Men's Hoops Hosts Seton Hall Thursday in Gavitt Games Matchup

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THE SETTING
Iowa (2-0) remains home on Thursday, hosting Seton Hall (2-0). Tipoff is set for 8:06 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Thursday’s game is part of the second annual Gavitt Games.
    Tickets are $28 for adults and $15 for youths and UI students. UI Faculty & Staff will be admitted FREE Thursday night, while their guests can purchase a ticket for only $5.

ON THE AIR
Radio: Iowa games are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network. Gary Dolphin will handle the play-by-play, along with color commentator Bob Hansen. The network includes more than 40 stations that blanket the state of Iowa and include portions of Illinois, Nebraska, Minnesota, Missouri and Wisconsin. The Hawkeye Radio Network coverage includes a 60-minute pregame show.
TV: Thursday’s game will be televised nationally on BTN (BTN2GO). Brian Anderson and Jon Crispin will call the action. 

GAME #3 STORYLINE
•    Iowa has won 39 of its last 40 nonconference home games, dating back to 2012.
•    Seton Hall is the last team to have beaten 2016 NCAA champion Villanova. The Pirates downed the Wildcats (69-67) in the championship game of the BIG EAST Tournament.
•    Senior Peter Jok scored 27 points in Iowa’s season opening win over Kennesaw State. The 27 points are the most by a Hawkeye in a season opener since Adam Haluska poured in 29 against The Citadel in 2006. 
•    Freshman Tyler Cook (10) joined Aaron White as the only two players to grab 10 or more rebounds in their first game as a Hawkeye in the past 20 years.
•    Freshman Cordell Pemsl scored in double digits each of his first two contests. In two games, Pemsl is averaging 14 points and 7.5 rebounds. In Sunday’s win, Pemsl netted 18 points making every shot (7-of-7 FG, 4-of-4 FT) and snagging a team-best nine rebounds.
•    Iowa scored 116 points Sunday against Savannah State — the most in the Fran McCaffery era. The 116 points equal the seventh most points scored in a single game in program history.
•    Iowa’s 3-pointers made (18) and attempted (43) verus Savannah State on Sunday are new school records.
•    Peter Jok was named to the preseason 10-player All-Big Ten first team, while also being named to the 2017 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award and 2017 Naismith Trophy  and John Wooden Award watch lists.
•    Iowa has competed in postseason play the last five years (NCAA 2014-16; NIT 2012-13).
•    The Hawkeyes won 22 games, tied for third place in the Big Ten, and won an NCAA Tournament game each of the last two seasons. 
•    Iowa sold out 23 home games the last three seasons. The Hawkeyes ranked 19th in national attendance in 2015-16.
•    Iowa has won 20 or more games in four consecutive seasons — its longest streak in 15 years. 
•    Fran McCaffery has guided Iowa to upper division finishes in the Big Ten in each of the last four seasons. McCaffery, who is one of just 12 Division I head coaches to take four different programs to the NCAA Tournament, has accumulated 16 first division finishes in 20 years as a head coach. McCaffery has posted 10 seasons of 20 or more wins as a head coach.
•    Iowa is 52-7 when scoring 80 points or more, the last six seasons. The Hawkeyes are 61-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 61 points, the last six years.

ALL-TIME SERIES RESULTS
This will be the second meeting between the two schools. Iowa beat Seton Hall in the previous meeting, 85-63, on Dec. 29, 1982, in the Rochester Classic contested in Rochester, New York. Iowa is 39-33 all-time against current members in the BIG EAST.

GAVITT GAMES
The Gavitt Tipoff Games is an annual series between the Big Ten and BIG EAST conferences and named in honor of Dave Gavitt, founder of the BIG EAST and basketball visionary. The series is in its second year and will span eight years with games being played on home sites. Eight teams in the event advanced to the NCAA Tournament and won at least 20 games last season.
    Iowa won last year’s inaugural Gavitt Games contest, winning 89-61 at Marquette.

CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA ENHANCEMENTS
The Iowa Athletic Department upgraded Carver-Hawkeye Arena’s video boards, sound system, lighting, digital scorestable displays, and playing surface this past summer. 
    A new four-sided centerhung video system is the centerpiece of the installation. The two main centerhung displays measure approximately 14.5 feet high by 26 feet wide and the other two centerhung displays measure 9.5 feet high by 16.5 feet wide. The project also upgraded the auxiliary displays located near the ceiling at each side of the arena.

IOWA CRUISES TO WIN OVER SAVANNAH STATE
Iowa made a school-record 18 3-pointers en route to a 116-84 triumph over Savannah State Sunday afternoon on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
•    Iowa surpassed the century mark for the 97th time in program history.
•    All 13 players who saw action scored with four players reaching double figures: Brady Ellingson (23), Cordell Pemsl (18), Tyler Cook (14), and Peter Jok (13).
•    Sophomore Brady Ellingson scored a career-high 23 points (7-9 FG, 5-5 FT), scoring 21 of his 23 points in the first half.
•    Iowa’s bench scored 76 of its 116 points. 
•    Savannah State was outrebounding the Hawkeyes by eight (26-18) at half, but Iowa was +20 on the glass in the second half finishing the game with a +12 advantage (52-40).
•    Nicholas Baer was credited with a career-high six assists. He also had nine points.

SCOUTING SETON HALL
•    Like Iowa, Seton Hall opened with a pair of home wins to start the 2016-17 season. The Pirates beat Fairleigh Dickenson (91-70) and Central Connecticut (82-58).
•    Khade Carrington is averaging a team-best 22.5 points, bolstered by a blisering 9-of-10 shooting (.900) from 3-point range. He shot 15-of-22 (.682) overall from the field the first two games combined.
•    Junior Angel Delgado averages a double-double (18 points and 15 rebounds). He is shooting 73.9 precent (17-of-23) from the field.
•    Seton Hall, who’s starting lineup consists of four juniors and a senior, shoots at 56.1 percent clip fromt he field, but is 57.7 percent from the free throw line.
•    The Pirates posted a 25-9 overall record and captured the 2016 BIG EAST Tournament title. Seton Hall competed in its 10th NCAA Tournament, ultimately losing to Gonzaga in the first round.
•    Head coach Kevin Willard is in his seventh season on the Seton Hall sidelines (109-100) and his 10th season overall (154-139) as a head coach. Prior to being named the 19th head coach in Seton Hall histiry, he was head coach at Iona for three seasons. Willard was an assistant coach on Lousiville’s staff when Iowa beat the Cardinals in 2003 (Indianapolis) and 2004 (Maui).
•    Seton Hall will log several miles traveling to three different states for nonconference competition: Iowa, Florida (3), and Hawaii (2).

PLUS-MINUS STATS
Iowa has seven players boasting a positive plus-minus average in double figures through two games: Nicholas Baer (+20), Peter Jok (+16), Jordan Bohannon (+15), Ahmad Wagner (+15), Cordell Pemsl (+13), Maishe Dailey (+13), Tyler Cook (+12).

PETER JOK ENTERS FINAL SEASON AS A HAWKEYE
After averaging seven points per game as a sophomore, Peter Jok surged 9.1 points last year as a junior averaging 16.1 points per contest. The +9.1 improvement was tops among Big Ten players. Jok’s 16.1 scoring average ranks second among Big Ten players returning this season behind Illinois’ Malcolm Hill (18.1 ppg).
    Jok was named to the preseason 10-player All-Big Ten first team, while also being named to the 2017 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award and 2017 Naismith Trophy and John Wooden Award watch lists.
    Jok ranked second on the team in scoring (16.1 ppg) and first in free throw accuracy (.852, 92-of-108). Jok made 28 straight free throws before missing in the win over Temple (3-of-5). He scored 20 or more points 10 times in 2015-16, including a career-best 29 points at Rutgers (Jan. 21) and versus Illinois (March 10). The 29-point outbursts tie for seventh-most by a Hawkeye during the Fran McCaffery era. 
    Jok became the first Hawkeye non-senior to average 16 points or more since Chris Kingsbury averaged 16.8 points as a sophomore in 1995.

NICHOLAS BAER PLAYED OVERSEAS IN AUGUST
Nicholas Baer averaged 8.5 points, 8.3 rebounds, and two steals in four games (3-1) overseas on the USA East Coast All-Star Team.
    This marked the sixth consecutive year that a Hawkeye traveled overseas with the USA East Coast basketball team. In 2011, Matt Gatens and Bryce Cartwright traveled overseas; Zach McCabe went in 2012; Jarrod Uthoff was on the roster in 2013; Mike Gesell and Adam Woodbury competed in 2014; while Dom Uhl traveled with the team in 2015.

RECENT GRADUATES PLAYING PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL
A number of recent Iowa basketball graduates are playing professionally: Melsahn Basabe (Greece), Anthony Clemmons (Austria), Mike Gesell (Denmark), Jarryd Cole (France), Matt Gatens (NBA D-League: Iowa Energy), Devyn Marble (Greece), Gabriel Olaseni (Italy), Darius Stokes (Australia), Jarrod Uthoff (NBA D-League: Raptors 905), Aaron White (Russia), and Adam Woodbury (NBA D-League: Fort Wayne Mad Ants).

BAER NOMINATED FOR GOOD WORKS TEAM
Sophomore Nicholas Baer is a nominee for the 2017 Allstate NABC Good Works Team. 
    This prestigious community service award recognizes a distinguished group of student-athletes who have demonstrated a commitment to enriching the lives of others and contributing to the greater good in their communities.
    College sports information directors and basketball coaches across the country nominated players who exhibit exceptional leadership skills and an unwavering commitment to volunteerism.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,708 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Iowa’s overall record is 1,595-1,113 (.589). That includes a 1,017-355 (.741) record in home games, a 574-755 (.432) record in contests away from Iowa City, a 752-757 (.498) mark in Big Ten games and a 422-129 (.765) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

THE HY-VEE CLASSIC TICKETS ON SALE
The state’s four NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams will be in action in the same venue for the fifth consecutive year at Wells Fargo Arena on Saturday, Dec. 17.
    The first game of the doubleheader will feature Northern Iowa and Iowa beginning at 3:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN3. Iowa State and Drake will play the second game at 6 p.m., with the game being broadcast on Mediacom.
    Tickets, which range in price from $30-75, are on sale exclusively through Hy-VeeTix.com, 844-55-HYVEE, 22 Hy-Vee Stores in Des Moines and Ames, or the Wells Fargo Arena Box Office. Tickets are good for admission to both games of the doubleheader.
    One of the marquee basketball events in the Midwest, The Hy-Vee Classic has sold out each of the last two years.

ALL-SESSION BIG TEN TOURNAMENT TICKETS ON SALE
All-session tickets for the 2017 Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament are on sale. The Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament will take place at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C., March 8-12. 
    Lower level tickets may be purchased through the UI Ticket Office. General public tickets may be purchased at Ticketmaster outlets, ticketmaster.com, or by calling Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000.
    All-session tickets for the lower level at the Verizon Center are available for $400 through the Big Ten university ticket offices only. All-session tickets general public tickets are available for $200 or $250 (depending on seat location) through Ticketmaster or the Verizon Center box office only. Orders will be limited to eight all-session tickets. 
    The tournament will continue to feature a discounted student ticket program. Students of Big Ten universities will be able to purchase tickets for $20, good for only the session or sessions featuring their school. All students must have a valid student ID for entry. Student section seating will be available in balcony sections and orders will be limited to one ticket per student. 

ON THE HORIZON
Iowa will host UT Rio Grande Valley in an Emerald Coast prelimnary round game on Sunday. Tipoff is set for 4:35 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are available for $18 for adults, and $5 UI Students and youth.