Iowa, Rutgers Meet in B1G Semifinals on Saturday

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THIS WEEK 

The No. 10/10 University of Iowa women’s basketball team continues 2019 Big Ten Tournament action on Saturday, taking on third-seeded Rutgers. Tipoff is set for 6:30 p.m. (CT) at Bankers Life Field House.

WATCH/FOLLOW ALONG 

• Saturday’s contest will air live on BTN. Lisa Byington (play-by-play), Christy Winters Scott, (analyst), and Vera Jones (sideline) will have the call from Bankers Life Fieldhouse. 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 onhawkeyesports.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.

BIG TEN TOURNAMENT HISTORY 

• Iowa is 24-23 in the Big Ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes are 18-17 in the tournament under head coach Lisa Bluder. The 18 wins are the second-most for a current head coach (Sharon Versyp, 24, Indiana/Purdue). 
• The Hawkeyes have claimed two tournament titles (1997, 2001) and made four championship game appearances. 
• Saturday is Iowa’s first appearance in the semifinal game since 2015. The Hawkeyes fell to Ohio State, 91-85. 
• Iowa’s most recent championship game appearance came in 2014. The fifth-seeded Hawkeyes fell to third-seeded Nebraska, 72-74, in Bankers Life Field House. 
• Last season, the fifth-seeded Hawkeyes downed 12th-seeded Northwestern, 55-45, in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament. Iowa then fell to Minnesota, 90-89, in the tournament quarterfinals. 
• Last year, Megan Gustafson set Big Ten Tournament records for points in a single game (48) and field goals made in a single game (19) against Minnesota. 

IN THE RANKINGS

• Iowa is ranked No. 10 in this week’s AP Poll and USA Today Coaches poll. 
• The Hawkeyes entered the top-10 for the second time this season (Week 16). Prior to this season, it is Iowa’s first top-10 appearance in both major polls since 1996. 
• The Hawkeyes are one of three conference teams that are ranked or receiving votes in the AP Poll. No. 8 Maryland and No. 10 Iowa are ranked within the top-25, while Rutgers is receiving seven votes. 
• Iowa is also one of three Big Ten teams ranked in the USA Today Coaches Poll. They include: No. 8 Maryland, No. 10 Iowa, and Rutgers (6 votes).

STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE

• Iowa faced 10 teams who made the 2018 NCAA Tournament in the regular season, including four nonconference opponents and six Big Ten foes. 
• As of March 6, Iowa’s RPI is nine. Iowa’s strength of schedule ranks 13th nationally (March 6). 
• The Hawkeyes have registered five wins over ranked opponents this season (No. 25/20 West Virginia, No. 23/20 Minnesota, No. 14/18 Rutgers, No. 23/21 Michigan State, and No. 7/8 Maryland). 
• On Feb. 5, the NCAA women’s basketball selection committee released its final top-16 reveal of the season. Iowa was a No. 2 seed in the Greensboro Regional. The Hawkeyes were the No. 8 overall seed. 

HOME IS WHERE THE TIGERHAWK IS 

• Iowa has won 19 consecutive games on Mediacom Court in Carver-Hawkeye Arena, including a 15-0 mark this season. 
• The last loss for the Hawkeyes at home was a 92-74 defeat against Nebraska on Jan. 28, 2018. 
• The Hawkeyes went undefeated on their home court in the regular season for the first time since 2014-15 (18-0). 

SCOUTING RUTGERS

• Rutgers enters Saturday’s contest with a 22-8 overall record. 
• The Scarlet Knights finished third in the Big Ten with a 13-5 record. 
• Redshirt senior forward Stasha Carey (12.0) and sophomore guard Arella Guirantes (11.9) are both averaging double figures for the Scarlet Knights. 
• Carey earned second team All-Big Ten honors on Monday, while Guirantes was named an Honorable Mention selection. 
• Rutgers leads the Big Ten Conference in scoring defense. The Scarlet Knights are holding opponents to 56.9 points per game. 

THE SERIES

• Iowa leads the all-time series, 6-2. 
• The Hawkeyes have won all six meetings since Rutgers joined the Big Ten. 
• Iowa defeated Rutgers, 72-66, in Iowa City on Jan. 23. Senior Megan Gustafson led the Hawkeyes with 32 points and 12 rebounds. Junior Kathleen Doyle netted 17 points, dished out six assists, and committed zero turnovers in the contest. Junior Makenzie Meyer also scored in double figures (11 points). 

HAWKEYES DOWN HOOSIERS IN B1G QUARTERFINALS 

• The Hawkeyes downed Indiana, 70-61, in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals on Friday evening. 
• Senior Megan Gustafson led the team with a game-high 30 points and a game-best 17 rebounds. 
• Junior Makenzie Meyer netted 12 points, making 4-of-9 attempts from 3-point range. 
• Junior Kathleen Doyle drew a charge, scored five points, and registered two blocks in the final 3:49 seconds to seal the win for the Hawkeyes. 

GOTTA CATCH EM ALL

• Senior Megan Gustafson broke her own school record for points in a single season on Friday. 
• Gustafson has 832 points this season, besting her 2017-18 total of 823. 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native also tied her own school record for double-doubles in a single season. She has record 28 double-doubles in each of the last two seasons. 
• Gustafson needs just nine rebounds to tie her own school record for rebounds in a single season. She grabbed 411 rebounds last season. 

B1G DUO ON THE BOARDS

• Seniors Megan Gustafson and Hannah Stewart combined to record 30 rebounds in Iowa’s win over Indiana on March 8. 
• Gustafson grabbed a game-high 17 rebounds, while Stewart registered 13. 
• Indiana’s entire team record 32 rebounds. 

GOIN’ BACK-TO-BACK

• Senior Megan Gustafson was named the consensus Big Ten Player of the Year on Monday. 
• Gustafson became the first Hawkeye in program history to win the award twice. 
• She is the first Hawkeye student-athlete chosen as the coaches’ Player of the Year since 1998 (Tangela Smith). 
• The Port Wing, Wisconsin, native is the ninth two-time Big Ten Player of the Year in conference history. She joins Jantel Lavender (OSU, four times), Jessica Davenport (OSU, three times), Kelsey Mitchell (OSU, three time), Anucha Browne (NW, two times), Tracey Hall (OSU, two times), Maggie Lucas (PSU, two times), Kelly Mazzante (PSU, two times), and Katie Douglas (PU, two times).
• Gustafson as also a unanimous first time All-Big Ten honoree (coaches & media) and named to the Big Ten All-Defensive Team.  

ALL-CONFERENCE HONORS

• Three Hawkeyes earned all-conference honors on Monday. 
• Senior Megan Gustafson was a unanimous first team All-Big Ten honoree (coaches & media). 
• Junior Kathleen Doyle earned first team All-Big Ten honors from the coaches and second team accolades from the media. 
• Senior Tania Davis was named a consensus honorable mention All-Big Ten selection. 
• Senior Hannah Stewart was named Iowa’s Sportsmanship Award honoree. 

B1G RECORDS FALL 

• Iowa set a Big Ten record with 392 assists during the conference season. The Hawkeyes topped Ohio State’s mark of 356 set in 1984-85. 
• The Hawkeyes averaged 21.8 assists per game during conference play — passing Iowa’s own record of 20.8 assists per game during the 2000-01 Big Ten season. 
• Senior Megan Gustafson made 211 field goals (11.7 per contest) during the conference season, besting the Big Ten record set by Northwestern’s Anucha Browne of 205 field goals (11.4 per game) in 1984-85. 

SHARING IS CARING

• Through 30 games this season, the Hawkeyes are averaging 22.0 assists per contest — the second-best mark in the NCAA. 
• Seven Hawkeyes have dished out 28 or more assists this season, while six have dished out 53 or more. Junior Kathleen Doyle has dished out a team-high 138 assists. She averages 6.0 assists per game. 
• In 18 conference games, Doyle averaged 6.3 assists — the best mark in the Big Ten. 
• The Hawkeyes set new school assist records in back-to-back games. Iowa dished out 34 assists against Western Kentucky on Nov. 13, before besting that mark with 36 against North Carolina Central on Nov. 17. 

THAT’S OUR HEAD COACH

• Head Coach Lisa Bluder was named one of 15 late-season candidates for the Naismith Coach of the Year on Feb. 27. 
• Four Big Ten coaches have earned the honor, including former Hawkeye head coach C. Vivian Stringer (1993). 

NAME A BETTER TRIO… WE’LL WAIT

• Iowa is led by a trio of seniors in Tania Davis, Megan Gustafson, and Hannah Stewart. 
• The class owns an overall record of 87-42 (67 percent), including a 56-12 mark in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (82 percent). 
• Davis, Gustafson, and Stewart have started all 30 games for the Hawkeyes.
• Collectively, Iowa’s three seniors are averaging 49.7 points, 22.9 rebounds, and 8.6 assists per game this season. 

THEY SEE US ROLLIN’

• The Hawkeyes have won eight of their last nine contests.
• Two of Iowa’s last eight wins have come against top-25 teams, including No. 21 Michigan State and No. 7 Maryland. 
• In the last nine games, senior Megan Gustafson is averaging 30.9 points and 15.1 rebounds. She is shooting 70.3 percent from the field and 87.3 percent from the free throw line. 
• Junior Kathleen Doyle is averaging 12.2 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 6.6 assists over the last nine contests. 
• As a team, the Hawkeyes are averaging 78.9 points and holding opponents to 63.0 points. Iowa is shooting 51.3 percent from the field and holding opponents to a 37.5 shooting percentage. 
• The Hawkeyes finished with a 14-4 record in conference action for the first time since 2014-15. Iowa finished the 2014-15 season with a 26-8 overall record and made a trip to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen. 

• A GRAND (REGULAR SEASON) FINALE
• The Hawkeyes finished the regular season with a 23-6 overall record and a 14-4 mark in Big Ten Conference action with a 74-50 win over Northwestern on March 3. 
• The Hawkeyes played in front of a season-high crowd of 12,051. 
• It marked Iowa’s best regular season and conference record since 2014-15 (23-6; 14-4). 
• Senior Megan Gustafson led the team with a game-high 34 points and a game-best 12 rebounds. Senior Hannah Stewart registered 12 points, six rebounds, and a career-best six assists. Junior Kathleen Doyle also scored in double figures for the Hawkeyes with 12 points. She added a game-best seven assists. 
• The Hawkeyes shot 61.2 percent (30-for-49) from the field and were a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. 
• Iowa dished out 25 assists and 30 made field goals. 

HAVE A (CAREER) DAY

• Senior Hannah Stewart registered the first double-double of her career in Iowa’s win over Nebraska on Feb. 25. She scored 15 points and pulled down 11 rebounds. 
• Senior Megan Gustafson pulled down a career-best 20 rebounds. 
• Junior Makenzie Meyer dished out a career-high 10 assists. She also recorded seven points, two steals, two rebounds, and a block in the victory. 

EFFECTIVE & EFFICIENT

• Senior Megan Gustafson ranks first nationally in field goal percentage, shooting 70.8 percent. She has made an NCAA-best 343 field goals.
• No student-athlete in the history of NCAA women’s basketball has ever averaged 27 or more points, 13 or more rebounds, and shot 70 percent or better from the field. 
• According to Her Hoop Stats, Gustafson averages 1.36 points per possession this season — the best rate in the country. Gustafson also ranks first in points per scoring attempt at 1.46. 
• Gustafson is just the eighth athlete in Big Ten history to shoot 70 percent or better from the field and the first since 2011 (Carolyn Swords, Boston College). 

(AS)SISTER SISTER 

• Junior Kathleen Doyle has recorded five or more assists in 18 of her 23 games.
• Doyle was one assist shy of her fifth career double-double at Indiana (2/21).
• In 23 games this season, Doyle is averaging 6.0 assists per game. Her 6.0 assists per contests rank 13th nationally. 
• In 18 Big Ten games, Doyle is averaging 6.3 assists per game — the best mark in the conference.

OOPS, SHE DID IT AGAIN

• Senior Megan Gustafson recorded her 83rd career double-double with 30 points and 17 rebounds against Indiana on March 8.  
• She tied her own program record (2017-18) with her 28th double-double of the season against the Hoosiers. 
• Gustafson broke the Big Ten record for double-doubles in a career against Illinois on Feb. 14. Jantel Lavender (2007-11) previously held the record of 77. 
• Gustafson’s 28 double-doubles this season ranks second nationally. 
• She 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 60 of her last 69 games, including 24 of her last 25 games. 

HIGH-POWERED OFFENSE 

• Iowa’s 52.0 field goal percentage leads the nation.  
• Through 30 games this season, Iowa is averaging 79.8 points per game, a mark that ranks first in the Big Ten and 11th nationally. 
• Iowa scored 106 points in its win over North Carolina Central on Nov. 17. It marked the second-highest point total in program history. 

SOMEBODY CALL 9-1-1, WE’D LIKE TO REPORT A THEFT 

• In 23 games this season, junior Kathleen Doyle has registered a team-high 51 steals (2.2 per game). 
• She recorded a career-high six steals in 29 minutes of game action at Michigan on Feb. 1. 
• The LaGrange Park, Illinois, native is averaging 2.3 steals in 18 conference games this season — the second-highest average in the Big Ten. 

THE MEGAN GUSTAFSON AWARD 

• Senior Megan Gustafson was named the Big Ten Player of the Week on Monday. 
• Gustafson has been honored by the conference every week this season, including 13 Player of the Week awards and four Honor Roll mentions.
• She has 23 Big Ten Player of the Week awards in her career. Gustafson owns the conference record for career weekly awards, besting Jantel Lavender’s (Ohio State) previous mark of 19. She also owns the record for awards in a single season (12). 

• OH MY, 40 
• Senior Megan Gustafson netted 41 points in Iowa’s win over No. 21 Michigan State on Feb. 7. It marks the second time she’s scored 40 or more points this season (Drake, 12/21). 
• Gustafson has surpassed 30 points 11 times this season — a mark that leads the NCAA. 
• She’s netted 20 or more points in 27 of Iowa’s 30 contests, including 16 games against Big Ten opponents. 

HISTORY MADE 

• Senior Megan Gustafson became the University of Iowa’s all-time leading scorer on Dec. 30, surpassing both the men’s and women’s records. 
• Ally Disterhoft (2013-17) set the previous women’s record of 2,102 in 2017. 
• Roy Marble held the men’s record of 2,116 since 1989. 
• Gustafson has 2,635 career points.
• Gustafson also broke Iowa’s program record for career rebounds against Iowa State on Dec. 5. 
• Gustafson has 1,381 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). 

ALL EYES ON GUSTAFSON

• On March 4, senior Megan Gustafson was named one of 10 finalists for the Naismith Trophy. 
• On Feb. 5, Gustafson was named to the midseason Wade Watch List. She is one of 35 student-athletes on the list for the WBCA’s Wade Trophy. 
• Gustafson was one of 20 student-athletes included on the John R. Wooden Award Late Season Watch List, ESPNW announced Feb. 4. 
• On Feb. 19, Gustafson was named one of 10 semifinalist for the Naismith Women’s Defensive Player of the Year Award. 
• Gustafson was named one of 10 finalists for the 2019 Lisa Leslie Award on Feb. 15. The award recognizes the top centers in women’s basketball. 
• She was named 1-of-10 finalists for the Senior Class Award on Feb. 6.