Men's Hoops Returns to Action at Rutgers

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THE SETTING
Iowa (10-9, 1-5) remains on the road for its third straight contest on Wednesday when the Hawkeyes face Rutgers (11-8, 1-5). Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. (CT) inside The RAC in Piscataway, New Jersey. Wednesday will be the only regular season meeting between the two teams in 2017-18.

ON THE AIR
Radio: Iowa games are broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network. Gary Dolphin handles 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: Wednesday’s game will be televised nationally on BTN (BTN2GO). Kevin Kugler and Shon Morris will call the action.

GAME #20 STORYLINES
•    Iowa is 5-0 all-time against Rutgers, including a 2-0 mark in games played at The RAC.
•    Thursday concludes a stretch of playing three straight road games.
•    Iowa is 10-1 when scoring 80 points or more and 5-0 when Iowa has fewer turnovers than its opponent this season.
•    Iowa trailed Illinois, 49-29, with 3:53 left in the first half and ultimately prevailed in overtime. The 20-point comeback is its third largest in school history and second largest on the road. Iowa had a 22-point comeback, also at Illinois, in 1987. The largest comeback in program history is 23 points against Gardner-Webb in 2012 in Iowa City.
•    Fran McCaffery has 398 wins in 22 seasons as a head coach; he is two victories from reaching the 400-win milestone.
•    Jordan Bohannon ranks first in the Big Ten in 3-pointers made (2.73). Bohannon made five triples in each of Iowa’s last game games — both on the road (Maryland & Illinois).
•    Jordan Bohannon has four 10+ assists games in his career, which ties Andre Woolridge for fourth most by a Hawkeye in program history.
•    The Hawkeyes rank sixth in the country in assists per game, averaging 19.2 per contest. Additionally, Iowa ranks 18th in total free throw attempts (439), 26th nationally in total rebounds per contest (40.26), 34th in rebounding margin (+6.5), 35th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.35), and 40th in field goal percentage (.483).
•    Tyler Cook has averaged 1.9 dunks per game over the last nine games. Cook has 37 dunks this season, including a season-best six in Iowa’s win over Drake on Dec. 16. Cook is averaging a team-best 18.2 points and eight rebounds in Iowa’s six Big Ten games.
•    Luka Garza is a two-time Big Ten Freshman of the Week honoree (Nov. 13 and Jan. 2). Garza was rewarded for a second time after posting personal bests in scoring (25), 3-pointers made (3), and blocks (5), while also grabbing a game-best seven rebounds in only 16 minutes of action in Iowa’s win over Northern Illinois. Garza made all eight of his field goal attempts, including three 3-pointers, and was 6-of-8 from the foul line.
•    Iowa’s top seven scorers are underclassmen with sophomore Tyler Cook leading the pack (14.7) and rebounding (6.3). Freshman Luka Garza ranks first on the team in blocks (1.3), while sophomore Jordan Bohannon ranks first in assists (5.0).
•    Iowa averages 7.5 3-pointers made in games played away from Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

HAWKEYES RALLY TO UPEND ILLINOIS IN OVERTIME
Iowa trailed by as many as 20 points and ultimately prevailed over Illinois, 104-97, in overtime at the State Farm Center in Champaign.
•    Iowa trailed 49-29 with 3:53 remaining in the first half. The Hawkeyes outscored the Illini in the overtime period, 14-7. The 20-point comeback is its third largest in school history and second largest on the road. Iowa had a 22-point comeback in 1987 at Illinois. The largest comeback is 23 points against Gardner-Webb in 2012 in Iowa City.
•    Iowa’s 104 points are the most it has ever scored against Illinois in the 109-year series history. Iowa’s 104 points are the most it has scored in a Big Ten game since 1995 against Northwestern (W, 116-77). Iowa topped 100 points in a Big Ten road game for the first time since beating Michigan State, 103-87, on March 3, 1998.
•    All five Hawkeye starters netted double figures: Jordan Bohannon (29), Tyler Cook (21), Luka Garza (19), Isaiah Moss (12), and Nicholas Baer (10). Garza scored 17 of his 19 points in the second half and overtime periods.
•    In addition to his 19 points, Garza pulled down 11 boards for his team-best third double-double. Cook snagged a game-best 13 rebounds for his second double-double of the season.
•    Iowa made a season-high 33 free throws, making 22 more foul shots than the Illini. The Hawkeyes made their first 17 attempts, before Ryan Kriener split a pair with 9:27 remaining in the second half.
•    The Hawkeyes owned the glass, outrebounding the Illini by 19 (45-26).
•    Four Illinois players scored in double figures: Trent Frazier (27), Aaron Jordan (18), Leron Black (18), and Kipper Nicholas (13). Frazier drained a 3-pointer at the end of regulation to send the game into overtime.
•    Four Illinois players fouled out of the game: Leron Black, Da’Monte Williams, Mark Alstork, and Kipper Nichols.

ALL-TIME SERIES RECORDS
Wednesday will be only the sixth meeting between Iowa and Rutgers. The Hawkeyes are 5-0 against the Scarlet Knights, including a 2-0 record in Piscataway, New Jersey.
    Iowa swept the season series against Rutgers last season, winning 68-62 in Iowa City and 83-63 in Piscataway.

SCOUTING RUTGERS
•    Rutgers is 11-8 overall, winning its first six games of the season. Since the hot start, the Scarlet Knights have gone 5-8. Four of Rutgers’ eight setbacks have come by five points or less, including overtime losses to Stony Brook (78-73) and at nationally-ranked Michigan State (76-72).
•    Wednesday will be the third time in four games that Rutgers will be playing at home. The Scarlet Knights dropped their last outing, 68-48, to Ohio State on Sunday. The Buckeyes led by as many as 30 points in the second half. Geo Baker (14) and Corey Sanders (13) led the Scarlet Knights. Rutgers shot only 29 percent from the field and were outrebounded by the Buckeyes by 16 (46-30).
•    Rutgers is 11-5 at home this season, losing three of its last four. The Scarlet Knights edged Wisconsin (64-60) at The RAC on Jan. 5.
•    Three starters average in double figures for Rutgers: Corey Sanders (14.2), Deshawn Freeman (11.5), and Geo Baker (11.4).
•    Rutgers ranks first in the Big Ten in scoring defense (62.1), second in turnover margin (+4.5), third in field goal percentage defense (.387) and steals (7.5), and sixth in blocked shots (5.2). Rutgers has allowed only five opponents to score more than 70 points in a contest. Deshawn Freeman ranks fifth in the league in steals per game (1.5) and 10th in rebounding (7.2).
•    Rutgers ranks ninth in the country in scoring defense (62.1), 11th in turnover margin (+4.5), 13th in field goal percentage defense (.387), 16th in fewest turnovers per game (10.8), and 27th in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.307).Individually, Deshawn Freeman is 83rd in the country with five double-doubles. Corey Sanders’ 275 field goal attempts is 31st most in the nation.
•    Steve Pikiell is in his 13th season as a head coach (218-182, .545) and his second season at Rutgers (26-26, .500). 

LAST MEETING
Iowa led start-to-finish, leading by as many as 28 points in an 83-63 triumph over Rutgers on Jan. 31, 2017, at The RAC in Piscataway, New Jersey. 
•    Iowa played at Rutgers without Big Ten-leading scorer Peter Jok (21.0 ppg) due to injury.
•    Iowa assisted on 24 of its 30 field goals (80 percent).
•    Iowa made 11 3-pointers (11-of-18, .611). The 61 percent shooting was a season best from 3-point range and second best by a Hawkeye squad in the Fran McCaffery era.
•    Iowa was credited with a season-best 15 steals, converting those Scarlet Knight miscues into 20 points. The 15 steals are the third most in a game by a Hawkeye team under Fran McCaffery (since 2010).
•    Four Hawkeyes scored double figures: Jordan Bohannon (17), Cordell Pemsl (15), Isaiah Moss (11), and Tyler Cook (10). Bohannon’s team-best 17 points was bolstered by 5-of-7 shooting from 3-point range. 
•    Starting forward Deshawn Freeman paced the Scarlet Knights with his ninth double-double of the season (17 points, 13 rebounds). Mike Williams contributed 16 points, nine boards, four assists, and four steals off the bench.

STANDING TALL
Iowa has a nine players on its 16-play roster who stand 6-foot-7 or taller. The Hawkeyes own a +6.5 rebounding margin, which ranks third in the Big Ten and 34th nationally. Iowa averages 40.3 rebounds per game, which ranks 26th in the country. Iowa has only averaged 40 rebounds or more per game once since the 1996-97 season (40.3 in 2013-14).

GARZA SHINES IN FRESHMAN CAMPAIGN
Freshman Luka Garza leads the team in blocked shots (1.3), second in rebounding (6.4), free throws made (56) and attempts (88), and is fourth in scoring (10.6).
    Garza has made 40 of his last 49 free throws (.816) after starting the season 16-of-39 (.410) from the charity stripe. Additionally, he has shot 50 percent or better from the field in 10 of the last 12 games.
    Garza has netted double figures in six of Iowa’s last nine games. Garza netted 17 of his 19 points in the second half and overtime and snagged 11 rebounds for his team-leading third double-double in Iowa’s come-from-behind-victory at Illinois. He was a perfect 9-of-9 from the foul line against the Fighting Illini. 
    Garza had his best game as a collegiate player against Northern Illinois, going 8-of-8 from the field, including making all three 3-pointers, and 6-of-8 from the charity stripe, scoring a personal-best 25 points. He also denied a season-best five shots. His efforts garnered the forward Big Ten Freshman of the Week accolades for the second time this season (Nov. 13 and Jan. 2).
    Against Chicago State on Nov. 10, Garza became the second Hawkeye in the last 20 years to register 16 points and five rebounds in their debut (Aaron White in 2011).
    Garza followed up that performance against Chicago State (16 points, 5 rebounds) with a double-double against Alabama State. The native of Washington, D.C., had 11 points and a game-best 13 rebounds. Garza is the fifth Hawkeye to post a double-double in either his first or second game over the last 20 years, joining Dean Oliver, Reggie Evans, Devon Archie, and Aaron White. Garza’s efforts in those first two wins garnered the forward Big Ten Freshman of the Week accolades.

CONNOR McCAFFERY OUT INDEFINITELY
Freshman guard Connor McCaffery underwent a tonsillectomy on Dec. 27 at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics as a result of recurrent bouts of throat infections and his recent case of mononucleosis.
    McCaffery, who already missed 10 games of his freshman campaign due to a sprained ankle and mononucleosis, will be out for an indeterminate period of time. 
    The native of Iowa City has played limited minutes in four nonconference games.

COOKIN’ WITH TYLER
Tyler Cook ranks first in scoring (15.1) and rebounding (6.6). Cook has made a team-best 59 percent of his field goal attempts (minimum 150 attempts). 
    He had the best game of his collegiate career against UAB (29 points on 8-of-11 shooting from the field and 13-of-16 from the free throw line).
    During Iowa’s five-game win streak (Dec. 10-Dec. 29), Cook averaged 15.2 points. He made 30-of-44 (.682) field goals and 16-of-24 (.667) free throws. He dunked the ball nine times during that stretch, including a season-high six versus Drake. Overall, Cook has 32 dunks this season.
    Cook is eighth in the league in field goal accuracy (.589) and is 14th in rebounding (6.6). The native of St. Louis has two double-double to his credit this season (Penn State and Illinois). 
    Not only has Cook done a good job getting to the free throw line, but making his foul shots. Cook ranks 51st nationally in free throw attempts (114) and 82nd in free throw makes (79). He also ranks 42nd in field goal percentage (.589).

BACK IN ACTION
Sophomore forward Cordell Pemsl had successful sports hernia surgery in May. Pemsl did not participate in the Prime Time League nor Iowa’s exhibition games overseas.
    Pemsl is averaging 5.8 points and 5.3 rebounds this season. The native of Dubuque, Iowa, reached double figures four times this season, including netting 10 points in Iowa’s win over Colorado. He scored 10 points and snagged eight rebounds before leaving Iowa’s game at Iowa State on Dec. 7, due to injury. Pemsl did not play against Southern on Dec. 10, however returned to action versus Drake posting eight rebounds and six points. 
    Pemsl netted a game-high 15 points in Iowa’s win over Alabama State on Nov. 12. He had a personal-best 14 rebounds and a career-best six assists at Virginia Tech. The 14 boards against the Hokies are the fifth most by a Big Ten player this season. 
    Pemsl started 14 of 34 games a year ago, averaging 8.9 points and five rebounds per contest. The forward shot a single-season school record 61.7 percent (116-of-188) from the field his during freshman campaign.

IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,759 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Iowa’s overall record is 1,622-1,137 (.588). Iowa’s 1,622 wins are 39th most among Division I programs. That includes a 1,036-363 (.740) record in home games, a 582-771 (.430) record in contests away from Iowa City, a 763-769 (.498) mark in Big Ten games and a 441-137 (.763) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

MISSING IN ACTION
Iowa has played two games this season with a full active roster of 16 (Drake and Southern Utah).

• Connor McCaffery: 15 games (combination of ankle, mono, tonsils)
• Nicholas Baer: first six games (finger)
• Ahmad Wagner: UAB (shoulder) and Colorado (ankle)
• Ryan Kriener: Indiana (concussion)
• Cordell Pemsl: Southern University (leg laceration)

FRAN McCAFFERY TO BE INDUCTED INTO SIENA HALL OF FAME
The Siena Athletics Hall of Fame Class of 2017 includes former men’s basketball head coach Fran McCaffery. McCaffery and three others, including former player Ronald Moore (2009-12), will be enshrined in a special ceremony on Feb. 18 at the Times Union Center, prior to the men’s basketball game versus Monmouth.
    McCaffery led Siena to the most decorated five-year run in program history, which culminated with the Saints being the only Division I program to win both their regular season and tournament championships for three consecutive years from 2008-10. The Philadelphia native amassed a 112-51 (.687) overall record from 2005-10, including a 68-22 (.756) mark in the MAAC. McCaffery guided Siena to four straight 20-win seasons and MAAC Tournament Championship Game appearances. Named the 2009-10 NABC District I Coach of the Year and 2008-09 MAAC Coach of the Year, he led Siena to school record-tying 27-win seasons in each of his last two years at the helm, which included a program record 15-game winning streak in his final campaign. McCaffery both recruited and coached four fellow Siena Athletics Hall of Famers, and three of the top-five scorers in program history. 

BOHANNON NAMED CANDIDATE FOR BOB COUSY AWARD
Sophomore Jordan Bohannon is on the 20-player watch list for the 2018 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award. The annual honor recognizes the top point guards in Division I men’s college basketball. A national committee comprised of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
    Bohannon has four 10+ assists games in his career (Indiana, South Dakota, TCU, and Ohio State), which ties Andre Woolridge for fourth most by a Hawkeye in program history.
    The native of Marion, Iowa, has had a solid sophomore campaign, dishing out a team-best 95 assists, and averaging 13 points. He is averaging 2.73 3-pointers made per game, which ranks first in the league and 87th in the country. He has made five 3-pointers or more in a game four times, including each of Iowa’s last two contests (at Maryland and at Illinois).
    Bohannon, one of five players named to the All-Big Ten Freshman Team, led the Hawkeyes in assists (175) and 3-pointers made (89), and was third in scoring (10.9 ppg). He was one of only two freshmen in the country over the last 25 seasons to register 175+ assists and 85+ 3-pointers. His 89 triples shattered Iowa’s single-season freshman record, besting Matt Gatens’ previous mark of 52 set in 2009. Bohannon’s 175 assists are the most by an Iowa freshman and rank eighth-best by any Hawkeye player in a single season. He finished the season by posting a school-record three straight double-doubles in points and assists (Indiana, South Dakota, and TCU). 

HAWKEYE FASTBREAKS
•    Iowa is 75-16 when scoring 80 points or more, the last eight seasons. The Hawkeyes are 67-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 61 points, the last eight years.
•    Iowa was credited with 34 assists on 36 field goals in its nonconference finale against Northern Illinois. The 34 assists tie the school single-game record previously set on Dec. 1, 1984 against George Mason and are the most by a Big Ten team this season.
•    Iowa is one of only three teams to have posted a Big Ten record of .500 or better each of the last five seasons (Michigan State and Wisconsin).
•    Iowa has won 51 of its last 55 nonconference home games, dating back to 2012.
•    Fran McCaffery and his coaching staff are the first in program history to win 18 games or more in six straight seasons. McCaffery’s 137 victories rank second behind Tom Davis (152) for most in the first seven seasons as Iowa’s head coach. 
•    Fran McCaffery has guided Iowa to upper division finishes in the Big Ten in each of the last five seasons. McCaffery has accumulated 17 first division finishes in 21 years as a head coach.

HAWKEYES GO UNDEFEATED IN EUROPE
Iowa finished its European Tour with a perfect record in August notching wins in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. 
    Four Hawkeyes averaged in double figures in the four games. Freshman Luka Garza averaged a double-double (22.5 points, 10.3 rebounds), sophomore Isaiah Moss averaged 12.5 points, Cook averaged 12.3 points, while Ryan Kriener averaged 11.3 points. As a team, the Hawkeyes shot 48.6 percent from the field, out-rebounded their opponents by 18, and had a +5.8 turnover margin.
    Iowa played its first game in Germany, the home of Hawkeye senior Dom Uhl. The native of Frankfurt, Germany, had seven points, seven rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block in his homecoming. 
    Garza led the team in scoring in all four games.

RECENT GRADUATES PLAYING PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL
A number of recent Iowa basketball graduates are playing professionally: Melsahn Basabe (Poland), Anthony Clemmons (Kazakhstan), Gabriel Olaseni (Spain), Jarrod Uthoff (NBA G League: Fort Wayne Mad Ants), Peter Jok (NBA G League: Northern Arizona Suns), Adam Woodbury (NBA G League: Westchester Knicks), and Aaron White (Lithuania).

ON THE HORIZON
After three consecutive road games, Iowa returns home to host nationally-ranked Purdue on Saturday. Tipoff is set for 11 a.m. (CT) inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.