Rematch With Michigan Next For Hawkeyes

Jan. 5, 2010

Complete Release in PDF Format

IOWA CITY – THE SETTING
The Iowa Hawkeyes (8-7, 1-3) wrap up a two-game road trip by taking on Michigan (9-5, 1-3) Thursday in Ann Arbor. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. (CT).

ON YOUR COMPUTER
Hawkeye fans can follow the game via live stats (Gametracker). The Gametracker link can be accessed under the “Calendar” tab on the front page of hawkeyesports.com or on the women’s basketball schedule page.

Fans can also watch a live webcast of Thursday’s game on BigTenNetwork.com for a $2.99 fee. The video link can also be found next to the Gametracker link.

ON YOUR RADIO
Brent Balbinot and Shelley Till will call Thursday’s game for the Hawkeye Radio Network. The game can be heard on AM-800 KXIC, AM-600 WMT, AM-1040 WHO, and also on the Hawkeye All-Access page of hawkeyesports.com. Balbinot is in his sixth season as Iowa’s play-by-play voice, while Till is in her fifth year providing analysis.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 1,017 games, since beginning basketball in 1974. Iowa’s overall record is 618-399 (.608). That includes a 310-153 (.670) mark in regular season Big Ten contests and a 291-86 (.772) mark in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

ALL-TIME SERIES
Iowa leads the all-time series, 41-12. The Hawkeyes have won 12 of the previous 14 meetings. Iowa won 21-straight contests from 1985-1996. Iowa holds a 17-7 record in games played at Michigan, and has won four of the last five games in Ann Arbor.

SCOUTING MICHIGAN
The Michigan Wolverines are 9-5 overall and 1-3 in Big Ten play. In their last game, the Wolverines nearly knocked off No. 6 Ohio State, but fell 59-56. Dayeesha Hollins led the way with 19 points, while Carmen Reynolds and Jenny Ryan each had 12. Krista Phillips had a team-best eight rebounds. Both teams shot 2-13 (.154) from three point range. Michigan out-scored Ohio State, 26-24 in the paint.

Veronica Hicks leads the team with 13.9 points per game. Hollins is scoring 13.5 points per contest, while Reynolds is at 11.8 per game. Ryan is the team’s leading rebounder at 6.6 boards per game. As a team, the Wolverines are shooting .456 from the field and .345 from three point range. Michigan is shooting .626 from the charity stripe.

MINNESOTA VS. IOWA NOTES
? Iowa freshman Gabby Machado is from Pontiac, MI, and prepped at Northern High School.

? Iowa Assistant Coach Shannon Gage served as an assistant coach at Michigan from 2005-07.

? Michigan Administrative Assistant Mark Uitermarkt is a native of Pella, IA, and served as a women’s basketball assistant at Central College during the 2003-04 season.

? Iowa’s Kamille Wahlin and Michigan’s Courtney Boylan were two prized recruits coming out of the state of Minnesota. Boylan (Chaska) was named Minnesota’s Miss Basketball, while Wahlin (Crookston) was a finalist.

? Iowa and Michigan share one common non-conference opponent in Kansas. The Jayhawks defeated both teams by 11 points (Iowa, 66-55, Michigan, 77-66).

LAST MEETING
Iowa fought back from an early deficit, but couldn’t come away with a win, as Michigan topped the Hawkeyes, 54-51, to open the Big Ten season Dec. 6.

The Hawkeyes could never grab a lead in the contest, and trailed by 14 points at halftime. Iowa opened the second half with a 14-6 run to pull within six points at the 13:43 mark. After Michigan stretched its lead to 49-38 at the 7:33 mark, Iowa used a 13-3 surge to come within one point with 2:02 remaining.

Iowa wasn’t able to convert from the free throw line, missing the front end of two one-and-one situations, and did not score in the final 2:02.

Freshman Theairra Taylor led the way with 13 points, and was one of four players to grab seven rebounds. Taylor scored 10 of her 14 points in the second half, and also added four assists, four blocks and three steals. Sophomore Kelly Krei and freshman Morgan Johnson each added 12 points.

ANOTHER TOUGH OVERTIME LOSS
Iowa dropped its second overtime contest in three games, losing at Minnesota, 72-69.

In a back and forth game, Iowa couldn’t pull away in regulation, as the Golden Gophers forced overtime. With 2:41 remaining, Minnesota’s Brittany McCoy hit a jumper to tie the game at 62, which would also be the last points of the second half. After the teams traded missed baskets, Iowa grabbed a defensive rebound with 11 seconds left. Kamille Wahlin had a jumper in the lane with two seconds remaining the rimmed out, forcing overtime.

Minnesota used a 7-2 run in overtime to put the game out of reach for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa was led by Jaime Printy, who scored a career-high 26 points, along with two rebounds, three assists and two steals. Kachine Alexander recorded yet another double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

PRINTY NAMED BIG TEN FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
Jaime Printy was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week for the second time this season Jan. 4.

Printy led the Hawkeyes in a win over Wisconsin and a tough overtime loss at Minnesota, averaging 19.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game last week. The freshman contributed a career high 26 points, including a perfect 8-8 mark at the free-throw line, against the Golden Gophers on Sunday. Printy also recorded three assists and two boards in the effort. On Thursday vs. the Badgers, she tallied 12 points with seven assists and five rebounds.

Printy first earned the award after stellar games against William & Mary, West Virginia and Columbia.

Printy averaged 16.3 points, 6.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists, as the Hawkeyes posted a 2-1 record that week. Printy recorded her first-ever 20-point game against William & Mary, adding nine rebounds with five assists. Against West Virginia in the first round of the Nugget Classic in Reno, Printy netted 16 points with four boards and five assists in the close, three-point loss. The Marion, IA, native scored Iowa’s first eight points against the Mountaineers, and made her first four shots, including a perfect 3-3 from distance.

Printy saved her best for last in Iowa’s win over Columbia. She scored 12 points with five rebounds and three assists in the thrilling win. Printy nailed a three-pointer with 52 seconds left to tie the game, giving Iowa a chance to win on its next possession.

HAWKEYES HIT ANOTHER FREE THROW MARK
Iowa shot 20-21 (.952) from the charity stripe at Minnesota Jan. 3, which is a school record for free throw percentage (minimum 20 attempts).

Jaime Printy led the way, going 8-8, while Kachine Alexander and Trisha Nesbitt each went 4-4.

Earlier this season, Iowa tied the school record for single-game free throw percentage, converting all 16 attempts against Columbia (1.000).

Freshman Morgan Johnson led the way, going 6-6. Sophomore Kamille Wahlin and freshman Theairra Taylor each went 4-4, while freshman Gabby Machado finished 2-2.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Junior Kachine Alexander collected her fifth double-double of the season Sunday at Minnesota. Alexander scored 15 points and recorded 11 rebounds. It was also Alexander’s 14th career double-double.

Alexander had double-doubles in each of Iowa’s first three games, before missing the next seven games with a stress fracture.

OH, SO CLOSE
Five of Iowa’s seven losses have been by five points or less, with three of those being by three points. Iowa has also lost two overtime games by a combined seven points.

The Hawkeyes had a three-point attempt at the buzzer against West Virginia fall short, that would have sent the game to overtime.

Against Boston College, Iowa missed a three-pointer with seven seconds left that would have tied the game.

Against Michigan, Iowa missed the front-end of a one-and-one from the free throw line with both 27 and 11 seconds left, each time trailing by only one point.

Iowa’s two overtime losses came at Penn State (four points) and at Minnesota (three points). In each of those games, the Hawkeyes had the potential game winning shot in regulation bounce off the iron as time expired.

DRAINING FROM DISTANCE AND THE LINE
The Hawkeyes lead the Big Ten and rank 15th nationally in three point field goals made per game (7.8). Iowa also leads the conference and ranks 16th in the country in free throw percentage (.765). Iowa’s three point field goal percentage of .364 ranks second in the Big Ten and 45th in the NCAA.

Individually, Kamille Wahlin leads the Big Ten in three point field goals made per game (2.8), which also ranks her 31st in the country. Wahlin’s 15.6 points per game is good enough for sixth place in Big Ten scoring.

Morgan Johnson ranks fourth in the Big Ten and 31st nationally in blocked shots per game (2.2).

STEALING AWAY FROM THE BADGERS
Sophomores Kelly Krei and Kamille Wahlin both set career highs in steals against Wisconsin Dec. 31.

Krei finished with six steals, while Wahlin swiped four. The two combined for 10 of Iowa’s 12 total steals. Krei had all six of her steals in the first half, while three of Wahlin’s four came in the second period.

THREE HAWKEYES OUT FOR SEASON
Senior JoAnn Hamlin, sophomore Hannah Draxten and freshman Theairra Taylor will all miss the season with injuries.

Hamlin has missed the entire season after having a blood clot removed in her right leg. Taylor suffered a torn ACL in Iowa’s win over South Dakota State. Draxten has played four games this season, despite suffering from a herniated disc. It was announced after Iowa’s loss at Penn State that Draxten will be forced to miss the rest of the season due to the back injury.

UNDERCLASSMEN CONTRIBUTING
Iowa’s freshmen and sophomore class are putting up big numbers for the Hawkeyes this season.

Hawkeye underclassmen are responsible for 86 percent of the teams’ points, 70 percent of rebounds, 85 percent of minutes played, 84 percent of assists, 86 percent of steals and 89 percent of blocks.

LOGGING MAJOR MINUTES
Due to injuries, Iowa’s roster has been forced to play a large amount of minutes so far.

Three players have played over 30 minutes a game. Kamille Wahlin is playing 36.9 minutes per game, Jaime Printy is playing 32.4 minutes and Kelly Krei is at 31.7.

PLAYING THEM ALL
Despite the injuries, six Hawkeyes have managed to play in all 15 games this season.

Kamille Wahlin, Jaime Printy, Morgan Johnson, Kelly Krei, Trisha Nesbitt and Kelsey Cermak have seen action in all contests. Wahlin, Printy and Johnson have started all 15 games, while Krei has started 14. Cermak has started two games for the Hawkeyes.

NEVER RIDING THE PINE
Sophomores Kelly Krei and Kamille Wahlin have both played all 40 minutes in back-to-back games this season.

Krei never left the court in consecutive games against Illinois State (Nov. 15) and Kansas (Nov. 18). Wahlin did the same against Boston College (Dec. 2) and Michigan (Dec. 6).

Wahlin also played over 40 minutes in Iowa’s two overtime games. She registered 43 minutes at Penn State (Dec. 28) and 41 minutes at Minnesota (Jan. 3)

ALEXANDER NAMED CO-BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Junior Kachine Alexander was named co-Big Ten Player of the Week Nov. 16 after earning MVP honors at the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge.

Alexander recorded double-doubles in each of Iowa’s first two games. She tied a Hawkeye Challenge tournament record by grabbing 18 rebounds (nine offensive, nine defensive), along with netting 19 points in Iowa’s season-opening win over Santa Clara. Both her 19 points and 18 rebounds were game highs.

Alexander followed on Sunday with a 21 point, 12 rebound (nine offensive, three defensive) performance in the championship game against Illinois State. Alexander was clutch down the stretch at the free-throw line, making 13-16 attempts from the charity stripe.

WAHLIN ON ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAMS
Sophomore Kamille Wahlin was chosen to both the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge and Nugget Classic all-tournament teams.

In the season-opening Hawkeye Challenge, Wahlin netted 13 points and added three rebounds.

She was clutch down the stretch in the championship against Illinois State, scoring seven points during Iowa’s crucial 12-2 run in the final three minutes of the second half to give the Hawkeyes the victory. Wahlin drained a three-pointer with 3:46 left to give Iowa a one-point lead (64-63). She then hit a jumper with 37 second left, extending Iowa’s lead to five points (70-65). Wahlin added two free throws on the next trip down the court to seal the win.

Wahlin scored 16 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out five assists against West Virginia in the Nugget Classic. She followed with 18 points, including the game-winning three-pointer with 10 seconds left, to go along with three points and four assists against Columbia in the consolation game.

JOHNSON TIES SCHOOL RECORD
Freshman Morgan Johnson tied a school record with seven blocked shots against Northern Iowa (Nov 22). Johnson now holds the record with Jerica Watson (vs. Kent State, 12/8/01) and Tangela Smith (at Michigan State, 1/15/95). She currently ranks third in the Big Ten in blocks per game (2.75).

Johnson added 11 points and eight rebounds in the win.

PRINTY PUTS ON A SHOW AGAINST THE JACKS
Freshman Jaime Printy came up big for Iowa in the clutch against South Dakota State Dec. 22.

With the Hawkeyes ahead by one point (67-66) at the 3:34 mark in the second half, Printy ignited a 15-3 run to close the game, scoring the first seven points of the surge, and all nine of her second half points, during the crucial stretch.

Printy drained a long-distance three to put Iowa up four (70-66) at the three-minute mark. On the next two possessions, Printy sliced through the lane with the shot clock winding down, nailing layups to give Iowa a 74-66 advantage. She then scored the final two points of the game on a layup with two seconds remaining for the final count.

HOME GROWN HAWKEYES
Four Hawkeyes prepped in the state of Iowa. Those players are junior Kelsey Cermak (Norwalk), sophomore Kelly Krei (Iowa City) and freshmen Trisha Nesbitt (Ames) and Jaime Printy (Marion).

ON THE HORIZON
The Hawkeyes will have their first bye week in Big Ten play this weekend, and return to action Jan. 14 against Penn State in Iowa City. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game can be seen live on BigTenNetwork.com.