WBB Hosts IUPUI on Saturday

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THIS WEEK 

The 16th-ranked University of Iowa women’s basketball team hosts IUPUI on Saturday, Dec. 8. Tipoff is at 2 p.m. (CT) in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are $12 for adults, $8 for youth, and free for UI students. 

PROMOTIONS

• Fans can purchase a Family Four Pack of Tickets for just $10 (online only). 
• The Hawkeyes will sign autographs on the concourse following the contest. 

WATCH/FOLLOW ALONG 

• Saturday’s contest can be streamed on BTN Plus. Links to the broadcast are available on the women’s basketball schedule page on hawkeyesports.com. 
• Live stats are 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 third 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 third 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.

NATIONAL RANKINGS 

• Iowa is ranked No. 16 in this week’s AP Poll and USA Today Coaches Poll. 
• The Hawkeyes are one of seven conference teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the AP Poll. No. 7 Maryland and No. 14 Minnesota are also ranked within the top-25, while Indiana (5), Michigan State (3), Purdue (2), and Northwestern (2) are receiving votes. 

MS. 2,000 

• Senior Megan Gustafson 10 points shy of 2,000 career points. She looks to become the third Hawkeye in program history to score 2,000 or more points. 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native would become just the seventh Big Ten student-athlete to register 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in her career, joining Illinois’ Jenna Smith (2007-10), Minnesota’s Laura Coenen (1982-85), Nebraska’s Jordan Hooper (2011-14), Northwestern’s Nia Coffey (2014-17), and Ohio State’s Jessica Davenport (2004-07) and Jantel Lavender (2008-11).
• Gustafson needs 112 points to break Ally Disterhoft’s all-time career scoring mark of 2,102 set in 2017.  

REBOUNDING RECORD FALLS

• Senior Megan Gustafson broke Iowa’s program record for career rebounds with 4:27 left in the first quarter against Iowa State on Dec. 5.
• Gustafson has 1,080 rebounds in her career. She bested the previous record of 1,067 set by Cindy Haugejorde in 1980. Gustafson registered her 1,000th career rebound at Western Kentucky (11/13). 

SCOUTING IUPUI 

• IUPUI is 6-2 on the season with wins over Purdue Northwest, Ole Miss, UT Martin, UTSA, VCU, and Indiana State. 
• The Jags are 3-1 on the road this season, collecting wins at Ole Miss, UTSA, and Indiana State. 
• IUPUI dropped an overtime contest at Wisconsin (65-64) on Nov. 19. The team’s only other loss came to UNI. The Panthers won 53-40. 
• Macee Williams leads the team, averaging 19.4 points and 7.8 rebounds per contest. 
• As a team, the Jags average 66.1 points per game. They are holding their opponents to 57.2 points per contest. 

THE SERIES 

• Iowa leads the all-time series, 1-0. 
• The Hawkeyes won the only meeting between the two teams in 2002. Iowa edged out the Jags in overtime, 84-75, in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

NONCONFERENCE SCHEDULE

The Hawkeyes face four nonconference teams who made the 2018 NCAA Tournament, including Drake, Western Kentucky, Florida State, and defending National Champions Notre Dame. 

GUESS WHO’S BACK? 

• Junior Kathleen Doyle returned to the court on Dec. 5 after missing seven games with a pair of broken bones in her left (non-shooting) hand. 
• Doyle scored a game-high 22 points off the bench for the Hawkeyes. She was 7-for-17 from the field and a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. 
• The LaGrange Park, Illinois, native also registered two steals, an assist, and made a pair of 3-pointers in the contest. 
• The Preseason All-Big Ten selection averaged 11.1 points, 6.6 assists, and 3.6 rebounds in 30 games last season. She ranked 12th nationally in assists per game, and led the Big Ten with 7.5 assists per game in conference action. 

IT’S A HAWKEYE STATE 

• Iowa defeated Iowa State, 73-70, in Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Wednesday evening. 
• Three Hawkeyes scored in double figures. They include Kathleen Doyle (22), Hannah Stewart (14), and Megan Gustafson (13). 
• Gustafson led the team on the boards, collecting 16 rebounds. She broke the school record for rebounds in a career with 4:27 remaining in the first quarter. She now has 1,080 career boards. 
• The Hawkeyes were a perfect 15-for-15 from the free throw line. It marked Iowa’s first perfect free throw shooting performance since going 15-for-15 against NIU on Nov. 15, 2017. 

IT WAS FOR FREE! SO I SAID “SURE”

• The Hawkeyes are shooting 81.6 percent from the free throw line this season — a mark that ranks first in the Big Ten Conference and fifth nationally. 
• Iowa was a perfect 15-for-15 from the free throw line against Iowa State on Dec. 5. Junior Kathleen Doyle (6-for-6), senior Megan Gustafson (5-for-5), junior Makenzie Meyer (2-for-2), and redshirt sophomore Alexis Sevillian (2-for-2) all made free throws in the contest. 
• Davis made a career-high 13-of-14 free throws in Iowa’s 24-point comeback win against No. 25/20 West Virginia on Nov. 24. 
• The Hawkeyes made 27 free throws in 32 attempts (84.4 percent) against the Mountaineers. 

THE B1G DUO 

• Seniors Hannah Stewart and Megan Gustafson have dominated down low for the Hawkeyes this season. 
• Stewart and Gustafson are scoring a combined 37.0 points per game, and averaging 19.9 rebounds per contest. 
• The duo has 296 points, 159 rebounds, 38 assists, and 20 blocks. They are shooting a combined 69 percent (129-for-188) from the field. 

B1GS LEAD IOWA PAST ROBERT MORRIS 

• The Hawkeyes defeated Robert Morris, 92-63, in Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Dec. 2. 
• Iowa scored 56 points in the paint in the contest. 
• Iowa’s three posts — Megan Gustafson, Hannah Stewart, and Monika Czinano — shot a combined 23-for-27 (85 percent) from the field. 
• Gustafson made 13-of-15, Stewart was 6-for-8, and Czinano was 4-for-4. 
• The Hawkeyes out-rebounded Robert Morris, 39-15. Gustafson led Iowa with 12 boards, while Stewart chipped in nine. 

SENIOR CLASS AWARD

• Senior Megan Gustafson was named 1-of-30 finalists for the Senior Class Award. 
• To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. 
• The candidates will be narrowed to 10 in February. Those names will go on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans. 

SHARING IS CARING 

• The Hawkeyes set new school assist records in back-to-back games against Western Kentucky and North Carolina Central. 
• Iowa dished out 34 assists against Western Kentucky on Nov. 13, before besting that mark with 36 against North Carolina Central on Nov. 17. 
• Through eight games this season, the Hawkeyes are averaging 23.1 assists per contest — the second-best mark in the NCAA. 
• Six Hawkeyes have dished out 13 or more assists this season. Junior Makenzie Meyer leads the team with 41 (5.1 per game). 

HIGH-POWERED OFFENSE 

• Through eight games this season, Iowa is averaging 85.9 points per game, a mark that ranks second in the Big Ten and 13th nationally. 
• Iowa’s 53.1 field goal percentage ranks third in the NCAA. 
• Iowa scored 106 points in its win over North Carolina Central on Nov. 17. It marked the second-highest point total in program history. 
• Iowa’s 67-point margin of victory (106-39) against North Carolina Central marked the largest scoring margin for the Hawkeyes since 1992-93. 
• Five Hawkeyes are averaging double figures in scoring. Senior Megan Gustafson leads the team with 23.4 points per game. Juniors Kathleen Doyle (22.0), senior Hannah Stewart (13.6), junior Makenzie Meyer (13.9), and senior Tania Davis (11.6) are also averaging double figures. 

GUSTAFSON’S 4-FOR-4 

• For the fourth straight week, senior Megan Gustafson was named the Big Ten Player of the Week, the conference office announced Monday.
• It is the 14th Player of the Week honor of her career. 
• Gustafson averaged 29.0 points and 11.0 rebounds in a pair of games this week, shooting 77.4 percent from the field and 90.9 percent from the free throw line. 
• In an ACC/Big Ten Challenge matchup against No. 1 Notre Dame, Gustafson netted 26 points on 11-for-16 shooting (68.8 percent). She also registered 10 rebounds to collect her 60th career double-double.
• On Dec. 2, Gustafson scored a season-high 32 points on 13-of-15 shooting (86.6 percent) from the field in just 23 minutes action against Robert Morris. The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native was a perfect 6-for-6 from the free throw line. She pulled down 12 rebounds to notch the 61st double-double of her career.
• Gustafson broke a Big Ten single-season record last year, winning nine Player of the Week honors. She was also named to the conference’s honor roll six times. 

TANIA DAVIS: THE RETURN

• Senior Tania Davis returned to the starting lineup in Iowa’s season opener for the first time since Dec. 17, 2017. 
• Through eight games this season, Davis is averaging 11.6 points and 4.1 assists. 
• With 2.4 seconds remaining, Davis hit a game-winning 3-pointer to give Iowa a 73-70 victory over Iowa State on Dec. 5. She ended the game with nine points, three assists, and two steals. 
• Davis averaged 9.7 points and 5.2 assists in 12 games before tearing her ACL in 2017-18.  
• The Flint, Michigan, native’s sophomore season was also cut short due to injury. In 23 games in 2016-17, Davis averaged 10.9 points and 4.3 assists. 

CALL IT A COMEBACK

• The Hawkeyes trailed by 24 points with 2:10 remaining in the first half before coming back to defeat No. 25/20 West Virginia, 84-81, on Nov. 23.
• It marked the largest comeback in Big Ten Conference history, besting the previous mark of 21 (Nebraska vs. Creighton on Dec. 6, 2015). 
• It also ties for the fifth-largest comeback in Division I history. 
• Senior Megan Gustafson scored 17 of her 28 total points in the fourth quarter. She shot 8-for-9 from the field and pulled down six rebounds over the final 10 minutes. 

1,000 REBOUNDS CLUB

• Senior Megan Gustafson broke Iowa’s career rebounding record with 16 boards against Iowa State on Dec. 5. She bested the previous mark of 1,067 set by Cindy Haugejorde in 1980. 
• Gustafson is just the second Hawkeye in program history to register 1,000 or more rebounds in her career. 

STEWART COMES UP B1G

• Senior Hannah Stewart has started all eight games for the Hawkeyes this season — the first eight starts of her career. 
• Stewart is averaging 13.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, and 3.0 assists. 
• The Minot, North Dakota, native has scored 12 or more points in seven of Iowa’s eight games this season. 

DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE

• Megan Gustafson recorded her 62nd career double-double with 13 points and 16 rebounds against Iowa State on Dec. 5. 
• Gustafson broke the program record (men or women) with her 49th career double-double (25 points, 15 rebounds) against Minnesota on Feb. 4, 2018. Gustafson surpassed former Iowa men’s basketball player Kevin Kunnert’s career total of 48 set in 1971-73. 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native had 28 double-doubles last season — the second most in the NCAA. 
• She has registered a double-double in 39 of her last 47 games. 

ALL EYES ON GUSTAFSON

• Senior All-American Megan Gustafson was named to the Wooden Award Preseason Top-30 Watch List, ESPN’s SportsCenter and ESPNW announced Nov. 6. 
• The list is comprised of 30 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for the John R. Wooden Award All-American Team and Most Outstanding Player Award. The list is chosen by a preseason poll of national women’s college basketball media members.
• Gustafson was named to the 2019 Lisa Leslie Award Watch List, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association announced Oct. 26. 
• Named after the three-time All-American and 1994 National Player of the Year, the annual award in its second year recognizes the top centers in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball.

UP NEXT 

Iowa hosts Northern Iowa on Sunday, Dec. 16. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. (CT) in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.