| OPPONENT | Georgia Tech (4-2) at Iowa (5-1) — ACC/Big Ten Challenge |
| LOCATION | Iowa City, Iowa (Carver-Hawkeye Arena) |
| DATE | Tuesday, Nov. 29 |
| TIP-OFF | 8:05 p.m. (CT) |
| RADIO | Hawkeye Sports Network |
| TV | ESPN2 |
The Setting
Iowa (5-1) returns home on Tuesday hosting Georgia Tech (4-2) in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Tipoff is slated for 8 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
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: Tuesday’s ACC/Big Ten Challenge will be televised nationally on ESPN2. Mark Neely and Kevin Lehman will call the action.
ACC/BIG TEN CHALLENGE STORYLINES
- The Hawkeyes have won seven of their last nine ACC Challenge games, including their last four: Virginia (75-74) in 2021; North Carolina (93-80) in 2020; Syracuse (68-54) in 2019; and Pitt (69-68) in 2018. Iowa has also won its last four Challenge home games in Carver-Hawkeye Arena: Notre Dame (2013); Florida State (2015); Pitt (018); and North Carolina (2020).
- This will be the third overall meeting between the two programs. The Hawkeyes cruised to an 85-67 victory over the Yellow Jackets at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in the second year of the Challenge in 2000. Georgia Tech edged Iowa (79-78) in the second round of the postseason NIT in Iowa City in 2003.
- Tuesday is the second of three contests against ACC opponents over a span of 12 days. Iowa beat Clemson on Nov. 25 (74-71) and will play Duke on Dec. 6 in New York City.
- Iowa has won 80 of its last 85 nonconference home games, dating back to 2012.
- The Hawkeyes boasted a 15-3 record in home games in 2021-22. Iowa has won 14+ home contests each of the last four years.
- Iowa ranks second in the country in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.91).
- Fran McCaffery is in his 27th season as a head coach and is two victories from 500.
- Kris Murray and Patrick McCaffery were voted to the Emerald Coast Classic All-Tournament Team. Murray averaged a double-double (10.5 points, 11 rebounds), while McCaffery led the team with a career-high 21 points in Iowa’s three-point victory over Clemson.
- Tuesday is the middle game of six straight against teams from Power 5 conferences.
- Kris Murray is the only Division I player over the last 25 years to have scored 95+ points, grabbed 30+ rebounds, had five or fewer turnovers, shot 60 percent from the field, and 100 percent from the foul line over any four-game span during a season. Murray accomplished the feat in the first four games earlier this month.
- Three Hawkeyes are shooting 50 percent or better from the field: Filip Rebraca (.541), Connor McCaffery (.529), and Dasonte Bowen (.500).
- Iowa won four games in four days to capture the 2022 Big Ten Tournament Championship, its third tournament title in program history and first since 2006.
- The Hawkeyes have won 42 games over Big Ten teams — including conference tournament contests — over the past three seasons, second most in the league (Illinois, 47).
- Redshirt senior Connor McCaffery and redshirt junior Patrick McCaffery are one of 22 father/coach and son/player duos in Division I in 2022-23. Of the 22 schools, Iowa and Michigan are the only programs with a father/coach and two sons on the roster.
- Iowa led the Big Ten and ranked fifth nationally in scoring offense (83.2). The Hawkeyes have led the league in scoring five of the last nine seasons, including the last four.
- Fran McCaffery has coached a first-team All-Big Ten honoree seven of the last nine years. He has guided Iowa to 20+ wins eight of the last 10 seasons, including four-straight.
SCOUTING GEORGIA TECH
- Georgia Tech is 4-2 overall, coming off their most recent win against North Alabama, 80-61.
- Five players scored in double figures in their 19-point win over North Alabama.
- Senior forward Ja’von Franklin is a standout statistically. He ranks second in the ACC and 15th nationally in blocks per game (2.67). Franklin also ranks second in the conference and 18th nationally in total blocks (16). The transfer from South Alabama has notched two double-doubles this season.
- The team currently shoots 39 percent from the field, 67 percent from the foul line, and 29 percent from 3-point territory.
- A strong defensive team, the Yellow Jackets average 7.8 steals and 5.6 blocks per game. The most points Georgia Tech has allowed this season was 84 versus Marquette (L, 84-60).
- Three Yellow Jackets average double figures in scoring: Dallan Coleman (11.3), Miles Kelly (11.2), and Deivon Smith (10.8).
- Dallan Coleman (11) is the only Georgia Tech player with more than ten 3-pointers made.
- Georgia Tech has a balanced roster of four freshmen, four sophomores, three juniors, and five seniors.
- Josh Pastner is in his seventh season at the helm of Georgia Tech basketball. Pastner led the Yellow Jackets to the ACC Championship in 2021.
HAWKEYES SPLIT 2 GAMES AT EMERALD COAST CLASSIC
Iowa beat Clemson, 74-71, in the semifinals of the Emerald Coast Classic on Friday before falling to TCU in the championship, 79-66, on Saturday in Niceville, Florida.
- Kris Murray and Patrick McCaffery were named to the Emerald Coast Classic All-Tournament Team.
- McCaffery tied a career high with 21 points against Clemson. He scored 10 of Iowa’s first 15 points of the first half and nine of Iowa’s first 11 points of the second half.
- Murray recorded back-to-back double-doubles, totaling 10 points and a career-high 12 rebounds versus Clemson, and 11 points and 10 rebounds against TCU.
- Tony Perkins scored all 11 of his points against the Tigers over the final 12 minutes of the game. He was 9-of-10 from the foul line and made his one field goal with 95 seconds remaining in the contest to break a 64-64 tie. Perkins tallied a team-best 15 points against TCU. He also equaled a season high with three steals against the Horned Frogs, all credited in the first half, and blocked a personal-best two shots.
- True freshman Dasonte Bowen provided a spark off the bench in both games. He registered a personal-best nine points, including two clutch buckets in the second half, versus Clemson, and netted eight points against the Horned Frogs.
- Filip Rebraca pulled down 10 rebounds and had nine points against Clemson.
- The Hawkeyes had the edge on the glass, outrebounding the Tigers 46-32. The +14 advantage is Iowa’s highest rebounding margin of the season.
- Ahron Ulis netted a season-best 15 points versus TCU, reaching his season high in the first half.
- TCU held the Hawkeyes to a season-low three 3-pointers made.
MAKING THE FREEBIES
Junior Kris Murray made 18 consecutive free throws, dating back to Iowa’s final game on the 2021-22 season, before missing his second attempt of the first half on Saturday against TCU. As a team, the Hawkeyes rank 20th nationally in free throws made per game (18.0), 32nd in free throw percentage (.771), and 33rd in free throw attempts per contest (23.3).
LEADER OF THE PACK
Connor McCaffery is Iowa’s career leader in assist-to-turnover ratio, amassing a 3.47 ratio in 140 career games (421 assists; 124 turnovers), nearly 1.0 above second-place Andre Banks (2.53). His assist-to-turnover ratio last year was 5.0, while he ranked fourth nationally in 2021 with a 3.73 ratio. In 202, he led the country with a 4.6 ratio.
MURRAY NAMED TO PRESEASON LISTS
Junior Kris Murray has been named to the Big Ten Preseason All-Big Ten Team, the Wooden Award Top 50, and the Karl Malone Award.
It marks the fourth straight season that one or more Hawkeyes have been selected to the preseason all-conference squad, voted upon by a selected panel of media. Joe Wieskamp was selected in 2019 and 2020, Luka Garza was tabbed the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year in 2020, while Kris’ twin brother Keegan was recognized in 2021. Keegan was also the recipient of the 2022 Karl Malone Award.
Murray is averaging a team-best 19.3 points per game this season, he has made 17-of-18 from the free throw line, and ranks tops on the squad averaging nine rebounds per outing. Murray has increased his scoring average by 9.6 points per game this season compared to last year.
He was Iowa’s leading scorer (9.7) and rebounder (4.3) off the bench last season. He improved his scoring average by 9.1 points and rebounding average by 3.7 per outing. The native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, was second on the team in 3-point percentage (.397), blocks per game (0.9) and field goals made (124), third in offensive (1.6) and defensive (2.7) rebounds per contest, and fourth in steals (0.8) per game. Murray made at least one 3-pointer in a team-best 17 consecutive games (Jan. 22-March 13). His 31 blocks and 43 triples rank seventh and eighth, respectively, by a Hawkeye sophomore.
IOWA SCHEDULE NOTES
- The Hawkeyes will play back-to-back conference road games four times.
- Iowa has a stretch of four straight home contests in December (ISU, Wisconsin, SE Missouri State and Eastern Illinois).
- Iowa has seven weekend home contests (three on Saturdays and four on Sundays), including six against Big Ten opponents. The Hawkeyes have home games inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena on a Saturday or Sunday four of the final six weekends of the regular season.
- The Hawkeyes have a stretch of four of five league home games in early January. Iowa will host Indiana (Jan. 5), Michigan (Jan. 12), Maryland (Jan. 15) and Northwestern (Jan. 18).
- Iowa is scheduled to play at Penn State on New Year’s Day. The Hawkeyes have played on New Year’s Day 10 previous times, most recently in 2017, versus Michigan in Iowa City. Prior to 2017, Iowa’s last New Year’s Day contest was in 1946 versus Saint Louis. The last time the Hawkeyes played a road game on New Year’s Day was at Toledo in 1940.
- Iowa has three trips to the Tri-State Area, traveling to New Jersey twice (Nov. 16 at Seton Hall and Jan. 8 at Rutgers) and New York once (Dec. 6 versus Duke at Madison Square Garden).
- Iowa will play on Super Bowl Sunday for the fourth straight season and sixth time in eight years, playing its only regular season game against Minnesota in Minneapolis on Feb. 12.
- Five of Iowa’s final eight league games will be on the road.
HAWKEYES WELCOME NEWCOMERS
Iowa welcomes four new faces to the 2022-23 roster: Dasonte Bowen, Josh Dix, Dante Eldridge, and Amarion Nimmers.
Bowen and Dix are true freshman, hailing from Boston and Council Bluffs, respectively. Eldridge and Nimmers are non-scholarship student-athletes. Eldridge, a junior, is the son of assistant coach Courtney Eldridge.
ANOTHER SIXTH-YEAR PLAYER
After six seasons and multiple broken records, Jordan Bohannon has exhausted his collegiate eligibility. Bohannon is the program’s career leader in four statistical categories: assists (704), 3-pointers made (455), games played (179), and free throw percentage (.887, 370-417). He sank a school and Xfinity Center record 10 3-pointers at Maryland on Feb. 10, 2022. His 455 triples are the most in Big Ten history and 192 more than any other Hawkeye.
Connor McCaffery decided to utilize his COVID bonus year and return for his sixth season with the Hawkeyes.
McCaffery is averaging 4.7 points and 2.5 rebounds per game, and has made 6-of-11 (.545) from 3-point range through six contests.
FRAN MCCAFFERY CONTINUES TO WIN
- With Iowa’s Big Ten Tournament win last March, McCaffery joined Hall of Fame coaches Rick Pitino, Bob Huggins, Eddie Sutton and Lefty Driesell as the only Division I coaches to lead teams to conference tournament titles in four or more different leagues.
- Fran McCaffery has guided Iowa to 20 wins or more in eight of the last 10 seasons. He has led Iowa to Big Ten upper division finishes nine of the last 10 years. Iowa, Michigan State, and Wisconsin have each recorded a Big Ten-best nine first division finishes since 2013.
- Fran McCaffery has coached a first-team All-Big Ten honoree seven of the last nine seasons. He has guided Iowa to 20+ wins seven of the last nine seasons and fifth place or better finishes in the Big Ten six of the last eight years.
STAFF CHANGES
Fran McCaffery has a couple changes to his staff following last season. Assistant Coach Kirk Speraw retired and Assistant Coach Billy Taylor left for a head coaching position at Elon. Replacing Speraw and Taylor are Courtney Eldridge and Matt Gatens. Eldridge was on staff the previous six seasons, most recently as director of player development and recruiting director. Gatens is a former Hawkeye and most recently was an assistant coach at Drake.
Tristan Spurlock, who played basketball at UCF, is the new Director of Player Development. Al Seibert’s title changed to Chief of Staff, while Kyle Denning is now the team’s Director of Operations.
STRONG START FOR PATRICK MCCAFFERY
Patrick McCaffery netted double figures in scoring 11 of the last 18 games played last season. He made at least one trey in 12 of the last 18 games, including sinking multiple triples in six contests during that stretch. McCaffery has carried that momentum over to his junior season, netting double figures and making at least one triple in five of Iowa’s first six games of the season. McCaffery scored a personal-best 21 points in back-to-back games last week (North Carolina A&T on Monday and Clemson on Friday).
PROFESSIONAL HAWKEYES
A number of recent Iowa basketball graduates are playing professionally: Keegan Murray (NBA Sacramento Kings), Luka Garza (G League Iowa Wolves), Jordan Bohannon (G League Iowa Wolves), Joe Wieskamp (G League Wisconsin Herd), Jarrod Uthoff (Japan), Devyn Marble (Poland), Tyler Cook (G League Salt Lake City Stars), Anthony Clemmons (Turkey), Gabriel Olaseni (Turkey), Ryan Kriener (Matsuyama), Melsahn Basabe (Nicaragua), and Aaron White (Serbia).