Iowa Hosts Maryland Eastern Shore Tuesday Night

Nov. 19, 2007

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THE SETTING
Iowa (3-0) hosts Maryland Eastern Shore (1-2) Tuesday, Nov. 20 in a second round game of the 2007 South Padre Island Invitational. Game time is 8:05 p.m. in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500). Iowa is 3-0 after wins over Idaho State, Northern Colorado and Florida Gulf Coast. Maryland Eastern Shore is 1-2, with a win over Stony Brook (53-52) and losses to Virginia Commonwealth (70-51) and Bradley (98-71).

ON THE AIR
Radio: Iowa games are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network. Gary Dolphin handles the play-by-play, along with color commentator Bob Hansen. The Hawkeye Radio Network coverage includes a 60-minute pre-game show.
Television: The Big Ten Network will carry the game to a national cable audience. The game can also be viewed on DIRECTV (channel 220) and the DISH Network (channel 439). Larry Morgan and Wayne Morgan will call the action.

ABOUT THE SOUTH PADRE ISLAND INVITATIONAL
Iowa is one of four teams that is hosting first and second round games in the South Padre Island Invitational. Other host teams include Bradley, Vanderbilt and Utah State. Eight teams will advance to play two games each at the South Padre Island Convention Center on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 23-24. Once in Texas, Iowa will meet Bradley on Nov. 23 and either Vanderbilt or Utah State on Nov. 24. Maryland Eastern Shore will play Florida Gulf Coast and Austin Peay at South Padre Island.

CATCHING THE ACTION FROM THE ISLAND
Iowa’s Nov. 23 game vs. Bradley will be televised by CSTV. Streamed video of Iowa’s game on Nov. 24 will be available on the internet at southpadreinvitationaltv.com.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,411 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Overall Iowa’s record is 1,441-970 (.598). That includes a 905-308 (.746) record in home games, a 536-662 (.447) record in games away from Iowa City, a 684-665 (.507) mark in Big Ten games and a 311-82 (.791) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

IOWA IN CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa has compiled a 311-82 (.791) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa is 147-68 (.684) in Big Ten games and 164-14 (.921) in non-Big Ten games.

HEAD COACH Todd Lickliter
Todd Lickliter is in his first season as the head basketball coach at the University of Iowa. Lickliter spent the last six seasons as the head coach at Butler University. Lickliter holds a career mark of 134-61 (.687) after posting a 131-61 (.682) record as Butler’s head coach and beginning his first season at Iowa with three wins. He led Butler to four post-season tournament berths, including trips to the NCAA Sweet 16 in 2003 and 2007. Lickliter was named the 2006-07 Division I Coach of the Year by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) and was recognized as the High-Major Coach of the Year by collegehoops.net. He was also named 2007 Horizon League Coach of the Year for the second consecutive year after guiding the Bulldogs to a school and league-record 29 victories. He led Butler to the regular season co-championship in the Horizon League in 2007. The Bulldogs advanced to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament before falling to eventual national champion Florida (65-57). Butler during the 2006-07 season won three games over top 25 opponents (Tennessee, Gonzaga, Maryland) and recorded eight victories over teams that participated in the NCAA Tournament. Butler averaged 22 wins per year under Lickliter, winning league titles in 2002, 2003 and 2007 while winning at least 20 games in four of six seasons. Lickliter led the Bulldogs to an unbeaten home record (12-0) in 2002-03, and mentored Butler to a 70-12 (.854) home mark in his six seasons. His Bulldog teams were 6-5 against teams ranked in the “Top 25” and compiled four of the top 10 winning streaks in Butler history. In his first season as Butler’s head coach, Lickliter guided the Bulldogs to a then school-record 26 victories and a third consecutive Horizon League regular season title. Lickliter guided the 2003 Bulldogs to an even more impressive season in his second year as head coach. He led Butler to a 27-6 record, breaking the single-season mark for victories for a second consecutive year. Lickliter served as an assistant coach at Butler and Eastern Michigan and was a high school head coach in Indianapolis and Danville, IL. In his final two seasons as a Butler assistant coach, the Bulldogs compiled a 47-16 record, including “Top 25” wins over 10th-ranked Wisconsin and 23rd-ranked Wake Forest. The win over the Demon Deacons in the 2001 NCAA Tournament was Butler’s first NCAA Tournament victory in 39 years. Lickliter has had a presence in Indiana basketball dating back to his days as a three-year starting guard at North Central High School in Indianapolis, where he played for his father, Arlan. Lickliter played his final two collegiate seasons at Butler, where he earned a B.S degree in secondary education in 1979. Lickliter has not coached against Maryland Eastern Shore or Hawk Coach Meredith Smith.

THE SERIES
Iowa holds a 3-0 series advantage over Maryland Eastern Shore, with all three games played in Iowa City. The Hawkeyes won the first meeting 101-45 on 11/23/91, defeated the Hawks 89-59 on 11/13/01 and won the third meeting 86-41 on 11/14/05. The most recent meeting was part of the Guardians Classic, in which Iowa advanced to the title game in Kansas City before dropping a 68-59 decision to Texas.

UMES COACH MEREDITH SMITH
Meredith Smith is in his first season as interim coach at Maryland Eastern Shore and his first season as a college head coach. He spent the last three seasons as an assistant with the UMES program. Smith is a graduate of Maryland Eastern Shore. Smith has not coached against Iowa or Hawkeye Coach Todd Lickliter.

GAME NOTES

• With an opening win over Idaho State, Iowa has now won 30 consecutive season-opening games, dating back to 1978, when it lost a road game to start the season. The Hawkeyes have won 45 straight home openers, dating back to a 62-54 loss to Ohio University to begin the 1962-63 season. Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter improved to 6-1 in season-opening games as a college head coach.
• Iowa holds an all-time record of 6-0 against current members of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Along with the three wins over Maryland Eastern Shore, Iowa has played Coppin State (2-0) and Morgan State (1-0).

HAWKEYES PLAYING SOLID DEFENSE
Iowa has played solid defense in opening the season with three straight wins. Hawkeye opponents are shooting just 35.6% from the field and 17.5% from three-point range. Iowa is allowing just 46.3 points per game and has not allowed any of its three opponents to score more than 49 points. In each of the three games, Iowa has held its opponent to under 20 points in one of the two halves. Iowa opponents are averaging 17 turnovers per game and Iowa holds a rebounding advantage of plus five per game. The last time Iowa held three straight opponents to under 50 points was 1984-85 when it won three straight games over Texas Tech (58-48), Georgia State (89-40) and Illinois Wesleyan (99-39).

IOWA TOPS FLORIDA GULF COAST
A strong second half led Iowa to a 62-49 win over Florida Gulf Coast Sunday afternoon in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The visitors hit six of their first seven shots from the field in taking a 14-8 advantage in the first three minutes. Iowa answered with a 9-0 scoring run over the next eight minutes to take a 17-14 advantage. Iowa also led by as many as six points in the opening half before scoring the last basket of the period to take a 32-30 advantage at the break. The Hawkeye defense took over in the final 20 minutes, allowing the Eagles just 19 points in the second half. Iowa led throughout the second half, but the advantage was just four points with 8:52 to play. Iowa scored five straight points over the next two minutes and led by five or more the rest of the way, with the biggest advantage (61-47) coming with 1:11 to play. Florida Gulf Coast shot just 28.6% from the field in the second half and just 38% for the game. The visitors also made just 6-23 (26.1%) three-point attempts and 5-11 (45.5%) free throws. After connecting on 42.9% of its first half field goals, Iowa shot 55% from the floor in the second half and 47.9% for the game. Iowa also held a 38-28 rebounding advantage, holding the aggressive Eagles to just seven offensive rebounds. Senior guard Justin Johnson led Iowa with 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals. Freshman guard Jeff Peterson added nine points and four assists, while senior forward Seth Gorney grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds. Senior forward Kurt Looby added eight points and five rebounds and freshman forward Jarryd Cole contributed seven points, four rebounds and three steals.

UMES FALLS AT BRADLEY
Bradley shot 56.7% from the field in racing to a 53-28 halftime advantage and went on to take a 98-71 win over Maryland Eastern Shore in another first round game in the South Padre Island Invitational in Peoria. The Braves also shot 56% in the second half and ended the game at 56.4%, while the visiting Hawks shot just 37.9% from the field and made just 19-39 (48.7%) free throw attempts. UMES collected 15 steals while forcing 24 Bradley turnovers, but Bradley’s hot shooting was too much to overcome. Four Hawk players scored in double figures, including Denzel Jackson and Marc Davis with 16 points each. Ed Tyson and reserve Milutin Mirjacic each added 11 points, while B.J. Nimocks collected nine points and nine rebounds.

IOWA SEEKS EIGHTH STRAIGHT
Iowa is seeking its eighth straight winning campaign, which would establish a school record. Iowa’s current streak began with a 23-12 record in 2000-01 and includes three seasons of more than 20 wins and six post-seasons appearances (three NCAA, three NIT). Iowa also had seven straight winning seasons 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). Harrison coached Iowa to five straight winning seasons from 1944-48, Lute Olson coached Iowa to 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. Iowa had five consecutive winning seasons on three occasions, 1979-83, 1985-89 and 1995-99. Iowa is one of four Big Ten teams to post a winning record in each of the last seven seasons, joining Illinois, Michigan State and Wisconsin.

JOHNSON AMONG SINGLE GAME LEADERS
Senior guard Justin Johnson connected on seven three-point field goals in Iowa’s opening win over Idaho State. Johnson’s 21 points marked a career high as he hit 7-12 three-point attempts. He did not make a two point field goal or attempt any free throws. The seven three-pointers ties as the third best total for a single game at Iowa. Chris Kingsbury holds the record, hitting nine treys in two different games. Johnson joins Kingsbury (three times), Jeff Horner and Jeff Moe with seven three-pointers in a game. Johnson was held to just three points in the win over Northern Colorado (1-5 treys) while adding three rebounds and a career-high four assists. He came back with a strong performance in a win over Florida Gulf Coast, collecting 19 points, seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.

GORNEY GRABS CAREER HIGH
Senior forward Seth Gorney collected a career-best 11 rebounds in the win over Florida Gulf Coast. His previous best of nine rebounds came against Northern Iowa last season. Gorney is averaging six rebounds per game.

BOHALL GETS SCORING BEST
Sophomore guard Dan Bohall set a career scoring high with 14 points in the win over Northern Colorado. He made 3-6 field goals and 7-8 free throws and also collected six rebounds. He had a career-best six assists in a win over Idaho State and added eight points, four rebounds and four assists in a win over Florida Gulf Coast.

LOOBY IN THE PAINT
Senior Kurt Looby has played well in the paint through Iowa’s first three games. Looby is averaging a team-best 7.3 rebounds and is scoring six points a game while shooting 72.7% from the field. Looby, who had a season-best 10 rebounds in the opening game of the season, also leads Iowa with seven blocked shots, raising his career total to 60 blocks.

PETERSON STEPS RIGHT IN
Freshman guard Jeff Peterson has stepped into the starting line-up and leads the Hawkeyes in minutes played. Peterson had 12 points, nine assists and no turnovers in his first college game. He added 20 points in a win over Northern Colorado and added nine points and four assists against Florida Gulf Coast. He is averaging 13.7 points and five assists per game.

TOP HOME PERCENTAGE
Iowa posted a 44-5 (.896) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena over the last three seasons (2005-07) and is 3-0 to start the 2007-08 campaign. That mark ranks as Iowa’s best home court winning percentage over any three year period in which Iowa won at least 40 games. Iowa’s winning percentage in Big Ten home games (20-4, .833) over the last three seasons is also the best percentage since the conference began playing more than 14 league games in 1974.

IOWA TOUGH AT HOME
Iowa has won 35 of its last 37 games in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa’s recent win streak included 21 straight overall wins and 12 straight Big Ten Conference wins. Iowa has won nine of its last 10 home games against ranked opponents. The Hawkeyes posted a 14-2 home record in 2006-07 (losses to Northern Iowa and Wisconsin) after a perfect 17-0 mark in 2006.

NATIONAL COACH OF THE YEAR
Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter was named the 2007 Division I national Coach of the Year by the National Basketball Coaches (NABC) after leading Butler to 29 wins and a spot in the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. With Iowa football Coach Kirk Ferentz earning national Coach of the Year in 2002, Iowa is one of three Division I institutions to have a former football and men’s basketball national Coach of the Year currently coaching their respective team. The others are Florida (Urban Meyer and Billy Donovan) and Tennessee (Phillip Fulmer and Bruce Pearl).

IOWA ON THE TUBE
All but one Iowa game throughout the 2007-08 season will be televised, with the only exception being the final round of the South Padre Island Invitational. The majority of Iowa’s non-conference games are scheduled for the Big Ten Network. Iowa’s home game with Wake Forest will be televised on ESPN2. The contest at Northern Iowa will air on FOX, the game at Iowa State will appear on ESPNU and CSTV will televise the Bradley game in the South Padre Island Invitational.

IOWA ON THE BIG TEN NETWORK
A majority of Iowa’s games throughout the 2007-08 season will appear on national cable television via the Big Ten Network. The Big Ten Network is available on the basic level of service offered by 67 locally-owned and locally-operated cable television systems across the state of Iowa. It is also available through the nation’s two satellite television companies, DirectTV and Dish Network. Currently, more than 50 percent of the homes in Iowa have access to the Big Ten Network, as do more than 30 million homes nationwide. The Big Ten Network is the fastest growing television network in television history, reaching 30 million homes in its first 30 days of existence.

OFF THE BENCH
The Iowa reserves are averaging 12.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game, compared to seven points and six rebounds by the opponent reserves. Iowa is 3-0 when the reserves outscore the opponent’s reserves and 0-0 when the opponent reserves scored more points. Iowa is 2-0 when the Hawkeye reserves have more rebounds than the opponent reserves and 1-0 when the opponent reserves have more rebounds.

IOWA PROGRAM REACHES 1,400 WINS
The Iowa basketball program reached 1,400 wins (now at 1,441) with a 79-46 victory over Texas-San Antonio on Nov. 26, 2005. Iowa ranks 34th on the all-time list for victories and is one of 41 NCAA Division I programs with as many as 1,400 wins. Iowa’s basketball history includes 73 winning seasons and 24 years in which the Hawkeyes have won 20 or more games. Iowa (with 22) is one of 31 programs to earn more than 20 invitations into the NCAA Tournament.

SEASON TICKETS ON SALE FOR 2007-08

• Season tickets are available for 2007-08, including general public ($336), UI faculty and staff ($272) and UI students ($95).
• Weekend package tickets for four Big Ten Conference home games are on sale for $100. The package includes games vs. Michigan State (Jan. 12), Penn State (Jan. 26), Ohio State (Feb. 2) and Illinois (Mar. 1-2).
• Single game tickets are available for $20 for all games except Big Ten Conference weekend games, Wisconsin, Drake and the Big Ten/ACC Challenge (Wake Forest). Tickets for those games are $25. UI students can purchase single game tickets for $15 on the day of the game, when available.
• A $10 youth ticket (age 18 and below) is available for games vs. Maryland Eastern Shore, Southeastern Louisiana and both nights of the Hawkeye Challenge.
• Discounted tickets to select home games, earmarked for purchase by groups of 20 or more, are also available for purchase. For information about group ticket packages, fans should call the UI Sports Marketing Office at (319) 335-9431.
• Fans interested in obtaining men’s basketball tickets can do so at the UI Athletic Ticket Office, located in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, by calling the ticket office at 1-800-IA-HAWKS or by visiting the UI website at hawkeyesports.com.

HAWKEYES SET ARENA RECORD
Iowa set a Carver-Hawkeye Arena (opened in 1983) record with 12 consecutive Big Ten Conference home wins over the course of the 2006 and 2007 seasons. The streak was snapped Jan. 28 when second-ranked Wisconsin won in Iowa City. Following the loss to Wisconsin the Hawkeyes concluded the 2007 season by winning their final four home games, improving to 15-1 in Big Ten games and 31-2 overall over the past two seasons in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Prior to the Badger loss, Iowa had not lost a Big Ten home game since a 75-65 loss to top-ranked Illinois on Feb. 19, 2005. Iowa’s record for consecutive home wins in league play is 14 straight. That mark was set during the 1980-81 and 1981-82 seasons when home games were played at the Iowa Field House.

HAWKEYES TO HOST BIG TEN/ACC CHALLENGE
Iowa will host Wake Forest on Monday, Nov. 26 as part of the annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge. The game has a 6:05 p.m. start time and will be televised to a national cable audience on ESPN2 as the initial game in the 2007 series of games. Iowa holds a 2-4 record in the event, including a 2-0 home record and a 0-2 mark in road games and neutral site games. Iowa lost at Virginia Tech 69-65 a year ago. Iowa lost to Maryland in Baltimore in 2000 before defeating Georgia Tech in Iowa City in 2001. Iowa lost to Duke at the United Center in Chicago in 2002 and lost at Florida State in 2003. The Hawkeyes defeated North Carolina State in Iowa City in 2006 after not participating in the event in 2004 and 2005.

HAWKEYES HOST CHALLENGE
Iowa will host the 26th annual Hawkeye Challenge Friday and Saturday, Nov. 30-Dec. 1. Iowa will meet Louisiana-Monroe in the first round, while Rice will face Eastern Illinois in the opening game Friday evening. Rice participated in the event early in the 1997-98 season, while Louisiana-Monroe and Eastern Illinois will take part for the first time. Iowa was won four previous meetings with Eastern Illinois and all three meetings against Louisiana-Monroe when that school was named Northeast Louisiana. Iowa’s only meeting with Rice resulted in an 81-52 Hawkeye win in the Hawkeye Challenge.

IOWA IN TOURNAMENT PLAY
Iowa has fared well while taking part in regular-season tournaments over the past 25 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 2006 and its own invitational 24 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 2005-06 Guardians Classic, the 2002 Big Ten Conference Tournament and the 2004 Maui Invitational.

IOWA IN LAS VEGAS NEXT SEASON
Iowa will take part in the Las Vegas Invitational during the early portion of the 2008-09 season. The 2008 event will take place Nov. 28-29, 2008 at the Orleans Arena in Las Vegas. Iowa’s bracket of opponents in Las Vegas will include Kentucky, Kansas State and West Virginia. Similar to the South Padre Island Invitational this season, Iowa will have two home games in the event before traveling to Las Vegas for two games. Possible first and second round opponents include Southeast Missouri State, Oakland University, Delaware State and Longwood University. Kansas defeated eventual national champion Florida in the championship game of the tournament a year ago, while North Carolina and Louisville highlight the field this year. Participating schools will each have their share of tickets available to sell after this season in completed. The general public will have a chance to purchase a limited number of tickets for the final rounds in Las Vegas beginning Saturday, Nov. 3 at 1 p.m. EST at the Orleans Arena. For ticket information, please contact the Orleans Arena at (702) 284-7777 or on the web at www.orleansarena.com.

POST-SEASON OPPONENTS
Iowa’s 2007-08 schedule includes 15 games against teams that advanced to post-season play a year ago. Iowa will play 11 games against six Big Ten opponents that appeared in the 2007 NCAA Tournament, including two games with national runner-up Ohio State. The Hawkeyes have three games against teams that were in the NIT a year ago, including Michigan and Bradley. Iowa’s final game in the South Padre Invitational will be against either Vanderbilt (NCAA) or Utah State (NIT).

IOWA AT NEUTRAL SITES
Iowa was 1-3 in neutral site games a year ago, playing three games in the Paradise Jam in November and one game in the Big Ten Conference Tournament. Iowa’s schedule includes at least three neutral site games this season, including two games in the South Padre Island Invitational. Iowa could play between one and four neutral site games while taking part in the Big Ten Conference Tournament in Indianapolis, IN at the end of the season.

IOWA IN THE NCAA TOURNAMENT
Iowa made its 22nd appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2006. Iowa earned the Big Ten Conference’s automatic bid by virtue of claiming the league’s tournament title. The Hawkeyes hold an overall record of 27-24 in the tournament, advancing to the Final Four in 1955 (fourth), 1956 (second) and 1980 (fourth). Iowa reached the regional championship in 1987 and lost in the regional semi-final in 1988 and 1999.

HALK TALK WITH Todd Lickliter
Fans of the University of Iowa basketball program may join Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter and radio announcer Gary Dolphin each week during the season for the “Hawk Talk with Todd Lickliter” radio call-in show. The show takes place each week at Carlos O’Kelly’s Mexican Café in Iowa City from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The dates are Nov. 19 and 27; Dec. 3, 10 and 17; Jan. 7, 14, 21 and 28; Feb. 4, 11, 18 and 25; and Mar. 3 and 10.

COMING UP NEXT
In the midst of four games in seven days, Iowa hits the road for the first time after opening the season with four straight home games. The Hawkeyes will travel to South Padre Island to meet Bradley on Friday, Nov. 23 (6:35 p.m., CSTV). Iowa concludes action in the tournament Saturday against either Vanderbilt or Utah State. The Hawkeyes return home Monday, Nov. 26 to host Wake Forest (6:05 p.m., ESPN2) in the first game of the annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge.

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