MBB Preview — B1G Home Opener vs. Michigan

The University of Iowa men’s basketball team returns home to host Michigan on Sunday in its Big Ten home opener on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will tipoff at 3:30 p.m. (CT) and be televised live on BTN.
• Tickets range from $15-35 for adults, $5-10 for youth and $5 for students.

FOLLOW LIVE

Radio: Sunday’s game will be broadcast on the Hawkeye Radio Network with Gary Dolphin (play-by-play) and Bobby Hansen (color) on the call. 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 includes a 60-minute pregame show.
TV: Sunday’s game will be televised on BTN with Dave Revsine (play-by-play) and Shon Morris (color) on the call.

OPENING TIP

• The Hawkeyes close out the early portion of their Big Ten schedule, hosting Michigan on Sunday afternoon at 3:30 p.m. (CT) in Iowa City. Iowa swept the season series against the Wolverines a season ago, including a 93-84 overtime victory in Carver in January.
• Iowa is 4-0 inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena this season, averaging 99.8 points per game. The Hawkeyes are shooting 51.1 percent from the floor in four home games.
• The Hawkeyes are 4-0 this season when attempting at least 20 free throws.
• The Hawkeyes altered the starting lineup for the first time in the road game at Iowa State. Sophomore Josh Dix made his first career start.
• Ahoy 100. Iowa hit the century mark for the second time this season, scoring 103 points in the Nov. 29 victory over North Florida. The Hawkeyes have scored 100+ points 11 times since the start of the 2021-22 season.
• The Hawkeyes have had four different players hit the 20-point mark this season (Ben Krikke, Tony Perkins, Payton Sandfort, Patrick McCaffery).
• Iowa has four players averaging in double figures. The team has had at least four players reach double digits in six of nine games this season.
• Krikke, who is leading the team with an 17.2 scoring average, has made a team-high 62 field goals and is shooting 59.6 percent from the floor.
• Big O… freshman Owen Freeman scored a career-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting to go along with five rebounds, five blocks and three steals in Iowa’s win over UNF. The five blocks are the most by a Hawkeye since Keegan Murray in 2019. Freeman has been named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week three times this season, tying Aaron White (2011-12) for the most honors in program history.
• Iowa is one the nation’s top offensive teams, averaging 85.3 points in nine games. The Hawkeyes are tops in the Big Ten and 22nd nationally. The team has scored at least 84 points in six games, including 110 points in the season opener against North Dakota.
• The Hawkeyes are second in the Big Ten and 17th nationally, averaging 18.0 assists per game. Iowa is second in the league and 11th nationally with a 1.80 assist-to-turnover ration.
• McCaffery is six wins from becoming the winningest coach in Iowa basketball history. Tom Davis has 271 victories as Iowa’s head coach. With his next Big Ten victory, McCaffery will also have the most league wins in program history.

SCOUTING MICHIGAN

• Since starting out the season with three straight victories, the Wolverines have lost five of their last six games, falling to 4-5 overall. Michigan dropped its Big Ten opener at home to Indiana, falling 78-75 on Dec. 5.
• Four of Michigan’s five losses have been by five points per fewer.
• Guard Dug McDaniel leads the Wolverines in scoring (19.4 points), assists (44), steals (11), field goals (62), 3-point field goals (21) and free throws (30). He is shooting 47.3 percent from the floor and 38.2 percent from long range.
• Oliver Nkamhoua and Terrance Williams II are also in double figures. Nkamhoua averages 17 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds, while Williams chips in 10.8 points.
• Turnovers have been an issue for Michigan, as the team averages 13.1 per game. The Wolverines have only five more assists (123) than turnovers (118) this season.
• UM opponents are shooting 39.2 percent from 3-point range, averaging 8.2 makes per game.

SERIES HISTORY

• Sunday’s game is the 166th meeting in the all-time series that begin in 1921. Michigan leads the series, 98-67.
• The Hawkeyes swept the series during the 2022-23 season, winning 82-71 in Ann Arbor and 93-84 in overtime in Iowa City. The road win was Iowa’s first at Crisler Arena since 2016.
• Iowa’s two-game winning streak is the longest in the series since winning five straight from 2014-17.
• The Hawkeyes have won seven of the nine meetings between the two schools in Iowa City since 2012.
• Head coach Fran McCaffery is 10-11 all-time against the Wolverines.

 

LAST GAME | IOWA STATE 90, IOWA 65

The Cyclones scored 46 points in the paint and shot 53.3 percent from the floor — a high by an Iowa opponent this season — to down Iowa, 90-65, in an Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series matchup in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes trailed 47-29 at the break and by as many as 32 points in the second half. Junior Payton Sandfort paced the team with 14 points on 4-of-9 shooting from 3-point range.

MORE NOTABLES…

• Iowa is 4-0 inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena this season and 18-3 in its last 21 home games.
• Iowa has won 87 of its last 93 nonconference home games, dating back to 2012.
• The Hawkeyes shot 50 percent or better in four straight halves in games against Seton Hall and North Florida. The team shot 63.3 percent (19-of-30) in the second half in the win over UNF — its best shooting half of the season.
• Iowa is 3-1 this season when shooting 50 percent or better from the floor.
• Iowa has held two opponents to under 40 percent shooting this season.
• Junior Payton Sandfort has attempted 62 3-point field goals — the most in the Big Ten. He has 22 makes — second-most in the conference.
• Sandfort has made four 3-point field goals in three games this season.
• The Hawkeyes are third in the Big Ten in free throw percentage, making 76.8 percent of their attempts this season. Junior Dasonte Bowen is leading the league with a 92.6 free throw percentage.
• Junior Payton Sandfort has been Iowa’s leading rebounder (or tied for the team lead) in six of nine games this season. The forward is averaging 7.7 rebounds per game, which ranks eighth in the Big Ten.
• The Hawkeyes have earned four Big Ten weekly honors this season — Ben Krikke (Player of the Week – 11/20) and Owen Freeman (Freshman of Week (11/13, 11/20, 12/4). Freeman is the first Hawkeye freshman to earn the award in consecutive weeks and the three honors tie Aaron White for the most in a single season in program history.
• Sophomore Dasonte Bowen has 31 assists to six turnovers this season. His 5.17 assist-to-turnover ratio is second in the Big Ten and ranks seventh nationally.
• Senior Tony Perkins is a preseason second-team All-Big Ten selection by THE ALMANAC, while junior Payton Sandfort is ranked as the 89th-best player nationally by the publication.
• The Hawkeyes have placed fifth or better in the Big Ten standings in five straight and 10 of the last 11 years, and the program has won 10 or more Big Ten games in eight of the last nine seasons.
• Iowa led the Big Ten and was 18th nationally in scoring offense (80.1). The Hawkeyes have led the league in scoring in seven of the last 11 seasons, including six straight years.

BIG O

Freshman Owen Freeman has been a steady contributor as Iowa’s top reserve in the front court. The Illinois native is averaging 9.9 points on a team-best 62.5 percent shooting. He has a team-high 19 blocks to go along with 10 steals, which are tied for the team lead.
• Freeman has reached double digits in four games this season, including scoring a career-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting in the win over North Florida. He had five rebounds, five blocks (three in the matter of seconds on a single possession) and three steals in the game. His block effort was the No. 4 play of the day on SportCenter’s Top 10 plays.
• The forward finished with 11 points on 5-of-6 shooting and grabbed a career-high eight rebounds in the road game at Iowa State.
• His five blocks were the most for the program since Keegan Murray had five blocks against Longwood in 2021.
• Freeman has three or more blocks in four games this
season and five or more rebounds three times. He is fifth in the Big Ten and 37th nationally with 16 blocks.

20 POINTERS

The Hawkeyes have had four players account for seven 20-point games during the 2023-24 season — Ben Krikke (24 at Creighton, 25 vs. Arkansas State, 21 vs. UNF), Payton Sandfort (21 vs. UND, 22 vs. Seton Hall), Patrick McCaffery (22 vs. Alabama State) and Tony Perkins (21 vs. UNF).