Iowa Opens Big Ten Tournament Play on Thursday

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THIS WEEK 
The University of Iowa women’s basketball team opens Big Ten Tournament play on Thursday, March 1, taking on the winner of Wednesday matchup between 12th-seeded Northwestern and 13th-seeded Wisconsin. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (CT) inside Bankers Life Field House in Indianapolis. 

WATCH/FOLLOW ALONG 

• The first three days of the Big Ten Tournament will be broadcast live on BTN2Go (available to authenticated BTN subscribers) as well as through several Regional Sports Networks around the country (check local listings for availability). 
• Saturday’s semifinals will air live on BTN while Sunday’s championship game will be broadcast live on ESPN2. 
• Links to all broadcasts are available on the Iowa women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com. 
• Live stats are also available on the women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com. 

AUDIO COVERAGE

• Rob Brooks and Jamie Cavey Lang will call the action on the Hawkeye Radio Network. A link to the broadcast is available on the women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com.
• Brooks is in his second year as the play-by-play announcer for the Iowa women’s basketball team. He has been Iowa football’s sideline announcer since 2004. He has called seven different Iowa sports on radio or television.
• Lang is in her second year as Iowa’s color commentator. She lettered at Iowa from 2002-05. Lang finished her Hawkeye career with 1,265 points and 506 rebounds. She was a two-time All-Big Ten selection.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT HISTORY 

• Iowa is 22-21 in the Big Ten Tournament since its inception in 1994-95. 
• The Hawkeyes have claimed two tournament titles (1997, 2001) and made four championship game appearances. 
• Last season, the eight-seeded Hawkeyes fell to ninth-seeded Northwestern, 78-73, in the opening round of the tournament. Megan Gustafson led the team with 27 points and six rebounds. Makenzie Meyer also scored in double figures with 10 points. 

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE

• According to NCAA.org, Iowa’s strength of schedule is ranked No. 20. 
• The Hawkeyes are ranked No. 16 in RPI. Iowa has seven wins over top-50 RPI teams. 
• The Big Ten ranks No. 3 in the NCAA conference RPI.  Seven Big Ten schools are among the top-50 in the team RPI.  
• Iowa defeated eight teams — Quinnipiac, Western Kentucky, Elon, Iowa State, UNI, Drake, Ohio State, and Michigan State — that made the 2017 NCAA Tournament during the regular season. 

NATIONAL RANKINGS 

• Iowa is receiving 18 votes in this week’s AP Poll. 
• The Hawkeyes are one of four conference teams that are ranked or receiving votes in this week’s AP Poll. No. 13 Ohio State and No. 17 Maryland are ranked in the top-25, while Iowa (18 votes) and Michigan (15 votes) are receiving votes. 
• Six Big Ten schools are among the top-50 in the team RPI rankings. They include: No. 6 Ohio State, No. 16 Iowa, No. 21 Maryland, No. 38 Michigan, No. 43 Rutgers, No. 46 Minnesota, 

FABULOUS FEBRUARY

• Iowa was a perfect 7-0 in the month of February. 
• The Hawkeyes registered  wins over Michigan State, Minnesota, Penn State, Northwestern, Wisconsin, Rutgers, and Indiana. 
• Two of Iowa’s seven wins in the month were overtime victories on the road. 
• Junior Megan Gustafson averaged 29.6 points, 14.1 rebounds, and shot 68.4 percent from the field during the month of February. 
• In the last seven games, senior Chase Coley averaged 12.7 points per game and 6.4 rebounds.
• Sophomore Makenzie Meyer also averaged double figures in scoring (10.0), while sophomore Kathleen Doyle averaged 9.9 points per contest.  
• Sophomore Amanda Ollinger averaged 5.6 rebounds per game in the month of February — the third highest total on the team. 

RECORD BOOK REWRITE 

• Junior Megan Gustafson broke Iowa’s school record for points in a single season against Rutgers on Feb. 21. Gustafson surpassed Cindy Haugejorde’s previous total of 672 (1979-80). Gustafson now has 734 points on the year. 
• Gustafson also broke her own school record for rebounds in a single season at Rutgers on Feb. 21. She now has 355 rebounds this season, besting her previous mark of 370 set in 2016-17. 

23 AND COUNTING 

• Iowa collected win No. 23 with a 75-62 win over Indiana on Feb. 24.  
• The Hawkeyes have registered 20 or more wins nine times in the last 11 seasons. 
• Iowa has registered 11 20-win seasons under head coach Lisa Bluder. 

IOWA COLLECTS SEVENTH STRAIGHT WIN ON SENIOR DAY

• The Hawkeyes improved to 23-6 overall and 11-5 in Big Ten play with a 75-62 win over Indiana on Feb. 23. 
• Iowa made 9-of-13 field goals in the first quarter (69 percent) to jump out to a lead it would never relinquish. 
• Junior Megan Gustafson registered her 26th double-double of the season with 36 points and 15 rebounds. She had 18 points and 10 rebounds by halftime. 
• Sophomore Makenzie Meyer scored 13 points with two 3-pointers, senior Chase Coley added 12 points, six rebounds, and five assists, and junior Hannah Stewart scored 10 points with five rebounds in 21 minutes. 
• Iowa outscored Indiana 36-16 in the paint. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE

• Junior Megan Gustafson registered the 53rd double-double of her career with 36 points and 15 rebounds against Indiana on Feb. 24. 
• Gustafson broke the program record (men or women) with her 49th career double-double (25 points, 15 rebounds) against Minnesota on Feb. 4. Gustafson surpassed former Iowa men’s basketball player Kevin Kunnert’s career total of 48 set in 1971-73. 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native has 26 double-doubles this season — the second most in the NCAA. She has registered a double-double in 31 of her last 37 games. 

SCOUTING NORTHWESTERN

• Northwestern finished the regular season with an 11-19 overall record and a 4-12 mark in conference action to earn the No. 12 seed in the Big Ten Tournament. 
• The Wildcats won two of their last three games of the regular season, including wins over Illinois and Rutgers. 
• Freshman guard Lindsey Pulliam leads Northwestern, averaging 14.6 points per game. Sophomore forward/center Abi Scheid (12.1) and junior forward Pallas Kunaiyi-Akpanah (10.3) are also averaging double figures. 
• Kunaiyi-Akpanah leads the team in rebounding, averaging 11..8 per contest. 
• Two Wildcats received All-Big Ten awards on Monday. Kunaiyi-Akpanah was voted second team All-Big Ten after averaging 11.5 points and 11.8 rebounds per game. Pulliam earned an Honorable Mention All-Big Ten selection and made the five-player All-Freshman Team after averaging 14.6 points per game. 
• Iowa leads the all-time series, 53-14. 
• The Hawkeyes have won eight of the last 10 meetings between the two teams. 
• Iowa defeated Northwestern, 70-61, in Evanston on Feb. 11. Junior Megan Gustafson led the team with 25 points and 16 rebounds. Sophomores Kathleen Doyle (15 points) and Makenzie Meyer (12 points) also scored in double figures for the Hawkeyes. 

SCOUTING WISCONSIN

• Wisconsin finished the regular season with a 9-20 overall record and a 2-14 mark in conference action. The Badgers enter the tournament as the No. 13 seed. 
• The Badgers have lost their last six contests. 
• Cayla McMorris leads the team, averaging 13.4 points per game. Marsha Howard is also averaging double figures in scoring (12.4). 
• Howard also leads the team in rebounds, averaging 7.0 per game. 
• McMorris and Howard were each Honorable Mention All-Big Ten selections by the league coaches and media. 
• Iowa leads the all-time series, 49-20. 
• The Hawkeyes have won the last 19 meetings, dating back to 2006-07. 
• Iowa defeated Wisconsin twice this season. The Hawkeyes won, 56-46, in their Big Ten opener on Dec. 28 in Madison, Wisconsin, before defeating the Badgers, 88-61, in Iowa City on Feb. 18. 

GUSTAFSON NAMED BIG TEN PLAYER OF THE YEAR 

• Junior Megan Gustafson was named the Big Ten Conference Player of the Year by the media, the conference office announced Monday. 
• Gustafson was also named a unanimous first team All-Big Ten selection (coaches & media). 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native is the fifth Hawkeye in program history to be named Big Ten Player of the Year and the first to do so since 1998. She joins Michelle Edwards (1988), Franthea Price (1990), Toni Foster (1993), and Tangela Smith (1998). 
• Gustafson is the only Hawkeye to earn the award as a junior. 

DOYLE EARNS ALL-BIG TEN HONORS 

• Sophomore Kathleen Doyle earned second team All-Big Ten honors from league coaches and honorable mention accolades from the media, the conference office announced Monday. 
• It marks the first All-Big Ten honor of her career. Doyle was named to the All-Freshmen Team last season. 
• In 16 conference games this season, Doyle averaged 12.6 points, a Big Ten-best 7.5 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and 2.0 steals. 
• The LaGrange Park, Illinois, native registered the first four double-doubles of her career in conference play. 
• Doyle finished the regular season ranked 15th nationally in assists per game (6.6) and 18th in total assists (177). 

IOWA IN OT 

• The Hawkeyes are 3-0 in overtime contests this season, including a win over Western Kentucky at home and a pair of road wins against Michigan State and Rutgers. 
• Junior Megan Gustafson has been dominate in overtime games this season. Gustafson is averaging 6.3 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in a combined 15 minutes.
• Gustafson is a perfect 9-for-9 from the free throw line in overtime games.
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native scored nine points, grabbed three rebounds, and was 5-for-5 from the free throw line in Iowa’s last overtime win at Rutgers on Feb. 21.  

B1G TIME

• Junior Megan Gustafson averaged 27.8 points and 13.1 rebounds in Big Ten play. The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native shot 64.7 percent from the field and 82.7 percent from the free throw line.
• Sophomore Kathleen Doyle dished out 120 assists (7.5 per game) in conference play. She averaged 12.6 points and 3.3 rebounds in Big Ten play.

GUSTAFSON EARNS 9TH B1G PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARD 

• For the ninth time this season, junior Megan Gustafson has been named the Big Ten Player of the week, the conference office announced Monday.
•  The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native has been recognized by the conference in 14 of the 15 weeks of the regular season. She was named Big Ten Player of the Week on Nov. 13, Dec. 4, Dec. 18, Dec. 26, Jan. 2, Jan. 15, Feb. 5, and Feb. 12, and was named to the honor roll on Nov. 20, Nov. 27, Dec. 11, Jan. 8, Jan. 29, and Feb. 19.
• Gustafson averaged 31.5 points, 14.5 rebounds, and shot 71.4 percent from the field in a pair of Iowa wins this week. She registered 27 points on 10-for-14 (71.4 percent) shooting from the field and pulled down 14 rebounds in Iowa’s overtime win at Rutgers on Feb. 21.
• On Feb. 24, Gustafson scored 36 points on 15-of-21 shooting (74.1 percent) from the field in Iowa’s win over Indiana. She also grabbed 15 rebounds to help Iowa to its seventh straight win. Gustafson recorded 18 points and 10 rebounds in the first half, and finished the game one point shy of her career-high (37 vs. Purdue).

700-POINT CLUB

• Junior Megan Gustafson is the only Hawkeye in program history to score 700 or more points in a single season. She has 734 on the year. 
• Gustasfson in the fourth Hawkeye in program history to score 600 or more points and the only Hawkeye to ever reach the mark twice. 
• Gustafson also broke a program record for points in a junior season with 25 points against Minnesota on Feb. 4. Ally Disterhoft set the previous record of 565 in 2015-16. 

A B1G NIGHT

• Iowa post players — Megan Gustafson, Chase Coley, and Hannah Stewart — combined for 65 points in Iowa’s win over Penn State on Feb. 8. 
• The trio shot 74 percent (26-for-35) from the field in the win. 
• Coley registered a career-high 24 points on 9-for-11 shooting from the field. 
• Gustafson netted 33 points (13-for-19), 14 rebounds, and a career-high seven assists. 
• Stewart record eight points on 4-for-5 shooting from the field. 

NATIONALLY SPEAKING 

• Junior Megan Gustafson is the only player in the country averaging 24 or more points and 12 or more rebounds per game. She is one of two NCAA women’s basketball players in the last 10 years to average 24 or more points and 12 or more rebounds in a season. 
• Gustafson is also the only player in the nation averaging 25 or more points and shooting at least 60 percent from the field. 
• Kathleen Doyle ranks 15th nationally in assists per game (6.6) and 18th in assists (177). 
• Gustafson finished the regular season ranked in the top-5 nationally in eight statistical categories. She leads the nation in points per game (25.3), total points (734), and field goals made (285), is ranked second in field goal percentage (66.7) and double-doubles (26), third in rebounds (370), and fifth in rebounds per game (12.8) and defensive rebounds per game (9).
• The Hawkeyes are ranked in the top-15 in seven categories. Iowa ranks second nationally in defensive rebounds per game (31), third in assists (625) and assists per game (21.6), sixth in field goal percentage (48.9), seventh in fewest fouls per game (12.9), and 12th in fewest fouls (375), and rebounds (1,239).  

GIVE THE ASSIST TO DOYLE

• Sophomore Kathleen Doyle averaged a Big Ten-leading 7.5 assists per game in conference action. 
• The LaGrange Park, Illinois, native registered the first four double-doubles of her career in conference play. She registered back-to-back double-doubles against Maryland and Illinois, before recording her third against Ohio State on Jan. 25 and her fourth at Michigan State on Feb. 1. 

CLIMBING THE CAREER CHARTS 

• Junior Megan Gustafson’s 1,714 career points ranks eighth all-time. She needs 28 points to tie former Hawkeye Franthea Price (1,742; 86-90) for seventh. 
• Gustafson has 938 rebounds in her career. She currently ranks second all-time.  She is 129 rebound shy of tying the all-time career rebounding record of 1,067 set by Cindy Haugejorde (1976-80). 

STEWART MAKES AN IMPACT 

• Junior Hannah Stewart is averaging 7.2 points and 4.6 rebounds off the bench for the Hawkeyes.
• Stewart netted 10 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field and pulled down seven rebounds in Iowa’s win over Wisconsin. 
• The Minot, North Dakota, native registered 12 points, four assists, three rebounds, and two steals in 17 minutes of action off the bench at Minnesota.
• Stewart has registered five or more rebounds in 15 games so far this season.

COLEY’S TURNAROUND 

• After scoring in double figures once last season, senior Chase Coley has scored 10 or more points in 11 contests this season. 
• The Minneapolis native has scored eight or more points 20 times, and has registered four or more rebounds on 24 occasions. 
• In the month of February, Coley averaged 12.7 points and 6.4 rebounds. Iowa was 7-0 in that span. 
• Coley netted a career-high 24 points on 9-of-11 shooting from the field in Iowa’s win over Penn State. 
• Coley registered 12 points and 11 boards to collect the seventh double-double of her career against Ohio State on Jan. 25. It marked her first double-double since March 3, 2016 (20 points, 10 boards vs. Michigan). 

NATIONAL AWARD WATCH 

• Junior Megan Gustafson is up for the John R. Wooden Award and the Lisa Leslie Center Award. 
• Gustafson was named to the John R. Wooden Award Late Season Top-20 List on Feb. 5. The National Ballot, which features 15 players, will be announced in early March. Voting begins at the end of the season, and voters, consisting of members of the national college basketball media, will take into account the opening rounds of the NCAA Tournament. 
• Gustafson was named a top-10 candidate for the 2018 Lisa Leslie Award by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association on Feb. 2. The winner of the 2018 Lisa Leslie Center Award will be announced during ESPN2’s telecast of the national semifinal games in the 2018 NCAA Women’s Final Four in Columbus, Ohio, on March 30. 

700 WINS

• Head coach Lisa Bluder collected her 700th victory on Nov. 10 against Quinnipiac.
• Bluder is one-of-10 active Division I head coaches with 700 or more victories and one-of-29 women’s coaches to ever accomplish the feat. Bluder is one of 80 coaches (men or women) to win 700 or more contests. 

UP NEXT
The winner of Thursday’s contest will face fourth-seeded Minnesota on Friday, March 2. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (CT) from Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. Tickets are available at www.bigten.org.