his career high with 21 points, hitting 7-9 field goals, 3-3 three-pointers and 4-5 free throws.
• CollegeInsider.com selected Coach Steve Alford for its “Mid Season” Jim Phelan Coach of the Year honor. The Jim Phelan Coach of the Year honor is awarded in March.
• Gregg Doyel, writing for cbssportline.com, recently featured the Iowa guard court of Jeff Horner, Pierre Pierce and Adam Haluska as one of the best in the nation.

IOWA COACH Steve Alford
Steve Alford (pronounced ALL-ford) is in his sixth season as the head coach at the University of Iowa and his 14th season as a college head coach. Alford holds a career record of 260-155 (.627), including a 104-78 (.571) 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. Alford ranks fifth among Iowa’s head basketball coaches in career wins and he is 37-52 (.416) in Big Ten games at Iowa. Alford is 8-5 in the NCAA Tournament (3-2 in Div. I and 5-3 in Div. III) and 2-4 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 2002, 2003 and 2004. 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 8-4 in his five 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. A year ago he was one of five players selected to ESPN’s Big Ten Conference Silver Anniversary team, honoring Big Ten players from the past 25 seasons. Alford is 5-5 vs. Northwestern and 4-5 against Wildcat Coach Bill Carmody.

NORTHWESTERN COACH BILL CARMODY
Bill Carmody is in his fifth season at Northwestern and his ninth year as a college head coach. Carmody holds a career mark of 156-100, which includes a 64-75 mark at Northwestern. Carmody posted a record of 92-25 in four seasons at Princeton University, where he was a member of the basketball staff for a total of 18 seasons. His record in Ivy League games as the head coach at Princeton was 50-6 and Carmody led Princeton to four straight post-season appearances. Carmody was the head coach at Fulton County (NY) Community College for one season, 1975-76, he was an assistant coach at Union College from 1976-80 and he was an assistant at Providence College for one season before joining the staff at Princeton in 1982. Carmody is 5-4 vs. Iowa and Hawkeye Coach Steve Alford.

THE SERIES
Iowa holds a 102-50 advantage over Northwestern in the series that began with a 24-23 Wildcat win in 1905. Iowa won nine straight games in the series before Northwestern has come back to win the last three games and five of the last nine meetings, including a 75-74 overtime win in Evanston Jan. 26. Last season marked the first time since 1959 in which the Wildcats won both meetings against the Hawkeyes and Northwestern’s three-game win streak is the longest over Iowa since it won seven straight from 1928-32. Iowa has won 19 of the last 25 meetings overall.

Iowa holds a 58-16 advantage in games played in Iowa City, including an 18-2 record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Northwestern had lost seven straight in Iowa City before the 77-68 victory in 2004.

FOES WERE SUMMER TEAMMATES
Iowa’s Jeff Horner and Greg Brunner were summer teammates with Northwestern’s Mike Thompson at the 2001 USA Basketball Men’s Youth Development Festival. Those three played for the North Team that captured the gold medal with a 4-1 record. Horner scored in double figures in all five games, with a high of 18 points in the semi-finals. He also tied a Festival record with seven steals in one game. Brunner averaged 5.8 points and 3.6 rebounds in the five games. Thompson, who began his career at Duke before joining the Wildcats, averaged 9.4 points and 5.0 rebounds.

IOWA FALLS IN OT AT NORTHWESTERN
Northwestern scored on a three-point basket as time expired to take a 75-74 win over Iowa Jan. 26 in Evanston. The Hawkeyes held a 62-50 advantage with 3:27 left in regulation before Northwestern rallied. Taking advantage of several missed free throws, Northwestern tied the game with 13 seconds remaining on three free throws. A final shot by Pierre Pierce was off target, sending the game to overtime.

After Northwestern scored the first two points of the extra session, Iowa scored seven straight points and again seemed in control. The Wildcats came back, getting within two points with 53 seconds remaining. An Iowa turnover with four seconds left game Northwestern a final chance, and after a timeout, Northwestern reserve Michael Jenkins hit the game-winner from the far left corner.

Northwestern led for just 31 seconds in the 45 minute contest, while the score was tied six times for 3:08. The Hawkeyes, however, made just 5-13 free throws in the final four minutes of regulation and the overtime period, compared to 7-7 for Northwestern. The Hawkeyes were also guilty of 19 turnovers in the contest.

Iowa hit its first six shots of the game in taking an early 14-4 advantage and led 32-29 at intermission. After the Wildcats scored the first three points of the second half, Iowa took control and slowly built its advantage until the final four minutes.

Greg Brunner led Iowa’s scoring attack with a career-high 28 points, hitting 11-17 field goals and 6-8 free throws. Pierce added 15 points, six rebounds and seven assists and Adam Haluska scored 12 points. Jeff Horner had seven points and six assists, with no turnovers, and Doug Thomas led the Hawkeyes with 10 rebounds, matching his career high.

Vedran Vukusic led Northwestern with a career-high 32 points. T.J. Parker added 12 points and Davor Duvancic led the Wildcats with six rebounds.

ALFORD REACHES 100 HAWKEYE WINS
Coach Steve Alford collected win No. 100 as Iowa’s head coach in the 73-63 victory over Air Force. Career victory No. 250 came in the 88-53 win over Centenary in early December. His career mark stands at 260-155. Alford is 104-78 at Iowa, moving into fifth place on the Iowa list for coaching victories. Iowa’s top four coaches in career wins include Tom Davis (269), Lute Olson (168), Rollie Williams (139) and Bucky O’Connor (114).

WISCONSIN RALLIES PAST IOWA
Wisconsin used a 13-0 scoring run midway through the second half to get back in the game and went on to a 72-69 win over Iowa in Madison. The Hawkeyes led 52-39 with 12:44 remaining before the Badgers rallied to take a 56-54 advantage with 4:46 to play. The score was tied for the final time at 56-56 with 4:28 left before Wisconsin scored five straight to gain control. Iowa closed to within two points twice, the last at 63-61 with 2:19 to play. From there the Badgers stayed in control, icing the win by hitting 11-14 free throws over the final four minutes.

Wisconsin scored the first four points of the game before Iowa took its first lead on a three-point basket by Greg Brunner. Iowa led the rest of the first half until two Wisconsin free throws as time expired left the teams tied at 34-34 at intermission. Iowa led for the first 14 minutes of the second half before the score was tied at 54-54 near the end of Wisconsin’s scoring run.

The Badgers shot 46.5% from the field compared to 45% for Iowa. Wisconsin shot 56.3% in the second half, while the Hawkeyes shot 52% in the opening 20 minutes. Iowa made eight treys compared to five for Wisconsin, but the Badgers made 27-35 free throws, compared to 7-14 for Iowa. The Hawkeyes had a season-low six turnovers.

Brunner led Iowa’s attack with 27 points, hitting 12-21 field goals. Jeff Horner added 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and two steals, with no turnovers in 40 minutes. Adam Haluska added 16 points and Mike Henderson added a career-best five rebounds.

NORTHWESTERN RALLIES AT MINNESOTA
Northwestern rallied from a 10-point deficit in the final minutes to take a 55-53 win at Minnesota Wednesday. Guard T.J. Parker scored the winning basket with one second remaining to give the Wildcats the win. Northwestern held Minnesota to 39.5% shooting from the field as Minnesota had just 15 field goals in the game. The Gophers made 21-27 free throws, compared to 4-7 for Northwestern. The Wildcats shot 44% from the field and earned the win despite being out-rebounded by a 39-18 margin. Northwestern did collect 17 steals while forcing 23 Minnesota turnovers. Parker led Northwestern with 19 points and six steals, while Vedran Vukusic and Mohammed Hachad each scored nine. Davor Duvancic led the Wildcats with six rebounds.

IOWA HAS LOWEST TURNOVER TOTAL
Iowa was guilty of just six turnovers in the loss at Wisconsin, a season-low and the lowest number for Iowa in 182 games under Coach Steve Alford. For the second straight game, the Hawkeyes had just one turnover in the second half. The Hawkeyes are 6-8 in 14 games under Coach Alford in which they commit less than 10 turnovers, with five of those games taking place this season.

NOT GETTING THE CLOSE ONES
Iowa, in eight Big Ten games, has lost two games in overtime, a road game by three points and another by two points at home. The Hawkeyes lost to Michigan 63-65 to open Big Ten play and most recently dropped a 69-72 decision at #20 Wisconsin. Iowa has lost overtime games at top-ranked Illinois (68-73) and at Northwestern (74-75). Iowa’s three conference wins, all at home, have been by six, 14 and 15 points.

On the season, Iowa is 7-4 in games decided by 10 points or less, but the four losses have all come in conference action.

HAWKEYES AMONG NCAA LEADERS
As a team, Iowa is tied for ninth nationally in blocked shots per game (6.0). Individually, center Erek Hansen is fourth in blocked shots (3.4).

OPPONENTS HITTING FREE THROWS
Iowa attempted more free throws than its opponent in its first 15 games of the season before Minnesota (30-29) and Illinois (31-12) both had more attempts than the Hawkeyes in consecutive games.

In games vs. Northwestern and Indiana, the free throw attempts were equal. In the loss at Wisconsin, the Badgers converted 27-35 attempts, compared to 7-14 for Iowa. Against Michigan State, Iowa made 32-42 free throw attempts, compared to 23-29 for MSU.

In Iowa’s two overtime losses on the road, the Hawkeyes did not attempt a free throw in the opening half.

HAWKEYES TIE BLOCK RECORD, AGAIN
Iowa set its second single-game record of the season in a loss to North Carolina and tied that record in wins over North Carolina-Greensboro and Saint Louis. The Hawkeyes blocked 12 shots in each of those games to break the previous record of 11, set in an 80-65 win at Drake on Jan. 4, 1993.

Junior center Erek Hansen led the way with five blocks against the North Carolina and UNC Greensboro, and he had seven in the win over Saint Louis.

The Hawkeyes have 129 blocked shots in 22 games. Iowa’s top three season totals for blocked shots include 165 in 1993, 161 in 1992 and 153 in 1991.

IOWA SETS FREE THROW MARK
Iowa set school and Carver-Hawkeye Arena records in its opening win over Western Illinois by making all 20 of its free throw attempts. Six Hawkeyes contributed to the record, with Pierre Pierce and Erek Hansen each making four. The previous best for a perfect free throw percentage (18-18) came in a win at Indiana in 1979. The previous record for Carver-Hawkeye Arena was 94.7%, when Iowa made 18-19 attempts vs. Wisconsin in 2001.

NEW FACES CONTRIBUTE EARLY
Several new faces have been big contributors in Iowa’s 22 games. The newcomers are averaging 22.5 points and 11.6 rebounds per outing.

Junior college transfer Doug Thomas scored 14 points and led Iowa with nine rebounds in the opening win over Western Illinois, and he added 10 rebounds vs. UNC Greensboro and Northwestern. Thomas added eight points and five rebounds vs. North Carolina, he had six rebounds in the win over Texas and five rebounds at Illinois. In the win over Purdue, Thomas matched his scoring high with 14 points and added nine rebounds, and he had eight rebounds vs. Michigan State.

Sophomore Adam Haluska has scored in double figures in 16 of 22 games, including a career-high 24 points vs. Michigan State, 21 vs. Drake and Texas Tech and 20 in a home win over Iowa State.

In the win at Drake, freshman Carlton Reed scored 14 points, while freshman Alex Thompson added five rebounds in the win over Texas Tech. Seth Gorney played a key defensive role and had five rebounds in a win over Minnesota and Reed had a career-best five assists in the win over Purdue and added eight points at Northwestern.

Newcomers contributed 31 points and 13 rebounds vs. Western Illinois, 37 points and 11 rebounds vs. North Carolina, 39 points and 15 rebounds in the win at Drake, 29 points and 18 rebounds vs. Michigan State, 27 points and 19 rebounds vs. UNC Greensboro, 28 points and 19 rebounds vs. Purdue and 22 points and 15 rebounds vs. Centenary.

ANOTHER STRONG SCHEDULE
As has been the case in recent years, the Iowa schedule is very demanding. Eight of Iowa’s 13 non-conference games were against teams that advanced to post-season play a year ago. Iowa this season is 8-5 against teams that were in post-season play a year ago, including a 5-4 record vs. teams that were in the 2004 NCAA Tournament.

Iowa took part in the EA Sports Maui Invitational early in the season, defeating #11 Louisville and #13 Texas, while falling to #11 North Carolina. The Hawkeyes lost to top-ranked Illinois in overtime, lost to 10th-ranked Michigan State 75-64 and most recently dropped a 72-69 decision at #20 Wisconsin. The non-conference slate also included Northern Iowa, Iowa State, Texas Tech and Air Force and Saint Louis, teams that participated in post-season play a year ago.

Iowa will play 16 games against teams that advanced to post-season play a year ago.

TWO STRAIGHT OVER RANKED TEAMS
Iowa’s back-to-back wins over Louisville and Texas marks the second time Iowa has won consecutive games against ranked opponents under Coach Steve Alford. The Hawkeyes, during the 2002-03 season, defeated 20th-ranked Michigan State 68-64 and 8th-ranked Illinois 68-61.

IOWA VS. RANKED FOES
Steve Alford has posted a 17-27 record against ranked opponents as Iowa’s head coach, including a 2-4 mark in 2004-05. Iowa, this season, has defeated 11th-ranked Louisville 76-71 and 13th-ranked Texas 82-80, with losses to 11th-ranked North Carolina (92-106), at No. 1 ranked Illinois (68-73), in overtime, to 10th-ranked Michigan State (64-75) at home and at #20 Wisconsin, 72-69.

Alford’s Hawkeye teams are 5-11 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 11 losses to top 10 teams have been twice to top-ranked (Duke, 2001-02 and Illinois, 2004-05), 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 three times to 10th-ranked (Michigan State, 2000, Illinois, 2002 and Michigan State, 2005).

In the 44 games against ranked teams, Alford and his Iowa team are 6-8 in home games, 8-8 at neutral sites and 3-11 when playing ranked teams in their home arena.

HANSEN ON BLOCKS CHART
Junior center Erek Hansen has collected 70 blocked shots in 21 games, moving among Iowa’s leaders in blocks for a season and career. A year ago Hansen blocked 40 shots in 22 games. The 70 blocks rank fifth best for a single season and his 110 career blocks ranks fifth among Iowa’s career leaders. Hansen had a career-best seven blocked shots vs. Iowa State and Saint Louis and he had six blocks in a win over Texas Tech and a loss to Michigan. He has blocked five or more shots in seven games, and he is averaging 5.7 points and 2.8 rebounds while shooting 43.8% from the field and 71.4% from the free throw line. He had a career-high 14 points vs. Northern Iowa and he had 11 points and six rebounds vs. Texas.

HORNER JUST MAKES IT HAPPEN . . .
Junior guard Jeff Horner has been Iowa’s most versatile player, ranking among national leaders in assists and three-point field goals while averaging 13.8 points per game. Horner is averaging 5.5 assists, 4.5 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. Horner had a career-high 27 points in the win over Texas and he led the Maui Invitational in scoring with 63 points in three games.

Horner made 15-23 three-point attempts in the three games in Hawaii, moving into Iowa’s top 10 in both three-pointers and three-point attempts. Horner was named Big Ten Player of the Week for his play in Maui. The honor is the second of Horner’s career, as he earned it last Feb. 9 after leading Iowa to a double-overtime win at Indiana. He added 21 points in the win at Drake and his first career scoring and assist double-double in the win over UNC Greensboro with 14 points and a career-best 11 assists. He added 16 points and nine rebounds in the win over Northern Iowa. Horner scored Iowa’s final five points in the last 95 seconds against the Panthers and he added 12 points and seven assists in a win over Iowa State.

Horner played 40 of 45 minutes at Northwestern, collecting seven points and six assists, with no turnovers, and he added 16 points, nine assists and just one turnover in the home win over Indiana. Against Michigan State he had 13 points with just one turnover, and he had 19 points, five rebounds, four assists and no turnovers at Wisconsin.

He is shooting 42.5% from the field, 45.2% from three-point range and 77.1% from the free throw line. Horner was named to the all-tournament team at the Maui Invitational and he was co-MVP of Iowa’s Gazette Hawkeye Challenge.

Horner’s career totals include 935 points, 391 rebounds and 384 assists. By the end of the season he could become the only member of Iowa’s 1,000-point Club to also total over 400 rebounds and 400 assists.

. . . WITHOUT MANY MISTAKES
As Iowa’s point guard, Jeff Horner leads Iowa in minutes played (35.8 per game), and he handles the ball the majority of the time. In Iowa’s most recent five games, Horner is averaging 13.6 points and 4.0 rebounds, with 25 assists and just three turnovers, while playing 188 of the possible 205 minutes.

Horner had nine assists and just one turnover in a win over Indiana, six assists and no turnovers in an overtime loss at Northwestern and four assists and no turnovers at Wisconsin. Horner is averaging one turnover every 62.7 minutes in the last five games.

For the season, he has one or no turnovers in nine of 22 games and he is averaging just one turnover for every 16.1 minutes of action.

HORNER AMONG CAREER LEADERS
Junior guard Jeff Horner has moved into Iowa’s top five lists in three-point field goals and three-point attempts and assists. With his five three-pointers at Wisconsin, Horner moved past Dean Oliver into fourth place on the list for made three-pointers (163) and he is fifth in three-point attempts (427) and assists (384).

BRUNNER WORKING THE BOARDS
Junior forward Greg Brunner is Iowa’s top returning rebounder from a year ago. He is averaging 8.1 rebounds for the season and 8.8 in conference games, ranking third in the Big Ten for all games and second in league games. Brunner ranks second among current Big Ten players with eight scoring and rebounding doubles-doubles this season and he is tied for first with 17 in his career.

Brunner had a career-high 28 points at Northwestern, hitting 11-17 field goals and 6-8 free throws, and he also had three blocked shots. Brunner has raised his career total to 74 blocks, moving in to 10th on Iowa’s list of career leaders. At Wisconsin he had 27 points (12-21 FGs) and seven rebounds.

Brunner had 13 points and 11 rebounds vs. Minnesota, 16 points and 11 rebounds in the overtime loss at Illinois and 13 points and nine rebounds vs. Indiana. Brunner, who ranked second in the Big Ten in rebounding last season, had a season-best 13 rebounds in the win over Iowa State and he has 11 rebounds in six games. He had 10 rebounds vs. Louisville, nine vs. UNC Greensboro and Indiana and eight on three occasions. Brunner has scored in double figures in 20 games, with 16 points and seven rebounds vs. Michigan State. He is shooting 54.1% from the field and 71.3% from the foul line. He was named to the all-tournament team of Iowa’s Gazette Hawkeye Challenge.

HALUSKA HITS NEW HIGH
Sophomore Adam Haluska scored a career-high 24 points in the loss to Michigan State, including 9-11 free throws, and he added six rebounds. Haluska scored 21 points in wins over Texas Tech and Drake and he has scored in double figures in 16 of 22 games. Playing against his former school, he added 20 points in a win over Iowa State, hitting 4-8 treys. Haluska had 19 points in the loss to North Carolina and 17 points vs. UNC Greensboro. He matched his career-high of four assists in the win over Northern Iowa and played an outstanding defensive game.

He scored 15 points and collected two steals in a win over Minnesota, he added 12 points, six rebounds and two steals at Illinois, he had 12 points and two assists at Northwestern and he added 16 points against Wisconsin.

In his first season at Iowa, Haluska is shooting 46% from the field and 80% from the free throw line while averaging 13.1 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

THOMAS HELPS ON THE GLASS
Junior Doug Thomas is making a major contribution to Iowa’s rebounding efforts, as he is third on the team with an average of 4.6 per game. Thomas has collected 30 rebounds in Iowa’s last five games, matching a career-best with 10 vs. Northwestern. He had nine rebounds and 14 points in a win over Purdue and eight rebounds vs. Michigan State.

Thomas had nine rebounds in his first game as a Hawkeye and added 10 in a win over UNC Greensboro. Thomas had six points and six rebounds in the win over Texas Tech, he had five rebounds in the overtime loss at Illinois and he had eight points vs. Indiana. The 14 points vs. Purdue matched his season high. Thomas is averaging 4.7 points while shooting 56.3% from the field.

SCORING BY HALVES
Iowa has outscored its opponents 761-700 in the first half and 898-788 in the second half, and the Hawkeyes have been outscored 17-11 in two overtime periods. Iowa has led at halftime in 13 of 22 games and the Hawkeyes have outscored their opponent in the second half in 15 games.

HAWKEYE TIDBITS

• Iowa has played two overtime games, losing in single overtime at Illinois and at Northwestern. Iowa was 2-0 in overtime games a year ago, defeating Louisville in single overtime on a neutral court and winning at Indiana in two overtimes.
• Iowa suffered consecutive Big Ten losses for the first time since 2003 when it dropped games to Michigan and Ohio State, and Iowa has dropped its most recent two games vs. Michigan State and Wisconsin. In 2003, Iowa lost at Indiana (in OT) on Mar. 1 and at Michigan State Mar. 5. This marks the first season Iowa has lost its first two conference games of the season since 1993-94, when the Hawkeyes lost their first four league games.
• Iowa’s contest at Drake was the only true road game for the Hawkeyes in non-conference play. Iowa played three neutral site games at the EA Sports Maui Invitational and played Texas Tech at the United Center in Chicago.
• In the 70-63 win over Iowa State, Iowa held the Cyclones without a three-point basket as ISU missed all six of its attempts. That marks the first time an Iowa opponent did not make at least one three-point basket since early in the 2001-02 season, when Iowa State missed all eight of its three-point attempts in a 78-53 loss to Iowa in Ames.
• As a team, Iowa set two Gazette Hawkeye Challenge tournament records and tied a third, in a win over UNC Greensboro. The Hawkeyes set a tournament record and tied their own school record with 12 blocked shots. That record was set earlier this season in a loss to North Carolina. Iowa also shot 57.9% (11-19) from three-point range to set a tournament record and the 11 three-point field goals tied a tournament mark.
• Iowa is 12-1 when scoring between 70-89 points and 6-0 when holding its opponent to less than 60 points.
• Iowa is 11-3 when collecting more assists than the opponent, 12-3 when having fewer turnovers and 10-3 when collecting most steals than the opponent.
• Iowa has had four players or more score in double figures in 12 of 22 games, with a season-best six players in the win over Western Illinois.
• Iowa is 1-0 when six players score in double figures, 1-0 when five players score 10 points or more, 8-2 when four reach double figures, 3-4 with three in double figures and 2-1 when two are in double figures.
• Iowa has four players averaging between 13.1 and 17.8 points per game and four players averaging between 4.5 and 8.1 rebounds per outing.
• Iowa is 12-1 when leading at halftime, 3-5 when trailing at intermission and 0-1 when tied at halftime.
• Iowa is 9-4 when controlling the opening tip and 6-3 when not controlling the tip.
• Iowa is 7-4 in games decided by 10 points or less, including 0-2 in overtime.
• Under Steve Alford, Iowa is 32-6 when shooting at least 50% from the field, including 7-1 this season.
• North Carolina and Northern Iowa are the only Iowa opponents to shoot over 50% from the field this season. Last season, Iowa was 0-5 when its opponent shot at least 50% from the field.

SEEKING FIVE STRAIGHT IN `05
Iowa is seeking a fifth straight winning season, a streak that would match the second longest consecutive winning seasons record in Iowa basketball history. Iowa’s longest streak of consecutive winning seasons is seven, from 1950 through 1956. Pops Harrison, Bucky O’Connor and Rollie Williams all coached the Hawkeyes during those years. Only a 10-10 record in 1949 kept Iowa from 13 consecutive winning seasons (1944-56).

Lute Olson coached Iowa to five straight winning seasons from 1979-83, George Raveling and Tom Davis combined to coach Iowa to winning seasons from 1985-89 and Davis coached Iowa to winning seasons from 1995-99.

CAPTAINS NAMED FOR 2005
Iowa’s captains are juniors Greg Brunner and Jeff Horner. Brunner, a native of Charles City, started 26 of 29 games last season. His 8.2 rebounds per game were a team best and ranked second in the Big Ten. Horner, a Mason City native, has started 79 of 80 career games over the past three seasons. He led the team in assists in each of the last two seasons while also averaging 13 points and 5.3 rebounds a year ago.

THE RETURNING CAST
Iowa returns three starters and six lettermen from 2004. Those six returning lettermen last season scored over 1,200 points and totaled over 600 rebounds. The six players, in 2004, scored 60.1% of Iowa’s points, had 56.9% of the rebounds, 67.5% of the assists, 64.4% of the blocked shots and 45.2% of the steals.

In 29 games, a sophomore led Iowa in scoring 26 times and a sophomore was the top rebounder in 22 games. The Hawkeyes return their statistical leader from last season in all categories, with the exception of steals (Brody Boyd). The 13-man squad includes one senior, five juniors, three sophomores and four freshmen. The roster includes nine Iowans, plus one player from California, Indiana, Ohio and Texas.

NEWCOMERS GAIN ATTENTION
Iowa’s class of newcomers includes seven players. That list includes juniors Doug Thomas and Justin Wieck, sophomore Adam Haluska and freshmen J.R. Angle, Seth Gorney, Carlton Reed and Alex Thompson.

The group is ranked the second best incoming class in the Big Ten and 20th in the nation by Hoop Scoop in the June issue of Basketball Times.

Street and Smith’s ranks the group as the top incoming class in the Big Ten and names Thompson on the all-Midwest team on its list of Top 100 Freshman.

Lindy’s rates the incoming class as 14th best nationally and lists Haluska fourth among its top 10 transfers.

Athlon Sport’s also lists Haluska among the top transfers in the nation and rates the overall class fourth best in the Big Ten.

IOWA IN TOURNAMENT PLAY
Iowa has faired well while taking part in regular-season tournaments over the past 23 years. In that time Iowa has won the Great Alaska Shootout (1986-87), the Cal-Irvine Anteater Classic (1986-87), the Maui Classic (1987-88), the San Juan Thanksgiving Shootout (1992-93), the San Juan Christmas Shootout (1997-98), the Big Ten Conference Tournament in 2001 and its own invitational 22 times.

In addition, Iowa was runner-up in the 1985-86 Far West Classic, the 1987-88 All-College Tournament, the 1988-89 Chaminade Classic, the 1991-92 Tampa Tribune Holiday Invitational, the 1994-95 Rainbow Classic, the 1995-96 Great Alaska Shootout, the 1999-00 Coaches vs. Cancer Classic, the 2001-02 Guardians Classic, the 2002 Big Ten Conference Tournament and the 2004 Maui Invitational.

IOWA IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Iowa made its 20th appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2001, defeating Creighton 69-56 in the opening round of the East regional before falling to second-seeded Kentucky 92-79 in the second round. Iowa, which earned the Big Ten’s automatic bid, was seeded seventh in the East.

The Hawkeyes hold an overall record of 27-22 in the tournament, advancing to the Final Four in 1955 (fourth), 1956 (second) and 1980 (fourth). Iowa has advanced to at least the second round in its last 10 tournament appearances, last losing in the first round in 1986. Iowa reached the regional championship in 1987 and lost in the regional semi-final in 1988 and 1999.

HALK TALK WITH Steve Alford
Fans of the University of Iowa basketball program may join Iowa Coach Steve Alford and radio announcer Gary Dolphin each week during the season for the “Hawk Talk with Steve Alford” radio call-in show. The show takes place each week at Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Café in Iowa City. The show airs from 6-7:30 p.m. on the following dates: Feb. 7, 14, 21, 28; and Mar. 7.

IOWA ON THE TUBE
Every Iowa game throughout the 2004-05 will be televised. Iowa appeared on national cable television (ESPN and ESPN2) in three games in the Maui Invitational and in games vs. Texas Tech (ESPN2) and at Illinois (ESPN). Iowa games not selected for national coverage will be televised regionally by ESPN Plus, while several conference games are scheduled to be carried throughout the Big Ten Conference viewing area as part of the Big Ten regional network agreement with ESPN Plus.

AFTER THIS
Iowa visits Purdue Wednesday, Feb. 16 (7:05 p.m.) and hosts Illinois Saturday, Feb. 19 (11:06 a.m.). Iowa’s final contest of the regular season, at Michigan, has been set for 11:17 a.m. CT Saturday, March 5.