Game Notes: Iowa at Purdue

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THE SETTING
No. 25/21 Iowa (11-2, 0-2) returns to Big Ten action when it travels to Purdue (8-5, 1-1) on Thursday. Tipoff is set for 6:01 p.m. (CT) at Mackey Arena (14,804) in West Lafayette, Indiana. Thursday will be the only regular season meeting between Iowa and Purdue.
 
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 contest will be televised nationally on BTN (BTN2GO). Dave Revsine and Stephen Bardo will call the action.

GAME #14 STORYLINES
•    Iowa will be wearing #TylerStrong shirts during pregame warm-ups to honor Purdue student Tyler Trent, who lost his battle with cancer earlier this week.
•    The Hawkeyes have been nationally ranked in both major polls each of the last seven weeks (Nov. 19-present), ranked as high as No. 14 in the Associated Press Poll on Nov. 26.
•    Tyler Cook has scored 15 or more points in each of the last seven outings. Cook joins Peter Jok (2017) and Aaron White (2015) as the only Hawkeyes in the Fran McCaffery era to total 15+ points and 5+ rebounds in seven straight games.
•    Iowa won all 11 of its non-conference games. The last time an Iowa team won all of its non-conference games was the 1986-87 season.
•    Tyler Cook surpassed Carl Cain, Reggie Evans, Gerry Jones, and Steve Carfino in Iowa’s last game on Dec. 29, to move into 42nd place on Iowa’s all-time scoring chart.
•    Nicholas Baer is 23 rebounds from becoming the fifth player in program history to total 500 points, 500 rebounds, 100 blocked shots, and 100 steals.
•    Iowa has led by as many as 20 points in four of Iowa’s last five games (Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Western Carolina, and Savannah State).
•    Iowa has had a player post a double-double five of the last eight games. Joe Wieskamp (Pitt) and Tyler Cook (Wisconsin, Iowa State, Northern Iowa, and Bryant).
•    Jordan Bohannon has sank a combined 11 3-pointers over the last two games. Bohannon drained a season-best six versus Savannah State and five last weekend against Bryant.
•    The Hawkeyes rank first in the country in free throw makes per game (22.0) and attempts (29.7). Iowa has made 19 or more free throws in ten of 13 contests.
•    Iowa is 14-2 in games in which Connor McCaffery has played, dating back to last season. McCaffery is fifth in the Big Ten in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.9), 12th in free throw percentage (.820, 50-of-61), and 14th in and assists (3.3). 
•    Tyler Cook has led the Hawkeyes in scoring in six of the last seven games: Wisconsin (19 points), Michigan State (15 points), Iowa State (26 points), Northern Iowa (17 points), Western Carolina (18 points), and Bryant (19 points).
•    Thursday’s game will be Iowa’s first game outside the state of Iowa since playing at Michigan State in East Lansing, Michigan, on Dec. 3. 
 
HAWKEYES WIN NON-CONFERENCE FINALE
Iowa made 14 more free throws than Bryant University in a 72-67 win in Iowa’s non-conference finale on Dec. 29, in Iowa City.
•   Iowa won all 11 of its non-conference games this season. The last time an Iowa team won all of its non-conference games was the 1986-87 season.
•   Junior Tyler Cook scored 19 points, scoring 15 points or more for the seventh straight contest. Cook registered his fourth double-double in seven games (19 points, 12 rebounds). Cook also led the squad in assists (6) for the fifth time this season. The six assists tied a personal best.
•   In his second start of the season, senior Nicholas Baer reached double figures for the fourth time this season, finishing the game with 12 points. Baer was credited with a game and season-best five blocks, marking the second time in three games that Baer rejected four or more shots.
•   Jordan Bohannon made a team-best five 3-pointers. The junior guard has made a combined 11 triples the last two games for the Hawkeyes.
•   Freshman Joe Wieskamp netted double figures for the eighth time this season and fourth straight game (10 points).
•   Iowa won its second game of the season by five points or less (Pitt).
•   Starting center Luka Garza missed his second straight game (sprained ankle).
•   Bryant’s Adam Grant led all scorers, netting 20 of his 23 points in the first half.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES RECORDS
Purdue holds an 89-76 advantage in the series. Iowa has won five of the last eight meetings. The third-ranked Boilermakers won the only meeting last year, 87-64, in Iowa City.
    The Boilermakers hold a 59-22 advantage in games played in West Lafayette. Purdue has won eight of the last nine games over the Hawkeyes inside Mackey Arena. Iowa snapped a seven-game losing skid at Mackey Arena in 2016 (70-63) before No. 15 Purdue won the last meeting in West Lafayette, 89-67, on Dec. 28, 2016.
    Four of the last five games played at Mackey Arena (2012, 2013, 2015, and 2016) have been decided by seven points or less, including one overtime contest (2013).
 
SCOUTING PURDUE
•   Thursday concludes a three-game home stand for Purdue. The Boilermakers are 6-0 in home games this season, boasting a +19.8 average margin of victory inside Mackey Arena. Three of Purdue’s six home wins have come by nine points or less, including its first Big Ten win of the season coming by two points over Maryland (62-60) on Dec. 6. After Thursday’s game versus the Hawkeyes, Purdue will have back-to-back road games at Michigan State and Wisconsin.
•   Purdue won its last outing, 73-62, versus Belmont on Dec. 29. Carsen Edwards (24) and Matt Haarms (12) led the Boilermakers offensively. Purdue made 15 more free throws (18-3) than Belmont.
•   Two Boilermakers average double figures: Carsen Edwards (25.8) and Ryan Cline (13.1). Edwards and Cline are also Purdue’s two main 3-point threats. Carsen Edwards is 60-of-126 (.397) from 3-point territory, while Ryan Cline is 40-of-105 (.381). Edwards and Cline combine to average 6.9 treys made per contest.
•   Purdue ranks eighth in the country in 3-pointers made per game (10.8); 37th in fewest turnovers per contest (11.5); and 41st in rebounding margin (+6.5).
•   Purdue leads the Big Ten in 3-pointers made per game (10.8), ranks second in free throw percentage (.740), fourth in rebounding margin (+6.5), and fifth in scoring offense (78.4). Guard Carsen Edwards is the conference scoring leader and ranks second nationally, averaging 25.8 points per game. Edwards also leads the Big Ten in free throw percentage (.886, 62-of-70) and 3-pointers made (3.8), and is tied for eighth in steals (1.4) and tied for ninth in assists (3.5). Center Matt Haarms ranks fifth in the league in blocked shots (1.5) and seventh in field goal percentage (.600). Guard Ryan Cline is second in the Big Ten in 3-pointers made (3.1).
•   Matt Painter is in his 14th season as head coach at Purdue (303-154, .663). Painter has guided the Boilermakers to ten NCAA Tournaments.
 
LAST MEETING
Purdue sank a Big Ten single-game record 20 3-pointers in an 87-64 win over Iowa on Jan. 20, 2018, in Iowa City. The game was the only regular season meeting between the two teams.
•   The win was the first by the Boilermakers over the Hawkeyes in Iowa City since Dec. 28, 2011 (five games).
•   Freshman Luka Garza paced the Hawkeyes, netting 19 points, bolstered by 8-of-10 shooting from the field.
•   Isaiah Moss equaled a career best dishing out five assists with zero turnovers.
•   Purdue shot 55.9 percent (33-of-59) from the field, including 60.6 percent (20-of-33) from 3-point territory. Carsen Edwards led all scorers with 22 points, while also dishing out eight assists.
 
FIVE-GAME WIN STREAK HIGHLIGHTS
•   Iowa has led by 20 points or more in four of the five victories (Dec. 6-present).
•   The Hawkeyes are averaging 10.4 3-point field goals made during the win streak.
•   Five Hawkeyes average double figures during the win streak (Tyler Cook, 19.2; Joe Wieskamp, 12.2; Luka Garza, 12.0; Isaiah Moss, 11.0; Jordan Bohannon 11.0).
•   Iowa boasts a 21.2 margin of victory during the win streak.
•   Iowa is shooting the basketball at a 52.5 percent clip from the field (147-of-280).
•   Four of the five wins have come on home court in Iowa City.
 
IOWA IN THE BIG TEN STATISTICS
Iowa ranks first in the Big Ten in free throw percentage (.741), free throw makes (286) and attempted (386); second in scoring offense (83.2) and assists (16.3); fifth in 3-point percentage defense (.301), steals (6.5) and 3-pointers made (8.5). Individually, Luka Garza ranks sixth in the league in free throw percentage (.842, 32-of-38), Tyler Cook is tied for sixth in rebounding (8.5) and eighth in scoring (16.8), Connor McCaffery ranks fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.9) and 14th in assists (3.3), while Nicholas Baer is ninth in blocks (1.4) and 12th in steals (1.2).
 
COOK ELEVATING HIS GAME
Tyler Cook has posted double-doubles in four of the last seven games, leading the Hawkeyes in scoring six of the last seven games and leading the squad in rebounding in four of the seven. Cook recorded career point No. 1,000, in Iowa’s win over Northern Iowa on Dec. 15. He has netted 15+ points and 5+ rebounds in each of Iowa’s last seven contests.
    Cook is one of three Big Ten student-athletes to average better than 16.5 points and 8.5 rebounds per game, joining Wisconsin’s Ethan Happ and Lamar Stevens of Penn State. Cook ranks in the top ten in the league in both scoring and rebounding.
 
MILESTONES APPROACHING FOR BOHANNON, COOK
Jordan Bohannon is closing in on joining classmate Tyler Cook in the 1,000-point club. Bohannon is 46 points and 113 assists from becoming the sixth Hawkeye to amass 1,000 points and 500 assists. Cook is 22 rebounds from becoming the 26th Hawkeye to total 1,000 points and 500 rebounds.
 
BAER APPROACHING ELITE COMPANY
Redshirt senior Nicholas Baer is 23 rebounds from becoming the fifth Hawkeye in program history to amass 500 points, 500 rebounds, 100 blocked shots, and 100 steals. The four other players who have accomplished that feat include Greg Stokes, Acie Earl, Michael Payne, and Ryan Bowen.
 
BOHANNON RECEIVED MUSIAL AWARD
Jordan Bohannon was one of the honorees at the 2018 Musial Awards, which celebrated the greatest moments of sportsmanship and those in sports who embody class and character.
    Last February, Bohannon, an Iowa sophomore, was approaching the Hawkeyes’ consecutive free throws made record. The record was held by the late Chris Street, an Iowa basketball legend who died in a car accident in 1993 at age 20. With a chance to break the record, Bohannon intentionally — and selflessly — missed a free throw to honor Street and keep the record in his name.
    The awards ceremony took place in St. Louis on Nov. 17. Bohannon traveled with the Street family from New York to St. Louis after Iowa’s two games in New York City.
    Other honorees included recently-inducted Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Thome, Loyola men’s basketball team chaplain Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, Florida State softball head coach Lonni Alameda, Minnesota high school pitcher Ty Koehn, and Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith.
    The event is named for Stan Musial, the late St. Louis Cardinals legend who was beloved for his approach on and off the field. The mission of the Musial Awards is to encourage selflessness, integrity and civility in sports and society — and to inspire people across the country to be good sports.
 
HAWKEYES RETURN EXPERIENCE
Iowa returns 90.5 percent of minutes played a year ago, a percentage that is fourth most in the country: Washington (95.2 percent), Wisconsin (93.9 percent), and Syracuse (90.8 percent). Returning Iowa players scored 94.9 percent (2,496 of 2,630) of its offense a year ago and a combined 4,246 career points entering the 2018-19 season.
    Iowa is one of four schools nationally to have all five starters return with all five being its top five scorers in 2017-18 (Syracuse, Brown, Harvard).
 
MEASURING THE HAWKEYES
Iowa has four players with wingspans over seven feet: Ryan Kriener (7-3), Jack Nunge (7-2), Luka Garza (7-1.5), and Tyler Cook (7-1). Guards Maishe Dailey (6-11) and Joe Wieskamp (6-11) have longest wingspans among backcourt players.
 
McCAFFERY REACHES MILESTONES
Iowa’s regular season opener against UMKC was Fran McCaffery’s 700th career game as a head coach. The 2018-19 season is McCaffery’s ninth as Iowa’s head coach and 23rd overall as a collegiate head coach. McCaffery has 413 overall wins and 162 victories while on the Iowa sidelines. He is third on Iowa’s coaching win chart and seven victories from surpassing Lute Olson for second. Tom Davis is Iowa’s all-time winningest coach with 269 wins.
 
FAST START FOR WIESKAMP
Joe Wieskamp is off to a fast start for the Hawkeyes as a freshman. The shooting guard ranks third on the team in scoring (11.2 ppg) and fourth in rebounding (4.6 rpg). Wieskamp is shooting at a 43 percent clip from 3-point range (21-of-49) and 50.5 percent overall from the field (47-of-93).
    Wieskamp posted his first career double-double versus Pitt on Nov. 27, totaling a team-best in points (18) and rebounds (11).
 
BREAKING DOWN IOWA’S BIG TEN SCHEDULE
Of the 10 Big Ten homes games played in Iowa City, eight will be played on weekends: three on Friday nights (Wisconsin, Michigan, Indiana), two on Saturday afternoons (Ohio State, Rutgers), three on Sunday afternoons (Nebraska, Illinois, Northwestern).
    Other than playing two straight Big Ten road games one month apart (Michigan State on Dec. 3 and Purdue on Jan. 3), Iowa has only one other back-to-back road game sequence (Wisconsin on March 7 and Nebraska on March 10).
    This season will mark the seventh time in nine years that the Hawkeyes will open league play at home and just the second time in nine years that Iowa will play its regular season finale on the road under head coach Fran McCaffery.
 
FAMILY AFFAIR
In addition to brothers Nicholas and Michael Baer on the Iowa men’s basketball team, the Baers have two cousins competing on other sports at the University of Iowa. Molly Kelly is a senior on the volleyball team, while Joe Kelly is a freshman on the Iowa wrestling team. Additionally, cousin Kristin Baer is a senior on the Notre Dame volleyball team.
 
PEMSL HAS SEASON ENDING SURGERY
Junior forward Cordell Pemsl underwent season-ending surgery on Dec. 18.
    “Cordell’s procedure removed hardware near his knee from a previous surgery when he was in high school,” said McCaffery.
    Pemsl (6-foot-8, 230 pounds) has seen action in only two games this season, playing 13 minutes against UMKC (Nov. 8) and 18 minutes versus Iowa State (Dec. 6).
    “I tried to give playing this season another shot in the Iowa State game, but after a week of rest and recovery, the chronic irritation caused by the hardware has remained resulting in my inability to play in Saturday’s game versus UNI. After further discussions with the medical staff, we determined that the best course of action is to correct the problem at this time.”
    The native of Dubuque, Iowa, has played in 68 career games, averaging 7.2 points and 4.7 rebounds per game.
 
NUNGE, FREDRICK TO REDSHIRT
Sophomore forward Jack Nunge and freshman guard CJ Fredrick plan to redshirt the 2018-19 season. Nunge, one of seven forwards on this season’s roster, saw action in all 33 games a year ago, ranking second on the team in blocked shots (25), fourth in steals (21), and fifth in scoring (5.7). Fredrick was the 2018 Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year his senior year at Covington Catholic High School.
 
IOWA WELCOMES 4 HAWKEYES TO 2018-19 ROSTER
Iowa added two scholarship and two non-scholarship student-athletes to its 2018-19 roster. Guards CJ Fredrick (Kentucky) and Joe Wieskamp (Iowa) were their respective state’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 2018. Guard Nicholas Hobbs and forward Michael Baer join the Hawkeye roster as walk-on. Baer is the younger brother of senior Nicholas Baer.
 
COOK ATTENDS NIKE BASKETBALL ACADEMY
Tyler Cook attended the prestigious Nike Basketball Academy this past summer in California. The camp provided Cook the opportunity to train alongside some of the best NBA players and coaches. The prestigious skills development camp was limited to 25 of the nation’s top collegiate players, which included a combine experience, drills, off-court workouts, film sessions, and competition.
    Cook is the fourth Hawkeye in five years to be invited to this elite basketball camp, joining Aaron White (2014), Jarrod Uthoff (2015), and Peter Jok (2016).
 
IOWA VS. RANKED TEAMS
Iowa is 1-2 this season against nationally-ranked teams, beating No. 13 Oregon in New York City, and losing to No. 22 Wisconsin on in Iowa City and No. 10 Michigan State in East Lansing.
 
IOWA HISTORY
Iowa has played 2,786 games since beginning basketball in 1902. Iowa’s overall record is 1,637-1,149 (.587). Iowa’s 1,637 wins are 41st most among Division I programs. That includes a 1,047-367 (.740) record in home games, a 584-779 (.428) record in contests away from Iowa City, a 766-780 (.495) mark in Big Ten games and a 452-141 (.762) record in Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
 
CONNOR MCCAFFERY RETURNS HEALTHY
Guard Connor McCaffery received a medical redshirt following last season. McCaffery (6-foot-5, 205 pounds) has four years of men’s basketball eligibility remaining after averaging 13.3 minutes in only four games last December as a true freshman. The native of Iowa City missed two games due to a sprained ankle, eight contests due to mononucleosis, and 19 games after undergoing a tonsillectomy in December.
    McCaffery is the son of head coach Fran McCaffery. Iowa is one of nine Division I teams in which the head coach has a son on the 2018-19 roster (Cal State Bakersfield, Central Connecticut State, Central Florida, Detroit Mercy, Kentucky, Portland, Syracuse, Tennessee Martin).
    McCaffery is believed to be one of three Division I men’s basketball student-athletes who are dual-sport athletes in 2018-19. McCaffery (basketball and baseball), joins South Carolina junior Evan Hinson (football and basketball) and Buffalo sophomore Dominic Johnson (football and basketball).
    Iowa is 14-2 in games in which Connor McCaffery has played, dating back to last season. McCaffery is first on the team in assists (40) and is sixth in scoring (7.1 ppg). The redshirt freshman is shooting 82 percent (50-of-61) from the free throw line, and ranks fifth in the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.9), 12th in free throw percentage (.820, 50-of-61), and 14th in and assists (3.3).
 
FANS FLOCK TO CARVER-HAWKEYE ARENA
Iowa ranked 28th in the country in average home attendance (12,026) in 2017-18. The Hawkeyes have ranked in the top 30 nationally in attendance each of the past six seasons, including ranking in the top 25 five of the last six years.
    Iowa’s Big Ten opener versus No. 22 Wisconsin was its first sellout of the 2018-19 season.
 
RECENT GRADUATES PLAYING PROFESSIONAL BASKETBALL
A number of recent Iowa basketball graduates are playing professionally: Devyn Marble (Italy), Anthony Clemmons (Kazakhstan), Gabriel Olaseni (Germany), Jarrod Uthoff (Russia), Melsahn Basabe (Israel), Peter Jok (NBA G League: Northern Arizona Suns), Adam Woodbury (NBA G League: Stockton Kings), and Aaron White (Lithuania).
 
COACHING EXPERIENCE
Fran McCaffery has the most experienced coaching staffs in the country. The Iowa men’s basketball staff has 58 years of combined collegiate head coaching experience and more than 125 years of collegiate coaching under their belts.
 
HAWKEYE FASTBREAKS
•   Junior Tyler Cook is one of 21 players in Iowa history to have 10 or more double-doubles.
•   Iowa is one of 20 schools nationally to have five or more redshirts on their roster. Iowa’s five redshirts are tied for second most in the B1G with Michigan State (Wisconsin, 8).
•  Two Hawkeyes were named to the 2K Empire Classic All-Tournament Team: Luka Garza (MVP) and Tyler Cook. Cook averaged 16.5 points and nine rebounds, while Garza averaged 16 points and 6.5 rebounds in the two victories. Iowa trailed for only two minutes in the two victories over No. 13 Oregon and Connecticut.
•   Iowa is 81-19 when scoring 80 points or more, the last eight seasons. The Hawkeyes are 69-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 61 points, the last eight years.
•   Iowa has won 59 of its last 63 non-conference home games, dating back to 2012.
•   Iowa made a school record with 19 3-pointers made versus Savannah State on Dec. 22, besting the previous mark of 18 previously set in 2016 against Savannah State.
•  Iowa posted 98 points in its 14-point win over Iowa State on Dec. 6. The last time Iowa scored 90 points or more against Iowa State was Dec. 10, 1988, in Iowa City (Iowa won 91-71).
•  Iowa improved to 6-1 all-time in The Hy-Vee Classic with its 77-54 win over Northern Iowa on Dec. 15 in Des Moines. In the seven-year history of four-team Hy-Vee Classic, Nicholas Baer is the only player to win four games in four years. Baer averaged 10 points, nine rebounds, 2.75 assists, 2.5 blocked shots, and two steals in four games played.
•   Iowa’s 105 points versus Alabama State, equaled the fourth highest point total by the Hawkeyes in a single-game in the Fran McCaffery era.
•  Iowa torched Alabama State for 68 first-half points, the most points scored by Iowa in a half in the Fran McCaffery era besting a 63-point outburst in the second half at Minnesota a year ago.
•   Fran McCaffery and his coaching staff are the first in program history to win 18 games or more in six straight seasons (2013-18).
•   Fran McCaffery has guided Iowa to upper division finishes in the Big Ten in five of the last six seasons. McCaffery has accumulated 17 first division finishes in 22 years as a head coach.
 
IOWA, CINCINNATI TO PLAY IN CHICAGO IN 2019
Iowa has signed a contract to play the University of Cincinnati as part of the Chicago Legends next season.
    The Hawkeyes and Bearcats will play on a neutral court at the United Center in Chicago on Dec. 21, 2019, as part of a four-team men’s college basketball doubleheader. Dayton will face Colorado in the other contest.
    Iowa and Cincinnati have played eight previous times, with the last contest coming in the 2005 NCAA Tournament in Indianapolis.
    Each of the 2019 teams has advanced to the NCAA Tournament at least twice in the past four seasons. Tickets will go on sale to the general public in 2019.
 
ON THE HORIZON
Iowa will return home for its next conference game versus Nebraska on Sunday. Tipoff is set for 4:30 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are available for purchase at hawkeyesports.com/tickets.