Nov. 18, 2010
- ‘Kash’ Alexander: All-America Candidate
- Women’s Basketball – W.I.N. Video
- Buy Women’s Basketball Tickets
- Iowa and the Big Ten Network
- Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
- 24 Hawkeyes to Watch
Northeastern Game Notes in PDF Format
IOWA CITY, Iowa – THE SETTING
The University of Iowa women’s basketball team hosts the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge this weekend. Northeastern, Northern Colorado and Central Michigan will join the Hawkeyes in Iowa City.
Iowa opens the tournament against Northeastern Saturday at noon. Northern Colorado and Central Michigan play game two at 2:30 p.m. Below is a schedule of the tournament.
Admission to Saturday’s games is free. Tickets for Sunday will be $9 for adults, $5 for youth 18 and under and free for UI students with a valid student ID.
Saturday, Nov. 20
Northeastern vs. Iowa – Noon
Northern Colorado vs. Central Michigan – 2:30 p.m.
Sunday, Nov. 21
Northeastern vs. Northern Colorado/Central Michigan – 11:30 a.m.
Iowa vs. Northern Colorado/Central Michigan – 2 p.m.
AUDIO COVERAGE
Brent Balbinot and Shelley Till will call Saturday’s game for the Hawkeye Radio Network. Hawkeye fans can listen to the contest on FM-95.7 KKSY in Cedar Rapids or on the Hawkeye All-Access page of hawkeyesports.com. Balbinot is in his seventh season as Iowa’s play-by-play voice, while Till is in her sixth providing analysis.
ON YOUR COMPUTER
Saturday’s game will be webcast on bigtennetwork.com for a subscription fee.
Hawkeye fans can follow the game via live stats (Gametracker). The “GT” link can be accessed under the “Calendar” tab on the front page of hawkeyesports.com or on the women’s basketball schedule page.
IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 1,039 games, since beginning basketball in 1974. Iowa’s overall record is 633-406 (.609). That includes a 318-158 (.668) mark in regular season Big Ten contests and a 298-87 (.774) mark in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
SCOUTING BRADLEY
The Northeastern Huskies are 0-2 after dropping their first two games at Syracuse (69-72) and at home vs. Kent State (53-71).
Parchael Pecota leads the team in scoring at 22 points per game. Jamie Conroy is averaging 9.5 points, while Afreyea Tolbert has a team-best 7.5 boards per contest.
The Huskies are shooting .319 (37-116) from the field, including .318 (21-66) from three-point range.
NORTHEASTERN VS. IOWA NOTES
? Iowa has never faced Northeastern.
? Northeastern’s Mia Mayberry is from the Quad Cities. Her hometown is Rock Island, IL, and she prepped at Rock Island High School.
SCOUTING NORTHERN COLORADO
The Northern Colorado Bears are 2-1 and have played all three games at home. The Bears dropped their season-opener in overtime to South Dakota (57-62), before picking up wins against Air Force (76-56) and Santa Clara (65-57).
Lauren Oosdyke leads the way with 14.3 points and 8.3 rebounds per game. Kaisha Brown is averaging 12.3 points and Courtney Stoermer rounds out the team’s double-figure scorers with 10.7.
Northern Colorado is shooting .414 (70-169) from the field, including .300 (12-40) from three-point distance.
NORTHERN COLORADO VS. IOWA NOTES
? Iowa has never faced Northern Colorado.
? Northern Colorado’s Courtney Stoermer is from Iowa City and went to Iowa City West High School. Her brother, Jordan, is a junior on the UI men’s basketball team.
? Northern Colorado’s Jayne Strand is from Ames, IA, and prepped at Ames High School. She also spent two seasons at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids. Strand was high school teammates with current Hawkeye Trisha Nesbitt and junior college teammates with current Hawkeye Kalli Hansen.
? Northern Colorado’s Kaisha Brown is from Spirit Lake, IA, and attended Spirit Lake High School. Her older sister, Katie, was a member of the UI softball team from 2007-10.
SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
The Central Michigan Chippewas are 2-0 after defeating North Carolina A&T (119-71) and Belmont (102-71) at the Winthrop Tournament in Rock Hill, SC. Central Michigan holds a +39.5 scoring margin in its first two games.
Six Chippewas are averaging double figures. Kaihla Szunko is averaging 20.5 points and 14 rebounds while Shonda Long is scoring 20 points per game. Jalisa Olive (17.0), Brandie Baker (14.5), Niki DiGuilio (11.5) and Skylar Miller (11.5) are also over 10 points a game.
Central Michigan is shooting .482 (79-164) from the field, including .345 (20-58) from distance.
CENTRAL MICHIGAN VS. IOWA NOTES
? Central Michigan Head Coach Sue Guevara spent seven years as the head coach at Michigan (1996-2003). Iowa was 3-8 against the Wolverines during that stretch. Guevara also spent time as an assistant coach at Michigan State and was a graduate assistant at Ohio State.
? Central Michigan assistant coach Heather Oesterle played for Guevara at Michigan from 1999-02. Iowa went 2-6 vs. Michigan during Oesterle’s time as a Wolverine.
IOWA IN THE RANKINGS
The Hawkeyes are ranked No. 22 in the AP poll and No. 24 in the ESPN/USA Today poll.
Four Iowa opponents are also ranked in the AP and ESPN/USA Today polls: Ohio State (7/7), North Carolina (14/15), Iowa State (19/17) and Michigan State (25/22).
Kansas State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Northwestern, Purdue and James Madison are receiving votes.
HAWKEYE CHALLENGE NOTE
Iowa has won 19 of the previous 24 tournaments it has hosted, and holds an impressive 42-6 record in Hawkeye Challenge contests.
HAWKEYES TAKE HOME OPENER VS. BRADLEY
Iowa improved to 3-0 on the season with a 91-53 win over Bradley Tuesday night. The game was Iowa’s first at Carver-Hawkeye Arena this season.
Four Hawkeyes hit double figures, led by Jaime Printy with 21 points (9-9 FTs). Kamille Wahlin added 17 points, five assists and three steals while Kachine Alexander had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds along with five assists. Kelly Krei and Hannah Draxten each had 12 points.
The Hawkeyes converted 25 Bradley turnovers into 35 points and netted 16 second chance points off 13 offensive rebounds.
STEALING AWAY AGAINST BRADLEY
Iowa collected 17 steals against Bradley Nov. 16, which was the highest steal total for a Hawkeye team since the 2005-06 season. Iowa recorded 17 steals against UW-Milwaukee in the season opener on Nov. 20, 2005.
TAKING CARE OF THE BALL
Iowa committed only nine turnovers against Bradley Nov. 16. The last time Iowa had fewer than nine turnovers was the 2008-09 season when the Hawkeyes committed eight at Northwestern March 1, 2009.
RACKING UP THE POINTS
Iowa’s 91 points against Bradley Nov. 16 were the most for a regular season, non-overtime game since Feb. 25, 2007, when the Hawkeyes defeated Wisconsin, 103-93. Iowa scored 97 points in a triple-overtime win against Penn State Feb. 1, 2009.
BLUDER CLOSING IN ON MILESTONE
Iowa Head Coach Lisa Bluder is just eight wins away from becoming only the second coach in school history to reach the 200-win milestone.
Bluder currently has 192 wins in her 11 years at Iowa. C. Vivian Stringer is the only other Hawkeye head coach to reach the 200-win plateau at Iowa, finishing her time in Iowa City with 269 wins.
Ohio State Head Coach Jim Foster is the only other active Big Ten coach to have reached 200 wins at his/her current school.
KREI STARTING OFF HOT
Kelly Krei collected her second career double-double in Iowa’s season opener against Southern with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Krei’s other double-double came at home vs. Indiana Feb. 25 last season when she scored 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Krei had reached the 20-point mark just one other time in her career, netting 20 points against Penn State last season in the quarterfinals of the Big Ten Tournament. The Iowa City native had only hit the double-digit rebounding mark one previous time as well (13 against Indiana last season).
ALEXANDER AND WAHLIN MAKE ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
Kachine Alexander was named MVP of the Islander Tip-Off Tournament and Kamille Wahlin was picked for the all-tournament team.
Alexander scored 30 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in the two games. Wahlin added 23 points, seven rebounds and seven assists.
ALEXANDER ON WATCH LISTS
Senior Kachine Alexander has been named to the watch lists for the Wade Trophy, the Wooden Award and the Naismith Trophy. The “Wade Watch” List is made up of the top 25 preseason women’s basketball players, the Wooden Award includes 30 student-athletes and the Naismith Trophy watch list is made up of 50 players.
The Wade Trophy, Wooden Award and Naismith Trophy are considered the three most prestigious awards in NCAA women’s college basketball.
Alexander is also one of 30 Division I women’s basketball players nationally to be selected as a candidate for the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible, the candidates must show excellence in four categories: community, classroom, character and competition.
KASH IN THE BANK
? As a 5-9 guard, junior Kachine Alexander ranked second in the Big Ten and 23rd nationally with 10.4 rebounds per game last season.
? Alexander claimed the Big Ten rebounding title, averaging 11.1 boards per game in league games.
? Alexander was the top rebounding guard in the country under 5-10, and was one of only two guards in the entire country to average a double-double (16 points, 10.4 rebounds per game). She was also one of only three Big Ten players to average a double-double, with the other two being post players.
? Alexander had 15 double-doubles this season and has 24 in her career, which ties Amy Herrig for fourth most in school history.
? Alexander scored double figures in 22 of 27 games played, including eight 20-plus point performances. She had 10 or more rebounds in 17 of those games, with an impressive 10 games with 12 or more boards.
? Alexander averaged more rebounds than nine of the 10 players selected to the Division I State Farm Coaches’ all-America Team. She averaged the same amount of rebounds (10.4) as Nebraska’s Kelsey Griffin.
? Alexander had more double-doubles than seven all-Americans, despite playing between 12 and 14 fewer games than most of the honorees.
EVERYBODY BACK
Iowa returns all but one player who logged significant minutes from last year’s team that finished in a tie for third place in the Big Ten, earned a berth in the Big Ten Tournament championship game and advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament after knocking off Rutgers in the first round (Gabby Machado – transfer).
SUCCESS UNDER BLUDER
Last year marked the seventh time in 10 seasons under Head Coach Lisa Bluder that Iowa has been selected for the NCAA Tournament, including each of the last three seasons. The Hawkeyes have participated in postseason play in all but one season under Bluder (two WNIT appearances).
In addition, Iowa finished with a winning record for the ninth time in 10 seasons under Bluder. Iowa’s third place finish in the Big Ten is also the seventh time under Bluder the Hawkeyes recorded an upper-division finish in the conference.
Iowa also tallied its fifth 20-win season under Bluder, including each of the last three seasons.
AWARD WINNERS RETURNING
Several Hawkeyes earned numerous awards during the 2009-10 season.
? Head Coach Lisa Bluder was named Big Ten Coach of the Year for the third time in 10 seasons at Iowa.
? Kachine Alexander was named honorable mention All-America by the Associated Press and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). Alexander was also selected All-Region by the WBCA. She also earned All-America honors by the National Strength and Conditioning Assocation (NSCA). Alexander was named first team all-Big Ten by the coaches, second team all-Big Ten by the media and was one of five players named to the Big Ten all-Defensive Team. She was also selected to the Big Ten Tournament all-tournament team, named the MVP of the KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge and was a two-time Big Ten Player of the Week.
? Jaime Printy was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year and was a unanimous pick for the Big Ten all-Freshmen team. Printy also earned second team all-conference honors from the media and third team all-league honors by the coaches. Printy was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week four times. She was named second team Freshman all-American by Full Court Press.
? Kamille Wahlin was a third team all-Big Ten selection by both the coaches and media. She was also named to the Big Ten Tournament, KCRG-TV9 Hawkeye Challenge and Nugget Classic all-tournament teams.
? Kelly Krei was named to the Big Ten Tournament all-tournament team.
? Morgan Johnson earned a Big Ten Freshman of the Week award.
LEADING THE LEAGUE
Several Hawkeyes led the Big Ten in different statistical categories (both overall and league games only) last season.
? Junior Kachine Alexander claimed the Big Ten rebounding crown, averaging 11.1 boards per contest in league games. She also finished first in defensive rebounds (8.12 per game), in Big Ten games only. Alexander led the entire conference in offensive rebounds for all games (3.11).
? Sophomore Kamille Wahlin led the conference in three-pointers made per game for overall games (2.55) and league games only (2.59).
? Freshman Morgan Johnson led the Big Ten in field goal percentage, in conference games (.508).
? As a team, the Hawkeyes led the conference in free throw percentage (.771) and three-pointers made per game (7.91). In Big Ten games only, Iowa led the league in three-pointers made per game (7.72).
INJURY UPDATE
Iowa sophomores Theairra Taylor and Trisha Nesbitt are both sidelined with injuries.
Taylor suffered her third ACL tear in the last 20 months during preseason practice and will miss the entire season.
Nesbitt partially ruptured the plantar fascia in her right foot and will be out indefinitely. A timetable for Nesbitt’s return has not been established.
TOUGH SCHEDULE IN 10-11
Iowa’s schedule features 15 opponents who participated in postseason play last year (nine NCAA teams, five WNIT teams and one WBI team). The Hawkeyes will take on six 2010 NCAA Tournament teams before conference play.
Seven of Iowa’s 12 non-conference games will be on the road, including two neutral site games at the Islander Tip-Off Tournament (Corpus Christi, TX) and the Caribbean Challenge (Cancun, Mexico). The Hawkeyes will also face South Dakota State, North Carolina and Drake on the road.
WELCOME ABOARD
Iowa has two new faces on its roster this year in Jade Rogers and Kalli Hansen.
Rogers is from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and prepped at Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School. She was a four-time all-state selection, including first team honors as a sophomore, junior and senior. She was also a four-time first team all-metro, all-district and all-conference pick. Rogers was a two-time conference Player of the Year and was also the metro Player of the Year as a senior.
Hansen is from Olin, Iowa and spent the last two years at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids. She helped lead Kirkwood to back-to-back NJCAA national championships. Kirkwood compiled an impressive 75-2 record during her two seasons. She was a first team All-American and all-region selection while at Kirkwood.