Hawkeyes Celebrate Seniors, Face Illinois Saturday

Feb. 25, 2016

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Game Notes – vs Illinois

#SENIORNIGHTSATURDAY
The University of Iowa women’s basketball concludes the regular season at home against Illinois on Saturday at 5 p.m. (CT). It is Senior Night for a trio of Hawkeyes — Kali Peschel, Nicole Smith, and Claire Till. They will be honored for their contributions on and off the court after the game.

GAME COVERAGE
? Saturday’s game will air live on the Big Ten Network. Mike Wolf (play-by-play) and Christy Winters-Scott (color) are on the call.
? Audio of the contest is available on select Hawkeye Radio Network affiliate stations and on Hawkeye All-Access available at hawkeyesports.com. Brent Balbinot and Kathryn Reynolds will call the action.
? Balbinot is in his 12th year as Iowa’s play-by-play voice, while Reynolds is in her first providing analysis.
? Reynolds, a member of the famous Core Four and team captain for the Hawkeyes in 2014-15, is pursuing a law degree at the University of Iowa.
? Links to video, audio, and Gametracker (live stats) are available on the women’s basketball schedule page at hawkeyesports.com.

SERIES HISTORY
? Iowa leads Illinois, 52-18, in the all-time series.
? The Hawkeyes have won 11 of the last 13 series meetings.
? Iowa owns a 25-3 advantage over the Illini inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes have won five consecutive games at home against Illinois.
? Under head coach Lisa Bluder, the Hawkeyes are 20-6 against the Illini.

A LOOK AT THE ILLINI
? Illinois enters Saturday with a 9-19 record overall and a 2-15 mark in Big Ten Conference play. This is the lone regular season matchup between the programs.
? The Illini has posted a pair of wins over Wisconsin for a season sweep.
? As a team, Illinois averages 69.1 points and 36.2 rebounds per game. Three average double figures in scoring including, Chatrice White (18.1), Kyley Simmons (12.0), and Alex Wittinger (10.3).
? White leads the team in rebounds, averaging 9.4 per game, followed by Wittinger (6.9).
? The roster, comprised of four seniors, one junior, three sophomores, and three freshmen, is led by fourth-year head coach Matt Bollant.

HAWKEYE SENIOR QUICK HITS
? Kali Peschel, a team-elected co-captain, has played in 28 games with 20 starts this year. She opened the season with a double-double (17 points, 14 rebounds), the second of her career, against North Dakota. The 6-1 forward was named to the Hawkeye Challenge All-Tournament Team for the second time in her career. Peschel, who has played in 126 career games with 42 starts, has scored 485 points, pulled down 376 rebounds, dished out 80 assists, recorded 45 steals, and blocked 25 shots. The Sauk Centre, Minnesota, is a double major in communications and Spanish.
? Nicole Smith has played in 19 games in her career for the Hawkeyes with four appearances this season. Smith, who has battled injuries throughout her career, is a communications major and sports studies minor. The Rockton, Illinois, native shot 1.000 from the free throw line and posted a .714 field goal percentage in her career.
? Claire Till appeared in 95 games, including 14 this season before undergoing career-ending knee surgery on Feb. 22. Till was a spark off the bench for the Hawkeyes throughout her career, but was plagued by injuries. She compiled 184 rebounds, 155 points, 33 assists, 21 steals, and 20 blocks in her career. The Dubuque, Iowa, native is a health and human physiology major with an exercise science focus.

BIG DIFFERENCE
? Since altering the lineup to include freshman Megan Gustafson and sophomore Chase Coley, the Hawkeyes have seen an increase in production offensively.
? In the last 10 games, Iowa has had five players average double figures in scoring rather than three in the previous 19 games. Leading the pack is junior Ally Disterhoft (18.4), followed by Coley (12.9), Gustafson (12.1), freshman Tania Davis (11.2), and sophomore Whitney Jennings (10.3).
? Gustafson has seen her rebounds per game average spike from 4.8 to 9.7 in the last 10 games, while Coley has made the jump from 5.0 to 7.3.
? The 6-3 duo accounts for 48 percent of the team’s rebounding effort and 34 percent of Iowa’s offensive production.

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
? In the last nine games, freshman Megan Gustafson has posted six double-doubles, the first of her career.
? The stretch began with three consecutive double-doubles against Michigan (12 rebounds, 10 points) on Jan. 28, at Northwestern (15 points, 13 rebounds) on Jan. 31, and at Indiana (12 points, 10 rebounds).
? After recording eight rebounds and seven points against Michigan State on Feb. 7, Gustafson returned to her double-double ways with 13 points and 11 rebounds against Ohio State on Feb. 11.
? The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native secured her fifth double-double at Minnesota on Feb. 15, tallying 14 points and a career-high 19 boards. The last player to record more than 17 rebounds in a game was Samantha Logic (vs. Drake on Dec. 21, 2013). The Iowa record for rebounds in a game is 26 (Jerica Watson vs. Creighton on Dec. 15, 2001).
? After a two-game break, Gustafson returned to her double-double ways with 15 points and a team-high 11 rebounds at Penn State on Feb. 24. It marks the sixth double-double of her career.

1ST TIME FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK
? Megan Gustafson earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week recognition on Feb. 22. It is the first conference honor of her career and first freshman of the week accolade for Iowa since Feb. 28, 2012 (Samantha Logic).
? The center averaged a double-double with 14 points and 10.7 rebounds per game to guide Iowa to a 2-1 record. She shot .563 from the field and averaged 3.3 blocks per contest in the three-game stretch.
? Gustafson recorded a career-high 19 rebounds at Minnesota on Feb. 15, the highest rebounding total in a single game in Iowa women’s basketball history since Feb. 16 2012 (Samantha Logic, 18 rebounds, at Michigan). She added 14 points, netting 6-of-12 field goal attempts, to secure her fifth career double-double in a six-game stretch.
? The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native poured in 18 points and led the team for the seventh straight game with seven rebounds against Purdue on Feb. 18. She also recorded a team-high four blocks and shot .778 from the field to lead the Hawkeyes to victory.
? In Iowa’s third game in seven days, Gustafson posted 10 points to reach double figures for the fourth consecutive game and six boards against Indiana on Feb. 21. The 6-foot-3 center also added a team-high four blocks to help the Hawkeyes win their second straight Big Ten game.
? Gustafson leads Big Ten freshmen with 50 blocks this season, which is the third-highest total among all freshmen in Iowa history. She has posted three or more blocks in nine of 29 games this season and owns the sixth-highest rebound total for a freshman in program history (188).

FUN FACTS
? Iowa recorded its first victory without making a three-pointer (0-for-5) in 18 years against Purdue on Feb. 18. The last win in program history without a three-pointer was against Ohio State in the opening round of the Big Ten Tournament on Feb. 28, 1998. The Hawkeyes went 0-for-2 in three-point field goal attempts and recorded a 72-54 win.
? The Hawkeyes were a perfect 16-for-16 at the free throw line at Minnesota on Feb. 15. A perfect performance at the charity stripe has only happened six times in program history, most recently on Feb. 21, 2015 against Ohio State (13-for-13).
? Iowa is one of just two teams (Northwestern) to out-rebound Maryland this season. The Hawkeyes recorded 38 rebounds to the Terrapins’ 37 on Jan. 10 inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

MOVING UP THE CHARTS
? Junior Ally Disterhoft is 13th all-time in scoring (1,472 career points), 14th all-time in three-point field goals made (105), and 18th all-time in rebounding (591 career rebounds) in Iowa women’s basketball history.
? Disterhoft, who has played in every game of her Hawkeye career with 80 consecutive starts, has scored double figures in every game this year and in 74 of her 80 career starts. She is the eighth-highest scoring junior in program history with 495 points this season. The record for points in a junior season is 564 (Michelle Edwards, 1986-87).
? Megan Gustafson has compiled 50 blocks through 29 games played this season, which is third on the all-time freshman list at Iowa. The program record of 79 stuffs was set by Morgan Johnson in 2009-10. Gustafson averages a team-leading 1.7 blocks per contest and has compiled three or more stuffs in nine games this season.
? Gustafson owns the sixth-highest rebound total of all freshmen in program history with 188 boards. The record for most rebounds in a freshman season is 252 (Krista VandeVenter, 2004-05).
? Alexa Kastanek has netted 53 three-point field goals so far in her junior campaign, which ties for sixth in her class in program history. The record for three-pointers made in a junior season is 97 (Melissa Dixon, 2013-14).
? Tania Davis is the fourth-highest rated freshman passer in program history with 92 assists. The record for assists in a freshman season is 136 (Samantha Logic, 2011-12).

DISTERHOFT EARNS ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT ACCOLADES
? Junior Ally Disterhoft earned Capital One Academic All-District first team recognition for the second consecutive season for her efforts on the court and in the classroom on Feb. 11.
? She advances to the Capital One Academic All-America Team ballot, where first, second, and third team All-America honorees will be elected in late February.
? Disterhoft, the lone sophomore in the country to earn Capital One Academic All-America third team accolades in 2015, is a business major studying accounting and finance.
? The Iowa City, Iowa, native is a four-time Dean’s List honoree, academic All-Big Ten selection, Big Ten Distinguished Scholar, and two-time Presidential Committee on Athletics Scholar Athlete.
? She was also recognized as Iowa’s female Student-Athlete of the Month in November — an award voted on by UI student-athletes.

CALL ON ME
? Junior Ally Disterhoft, a preseason All-Big Ten selection by league coaches, has been a consistent force for the Hawkeyes all season.
? Disterhoft, who averages 36.3 minutes per contest, is fourth in the conference and seventh nationally with 1053 minutes played this season.
? The 6-0 forward paces Iowa in points per game (17.1), and is third in rebounds per game (5.6), assists per game (2.7), and steals per game (0.9).
? She has scored double figures in every game of the season and in 74 of her 80 career starts.
? The Iowa City, Iowa, native has led Iowa in scoring in 14 of 29 games this season, scoring 20 points or more in nine contests.
? Disterhoft owns a .534 field goal percentage, a .372 three-point field goal percentage, and a .727 free throw percentage.

HAWKEYE FRESHMEN REPORT
? Freshman Megan Gustafson leads all Big Ten freshmen in blocks with 50 followed by Illinois’ Alex Wittinger who has recorded 46 on the season. Gustafson is one of two freshmen to lead her team in blocks this year (Hallie Thome, Michigan — 34 blocks).
? Gustafson leads league freshmen in blocks per game (1.7), is second in rebounding (188), and fourth in scoring (282 points). She is one of two freshmen in the conference who lead their team in rebounds (Jessica Shepard, Nebraska — 246 rebounds).
? Gustafson has blocked three or more shots in nine of her 29 career games.
? Freshman Tania Davis is one of two Big Ten freshmen who lead their team in the assists category. She has distributed 92 this season, bested only by Penn State’s Teniya Page (112).
? Davis is second among Big Ten freshmen in steals (29) behind Page (36) and sixth in scoring (240). She has dished out five or more assists in seven of her 29 games played.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
Iowa opens postseason play at the Big Ten Tournament March 2-6 inside Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana. For more information on this year’s tournament, including ticket information, visit bigten.org.