Hawkeyes Host Clemson in Big Ten/ACC Challenge

Nov. 28, 2011

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Iowa Game Notes

TIP-OFF
? Tuesday will be the third ever meeting between Iowa and Clemson. Iowa won the previous meetings 74-64 in 1962 at Iowa City and 80-68 in 1981 in the first round of the Kettle Classic in Houston, Texas.
? Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for youths and FREE for UI students.
? Tuesday promotions include: Bryce Cartwright “Bobblehead Night”, “Dollar Dog Night” and “Residence Hall Night”.
? Iowa has collected 10 steals or more in five of its six games this season. The Hawkeyes are averaging 10.7 thefts per contest, which ranks first in the Big Ten.
? Matt Gatens will be playing, and starting, in his 100th game Tuesday. Gatens, who is the team’s leading scorer, has scored in double figures the last five games.
? Roy Devyn Marble has 18 assists to only four turnovers this season.
? Iowa is 11-1, all-time, on games played on Nov. 29.
? Iowa is 6-0 when scoring 80 points or more, under McCaffery, the last two seasons. Furthermore, the Hawkeyes are 10-0 when holding opponents to fewer than 60 points.
? Iowa’s won its four games by 10 points or more and by a combined margin of 29.5 points.

IOWA IN THE BIG TEN/ACC CHALLENGE
Iowa is 2-8 in the Challenge after being edged 76-73 on a last second 3-pointer at Wake Forest a year ago in Winston-Salem, N.C. The Hawkeyes did not take part in the event in 2003-04 and 2004-05. Iowa hosted Virginia Tech in its last Challenge home contest in 2009. The Hokies won that game 70-64. The Hawkeyes’ last victory in the Challenge came against NC State (45-42) in 2005. Iowa is 11-23 all-time against ACC schools, while Clemson is 12-14 against current members of the Big Ten Conference. The Tigers have played every Big Ten school except Michigan State, Nebraska and Wisconsin.

BIG TEN/ACC CHALLENGE AND SOCIAL MEDIA
Fans and media who tweet during about the Big Ten/ACC Challenge this week are encouraged to use the hashtag #B1GACC in their tweets.

HAWKEYES BEAT IPFW SATURDAY
Iowa improved to 4-2 with an 82-72 triumph over IPFW Saturday inside Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes had four players score in double figures: Matt Gatens (22), Zach McCabe (12), Bryce Cartwright (12) and Roy Devyn Marble (11). Gatens has posted double figures the last five games and has reached the 20-point plateau twice this season. McCabe, who started his third career game, scored eight of his 12 points in the first 20 minutes. Gatens and Cartwright each dished out a game-high five assists. Iowa forced 24 Mastodon turnovers and collected 13 steals. The Hawkeyes converted those miscues into 33 points, which is a season best. Senior Andrew Brommer came off the bench to register a career-high three steals.

SCOUTING CLEMSON
? Brad Brownell is in his second year at Clemson after posting a 22-12 record and advancing to the 2011 NCAA Second Round in his first season.
? Clemson returns three starters from last year’s squad, including senior guard Andre Young, who averaged 11.1 points per game. Young is the Tigers’ leading scorer this season, averaging 14.4 points per contest.
? The Tigers enter tonight’s game with a 3-2 record. Clemson beat Gardner-Webb (65-44), The Citadel (73-50) and Furman (59-49). They lost to College of Charleston (72-69) and Coastal Carolina (60-59). Their two losses have come by a total of three points.
? Milton Jennings is the team’s leading rebounder (6.6) and ranks second in scoring (12.4). Devin Booker also averages double figures in scoring (10.6). Tanner Smith pulls down 6.4 boards and averages 9.8 points.
? Clemson averages 6.8 steals and 5.4 blocks per game. The Tigers shoot 64.5 percent from the free throw line and grab 5.2 more rebounds per game than their opponents.
? Tanner Smith’s stat line in Clemson’s last game reads: 14 rebounds, eight assists, five assists, two blocks and six points.

McCAFFERY TIES TO ESPN ANALYST LaPHONSO ELLIS
Fran McCaffery helped coach and was involved in recruiting former Notre Dame standout and NBA player LaPhonso Ellis while he was an assistant coach at South Bend, Ind. Ellis, who will be doing color commentary Tuesday night for ESPNU, is the only Notre Dame player to lead the team in blocks each of his four seasons. He was selected with the No. 5 overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft by Denver.

BALANCED SCORING
Iowa has eight players averaging 7.2 points or more. Matt Gatens is first on the team (16.8), followed by Eric May (9.7), Zach McCabe (8.5), Aaron White (7.8), Josh Oglesby (7.7), Bryce Cartwright (7.2), Melsahn Basabe (7.2) and Roy Devyn Marble (7.2).

STEALING THE ROCK
Iowa is averaging 10.7 steals this season, collecting 10 steals or more in five of the six games. Last season, the Hawkeyes averaged 6.7 thefts.

HOT SHOT
Freshman Josh Oglesby led Iowa in scoring against Northern Illinois and Creighton, netting a career-high 16 points against the Huskies and 14 versus the Bluejays. Oglesby becomes the first Hawkeye reserve to lead the team in scoring, in back-to-back games, since Ricky Davis paced Iowa with 25 and 18 on the road at Wisconsin (Feb. 3) and Michigan State (Feb. 7), respectively, in 1998. Like Oglesby, Davis accomplished the feat as a freshman. After shooting 1-of-9 (.111) from the field the first two games, the Cedar Rapids native shot 15-of-26 (.577) the last four outings.

IMPROVEMENT UNDER McCAFFERY IN SECOND YEAR OF PROGRAM
Fran McCaffery-coached teams have posted improved win totals from their first year to second with McCaffery as a head coach. At Lehigh, his team improved by two wins (13 in 1986 to 15 in 1987). His UNC Greensboro team had four more victories from 2000 (15) and 2001 (19). At Siena his team improved by five victories, registering 15 in 2006 to 20 in 2007.

BIG TEN RANKINGS
Iowa ranks first in the Big Ten in steals (17.7), second in assists (17.6), and third in scoring (80.2) and turnover margin (+6.5).

SINKING THE FREEBEES
Starters Matt Gatens (24-of-26), Melsahn Basabe (19-of-22) and Bryce Cartwright (11-of-13) are a combined 54-of-61 (.885) from the free throw line. Gatens was 8-of-9 from the charity stripe against IPFW. The senior ranks third in Big Ten career free throw percentage.

DIALING UP LONG DISTANCE
Iowa made a combined 31 triples its first three games. The 31 treys are the most by a Hawkeye team to start the season. Iowa made 30 triples to start the 1994-95 campaign, making seven against Morgan State, 14 versus Drake and nine against Pepperdine. For the season, Iowa has made 46 triples, 7.7 per game to rank fifth in the Big Ten.

EXPERIENCED BACKCOURT
Iowa has the most experienced starting backcourt duo in the Big Ten. The Hawkeyes are the only league team with two starting senior guards, Bryce Cartwright and Matt Gatens.

COACHING EXPERIENCE
Fran McCaffery has assembled one of the most experienced coaching staffs in the country. Assistant coaches Kirk Speraw, Sherman Dillard and Andrew Francis have over six decades of combined coaching experience. Furthermore, the entire coaching staff combines for 47 years of head coaching experience. Director of Basketball Operations Jerry Strom is in his 31st season as a member of the Iowa basketball staff. Also, former Hawkeye standout and professional basketball player Ryan Bowen is the video coordinator. Bowen was on four NBA rosters (Denver, Houston, New Orleans and Oklahoma City).

HAWKEYE FAST BREAKS
? Seven of Iowa’s first eight contests will be played at home, with the non-home game during the stretch being played on a neutral floor in Des Moines versus Creighton.
? Coach McCaffery has played at least 10 players in each of Iowa’s first six games. Also, Iowa’s bench averages 35 points its first six outings, including 32 points in each of the last two games.
? Iowa’s 61.9 percent (13-of-21) 3-point percentage and 26 assists against Northern Illinois are the best of any Big Ten team this season.
? Iowa had five players score 12 points or more in its win over North Carolina A&T on Nov. 14. It marked only the fourth time the Hawkeyes had five players tally 12 points or more in a game (UW-Green Bay in 2003, Michigan in 2004, SIU-Edwardsville in 2010 and North Carolina A&T in 2011).
? Matt Gatens’ 22 points Saturday versus IPFW propelled him past Bill Logan (1954-56), Dave Gunther (1957-59) and Kevin Boyle (1979-82) into 18th place on Iowa’s all-time scoring chart. The senior is 26 points from tying Kenyon Murray (1993-96) and 44 from Jeff Moe (1985-88). Gatens has 1,204 points entering Tuesday night’s contest against Clemson.
? Iowa saw an increase in its attendance numbers in 2010-11. Compared to 2009-10, last year’s Hawkeyes averaged 2,085 more fans than the previous season, an increase of 20%. Iowa averaged 9,550 fans two years ago, compared to 11,635 last year.

WELCOME NEW HAWKEYES
Iowa has six new faces on the team this season: Gabriel Olaseni, Josh Oglesby, Aaron White, Stephen McCarty, Kyle Denning and Christopher Rickert. Olaseni, Oglesby and White are on scholarship, while Denning, McCarty and Rickert are walk-ons.

HAWKEYES ARE TOUGH AT HOME
Iowa has won 75 of its 106 games (.708) in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,500) over the last eight seasons, including win streaks of 21 straight overall and 12 straight Big Ten Conference wins. Iowa has won 10 of its last 20 home games against ranked opponents. Iowa was a perfect 17-0 at home in 2006, 14-2 in 2007, 10-8 in 2008, 13-4 in 2009, 9-9 in 2010 and 8-8 this season.

IOWA IN CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa has compiled a 351-112 (.758) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena since the facility opened in January, 1983. Iowa is 162-89 (.645) in Big Ten games and 189-23 (.892) in non-Big Ten contests.

HAWKEYEBASKETBALL.COM
Check out the Iowa basketball team’s new website, HawkeyeBasketball.com, devoted to everything on-and-off-the-court surrounding the program. HawkeyeBasketball.com, allows fans a chance to go behind the scenes with the Hawkeye basketball program on and off the court. The site is complete with exclusive videos, photo galleries and content featuring the basketball program. HawkeyeBasketball.com will be updated throughout the year with exclusive videos, including game highlights and player features, along with news stories and other content.

ALL-SESSION BIG TEN TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE
All-session tickets for the Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament are on sale. Tickets can be purchased at the Conseco Fieldhouse Box Office, Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com or by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. For more information regarding how to purchase tickets within Iowa’s block, contact the UI Athletic Ticket Office. Conseco Fieldhouse is the site of the men’s tournament from March 8-11, featuring 22 games over eight days. Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament all-session tickets for the lower and club levels are available for $325 through Big Ten university ticket offices only. All-session tickets for the upper levels are available for $240 or $175 (depending on seat location) through Ticketmaster or the Conseco Fieldhouse Box Office only. Orders will be limited to eight all-session tickets. In addition, the men’s tournament will continue to feature a special discounted rate of $50 for all-session tickets available only to students of Big Ten universities. All students must have a valid student ID for entry. Student section seating will be available in eight balcony sections and orders will be limited to one all-session ticket. Details on the student ticket program will be sent to the university ticket offices for distribution directly to students. The Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament will call Indianapolis and Conseco Fieldhouse home this March and again in 2014 and 2016. The 2012 tournament marks the eighth time Indianapolis has hosted the Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament at Conseco Fieldhouse.

ON THE HORIZON
Iowa closes out its four-game homestand Saturday when it entertains Brown. Tip-off is scheduled for 2 p.m.