Hawkeye Fan Shop — A Black & Gold Store | Fight For Iowa | Hawk Talk Monthly — January 2018 | Game Notes (PDF)
| IOWA (9-9, 0-5) vs. ILLINOIS (10-7, 0-4) |
| DATE | Thursday, Jan. 11 | 7:01 p.m. CT |
| LOCATION | Champaign, Illinois | State Farm Center (15,544) |
| RADIO | LISTEN | Hawkeye Radio Network | Hawkeye All-Access |
| LIVE STATS | Sidearm Stats |
| TV | FS1 |
| LIVE UPDATES | @IowaHoops |
THE SETTING
Iowa (9-9, 0-5) remains on the road for the second straight contest Thursday when the Hawkeyes square-off against Illinois (10-7, 0-4). Tipoff is set for 7:01 p.m. (CT) inside the State Farm Center in Champaign, Illinois. Thursday 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: Thursday’s game will be televised nationally on FS1 (FOXSPORTSGO). Tim Brando and Stephen Bardo will call the action.
GAME #19 STORYLINES
• Iowa has won two of the last three meetings against Illinois in Champaign, Illinois.
• Thursday will be the second of three consecutive road contests for the Hawkeyes.
• Iowa is 9-1 when scoring 80 points or more and 5-0 when Iowa has fewer turnovers than its opponent this season.
• Jordan Bohannon registered his fourth career double-double in points and assists last Thursday. Bohannon has four 10+ assists games in his career, which tie Andre Woolridge for fourth most by a Hawkeye in program history.
• Fran McCaffery has 397 wins in 22 seasons as a head coach; he is three victories from reaching the 400-win milestone.
• Jordan Bohannon ranks second in the Big Ten in 3-point field goal accuracy (min. 2.5 made per game), shooting at a 44 percent clip. He also ranks third in 3-pointers made (2.6). Bohannon made five triples in Sunday’s contest at Maryland.
• Tyler Cook has averaged 1.9 dunks per game over the last eight games. Cook has 35 dunks this season, including a season-best six in Iowa’s win over Drake on Dec. 16. Cook is averaging a team-best 17.6 points and seven rebounds in Iowa’s five 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 averages 7.6 3-pointers made in games played away from Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
• Iowa is shooting the basketball at a 53 percent clip in its nine victories and has made 50.5 percent of its field goal attempts in its nine home games.
• The Hawkeyes rank fifth in the country in assists per game, averaging 19.2 per contest. Additionally, Iowa ranks 25th in total free throw attempts (399), 28th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.39), 36th nationally in total rebounds per contest (40), 48th in rebounding margin (+5.8), and 52nd in field goal percentage (.481).
• 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).
SECOND RUN LIFTS MARYLAND OVER IOWA
Six Maryland players scored in double figures in a 91-73 win over Iowa Sunday evening inside the XFINITY Center in College Park, Maryland.
• Iowa made 10 of its first 14 3-point attempts, finishing the game making 52 percent (11-of-21) of its long distance attempts. The Hawkeyes made seven more triples than Maryland.
• Sophomore Isaiah Moss led all scorers with a career-high 25 points, bolstered by 4-of-6 shooting from 3-point range. Backcourt mate Jordan Bohannon contributed 17 points and five assists. Bohannon scored 15 of his 17 points via the 3-point shot.
• Iowa led 64-61 midway through the second half before Maryland ended the game on a 30-9 run covering the final 10:17.
• Maryland attempted 15 more free throws and made 13 more foul shots than Iowa.
• The Terrapins shot 56.7 percent from the field, making 34 of their 60 attempts.
• Anthony Cowan had 15 points, seven assists and zero turnovers directing Maryland’s offense. Other Terrapins in double figures included Bruno Fernando (21), Darryl Morsell (14), Mical Cekovsky (13), and Kevin Huerter (12).
• The game featured four ties and eight lead changes.
• Sunday was the only regular season meeting between Iowa and Maryland.
ALL-TIME SERIES RECORDS
Illinois holds an 85-71 advantage in the series that began with a 46-36 Iowa win in 1908. The Fighting Illini have won the last three meetings, including both contests last season.
Illinois holds a 62-16 advantage in games played in Champaign. Iowa won two straight games at the State Farm Center in 2014 and 2016 before the Fighting Illini notched a 76-64 victory over Iowa on Jan. 25, 2017.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS
• Illinois is 10-7 overall, winning its first six games of the season. Since the hot start, the Fighting Illinois have gone 4-7, including losing all four of their Big Ten games.
• The Fighting Illini are in the middle of a stretch of playing four of five games away from home. Illinois lost the first two games of this stretch on the road both by 10-point decisions at Minnesota at Michigan.
• Illinois is 9-1 at home this season with the lone setback coming to Maryland by one point in overtime on Dec. 3.
• The Fighting Illini lost their last outing, 79-69, on Jan. 6 in Ann Arbor. The Wolverines made five more 3-pointers and seven more free throws than the Fighting Illini. No Illinois starter reached double figures, with Kipper Nichols (17) and Greg Eboigbodin (10) leading the squad off the bench.
• Illinois ranks second in the Big Ten in steals (8.0), third in turnover margin (+3.9), and fourth in free throw accuracy (.739) and 3-point field goal percentage defense (.328). Junior guard Aaron Jordan is first in the league in 3-point field goal percentage, making 32-of-60 attempts (.533).
• Illinois ranks sixth in the country in forced turnovers per contest (18.71), 10th in offensive rebounds per game (14.18), 26th in turnover margin (+3.9), 29th in free throws made (281), and 40th in free throws attempted (380). Individually, freshman Trent Frazier is 86th in the nation in total steals (28).
• Brad Underwood is in his first season as head coach at Illinois. Underwood arrived at Illinois from Oklahoma State, where he led OSU to a 20-win season and 2017 NCAA Tournament appearance. Prior to his one year at Oklahoma State, he led the Stephen F. Austin to Southland Conference regular season and tournament titles in each of his three seasons.
LAST MEETING
Illinois shot 55 percent from the floor in the second half to rally and beat Iowa, 70-66, in Iowa City on Feb. 18, 2017, and sweep the season series.
• Three Hawkeyes netted double figures: Peter Jok (16), Tyler Cook (14), and Jordan Bohannon (11).
• After forcing 21 turnovers in the previous game at Michigan State, Iowa’s defense forced 17 Illini errors.
• Iowa outscored Illinois by 10 at the free throw line (17-7), making 77 percent of its attempts (17-of-22).
• The Illini shot 47 percent (27-of-57) from the field for the game, while the Hawkeyes shot 39 percent (21-of-54).
• Malcolm Hill scored a game-best 21 points, while Te’Jon Lucas, Jalen Coleman-Lands, and Michael Finke each scored 12 points.
GARZA SHINES IN FRESHMAN CAMPAIGN
Freshman Luka Garza leads the team in blocked shots (1.3), is second in rebounding (6.2), free throws made (47) and attempts (79), and is fourth in scoring (10.2).
Garza has made 31 of his last 40 free throws (.775) after starting the season 16-of-39 (.410) from the charity stripe. Additionally, he has shot 50 percent or better from the field in nine of the last 11 games.
Garza has netted double figures in five of Iowa’s last eight games. He 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.
COOKIN’ WITH TYLER
Tyler Cook ranks first in scoring (14.7) and rebounding (6.3). Cook has made a team-best 58.4 percent of his field goal attempts (minimum 125 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 eight in the league in field goal accuracy (.584) and is 17th in rebounding (6.3). The native of St. Louis has one double-double to his credit this season (Penn State).
Not only has Cook done a good job getting to the free throw line, but making his foul shots. Cook ranks 35th nationally in free throw attempts (109) and 62nd in free throw makes (76). He also ranks 45th in field goal percentage (.584).
STANDING TALL
Iowa has a nine players on its 16-play roster who stand 6-foot-7 or taller. The Hawkeyes own a +5.8 rebounding margin, which ranks third in the Big Ten and 48th nationally. Iowa averages 40 rebounds per game, which ranks 36th in the country. Iowa has only averaged 40 rebounds or more per game once since the 1996-97 season (40.3 in 2013-14).
MISSING IN ACTION
Iowa has played two games this season (Drake and Southern Utah) with a full active roster of 16.
• Connor McCaffery: 14 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)
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.
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 5.9 points and 5.4 rebounds in 17 contests. 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 2,758 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Iowa’s overall record is 1,621-1,137 (.588). Iowa’s 1,621 wins are 39th most among Division I programs. That includes a 1,036-363 (.740) record in home games, a 581-771 (.430) record in contests away from Iowa City, a 762-769 (.498) mark in Big Ten games and a 441-137 (.763) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
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 great start to the 2017-18 campaign, dishing out a team-best 90 assists, and averaging 12.1 points. He is averaging 2.61 3-pointers made per game, which ranks third in the league and 113th in the country.
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 74-16 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
Iowa will be idle this weekend before playing its third straight road game at Rutgers on Wednesday, Jan. 17, in Piscataway, New Jersey. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. (CT) with the game being televised on BTN.
