March 11, 2010
- 2010 Big Ten Tournament
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- Take the Hawkeyes With You: Iowa Podcasts
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
IOWA CITY, IA – University of Iowa freshmen Eric May and Cully Payne today were named to the Big Ten All-Freshman team by Sporting News.
May and Payne join Illinois’ D.J. Richardson, Indiana’s Christian Watford and Northwestern’s Drew Crawford on the team.
May (6-5, 225) has started 22 of the last 24 games, including the last 19 as a rookie. The native of Dubuque, IA, ranked first amongst his Big Ten classmates in steals (19), blocks (17) and minutes (34.2), second in rebounding (4.6) and fourth in scoring (9.2), in conference games only. May, who was also recognized on the Big Ten Conference’s all-freshman team, was Iowa’s third leading scorer and led the team in blocks and steals in 18 Big Ten games. In all games, May ranks second in team 3-pointers made (41). The 41 triples rank fourth-best by an Iowa freshman in a single season.
Payne (6-1, 190) has started all 31 games, directing the Hawkeye offense. He was the only freshman point guard in the league this season. Payne ranks sixth in Big Ten assists (3.9), the most of any league freshman. He has amassed 121 assists, which are the third most in a single-season by a Hawkeye rookie. The native of Schaumburg, IL, is Iowa’s first lefty point guard since Dean Oliver. He averages 8.1 points and three rebounds to go along with his 3.9 assists. Payne, who was named to the CBE Classic all-tournament team in November, has averaged 4.9 assists the last seven contests.
Iowa begins play at the Big Ten Tournament later today against Michigan. Tip-off is 1:30 p.m. (CST) at Conseco Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. The game will be televised to a national cable audience by ESPN2.
