THE SETTING
Thursday night pits last year’s co-Big Ten champions against each other for the first time this season. The Iowa Hawkeyes (14-9, 7-5) will entertain No. 18 Ohio State (19-4, 10-2). Tip-off is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. (CST) in Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are $9 for adults, while youths and UI students are admitted free. Thursday will likely be Iowa’s last game of the regular season against a ranked opponent. Both Iowa and Ohio State are coming off road losses Sunday. The Buckeyes suffered only their second Big Ten defeat at Michigan State, while the Hawkeyes had their fifth conference loss at Minnesota.
HOME SWEET HOME
Iowa has maintained a solid home court advantage the last couple years. Dating back to last season, Iowa has won 17 of its last 18 home games. Iowa boasts a 10-1 home record this season. Purdue snapped Iowa’s 12-game winning streak with a 69-60 win Dec. 28 in Iowa City.
SCOUTING OHIO STATE
The Ohio State Buckeyes are the only ranked Big Ten team in the two major polls. Ohio State is leading the Big Ten standings by one-half game over second-place Michigan State. Michigan State toppled Ohio State, 52-46, Sunday in East Lansing, MI. The Spartans led start-to-finish, limiting the Buckeyes to a season-low 46 points. The Buckeyes shot only 1-14 (.071) from distance and had only one player score in double figures. Ohio State sophomore center Jantel Lavender led all scorers with 19 points (8-20 FG, 3-4 FT) and had a team-high eight rebounds. Freshman point guard Samantha Prahalis had a game-high five steals and also contributed five points and three rebounds in defeat. Lavender is the defending Big Ten Player of the Year and currently ranks first in Big Ten scoring (21.0) and rebounding (10.8). Prahalis is the leading candidate for Big Ten Freshman of the Year leading the league in assists (5.65), ranking eighth in steals (1.83) and 25th in scoring (9.6). The Buckeyes rank first in Big Ten scoring defense (54.3) and scoring margin (+12.7), second in scoring offense (67.0), free throw percentage (.758), field goal percentage (.430), rebounds allowed (33.9) and rebounding margin (+5.9). Ohio State is 6-2 in road games this season and 13-2 in home contests. Thursday will be the Buckeyes’ second-straight road contest. Additionally, Ohio State is in the middle of a stretch in which it plays four of five on the road. Jim Foster is in his 31st season (675-270, .714) as a head coach, including seven years on the Buckeye sidelines (171-45, .792).
ALL-TIME SERIES
Thursday will be the 50th meeting between Iowa and Ohio State, with the Buckeyes owning a slim, 25-24, edge. Iowa has a 15-8 advantage over Ohio State in games played in Iowa City. The Buckeyes have won the last 10, in the series, and 11 of the last 12. Iowa’s last victory (70-65) over Ohio State came on Jan. 20, 2002, in Iowa City.
IOWA, OHIO STATE NOTES
• Iowa boasts a perfect 9-0 record when allowing 59 points or less, are 14-2 when shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponents and 13-1 when leading at halftime this season.
• Ashlee Trebilcock had an amazing game against the Hawkeyes in last year’s meeting in Iowa City. Trebilcock tallied 25 points on 9-14 shooting from the field, including 2-5 from distance, and 5-6 from the free throw line. Also, in last year’s game at Columbus, Trebilcock shared game-high scoring honors with Jantel Lavender (18 points).
• Megan Skouby and Kristi Smith have had solid outings in games against Ohio State. Skouby has made 12-13 (.923) from the foul line and averages 12.4 points in six career contests vs. the Buckeyes. Smith averages 13.7 points and 4.7 assists.
• Megan Skouby surpassed Lisa Becker for eighth place in Iowa’s career scoring after totaling 21 points at Minnesota. Skouby, who has 1,355 points, will likely finish her career eighth in career scoring. Tangela Smith ranks seventh with 1,598 points. Also, Skouby will likely finish her career second in blocks (148). Smith, who is first, has 87 more blocks than Skouby.
• Kristi Smith cracked the top ten career scoring chart with her totals from Sunday’s road game. Smith surpassed Amy Herrig and leaped into 10th place with 1,326 points. She is only nine points from tying Lisa Becker for ninth.
• Kamille Wahlin ranks second in assists (3.0), and fifth in field goal percentage (.437), and sixth in scoring (7.1), amongst Big Ten freshmen, in conference games only. Additionally, she ranks first among all Big Ten players in assist/turnover ratio (2.12) and 12th in assists (3.0), in league games only.
• Last season, Megan Skouby blocked 23 shots in 32 games; she already has amassed 41 through 23 games this season. Her single-season best is 47 rejections, which she accomplished her freshman campaign. Her 41 blocks this season rank fourth-best in a single-season for an Iowa senior.
• Kachine Alexander, who stands 5-9, leads the team and ranks sixth in Big Ten rebounding, pulling down 8.3 per contest.
• Iowa players have corralled double-digit rebounds 18 times this season. Kachine Alexander has accomplished the feat a team-best nine times, JoAnn Hamlin six times, Wendy Ausdemore twice and Megan Skouby once.
• Kristi Smith has reached double figures a team-best 17 times this year, including the last nine contests.
• Wendy Ausdemore’s 13 points on Sunday increased her career scoring total to 1,211. The Hawkeyes now have three seniors (Ausdemore, Smith and Skouby) who have over 1,200 career points.
• Iowa has an RPI rating of 36th in the country and strength of schedule that ranks 23rd. Ohio State is rated 12th in the RPI and 19th in strength of schedule. The numbers are based on the report published Feb. 10.
MINNESOTA RALLIES TO BEAT IOWA
Minnesota outscored Iowa 15-2 the last four minutes of the game to overcome a seven-point deficit and win 64-58 Sunday afternoon in Minneapolis, MN.
With Iowa leading by six (56-50), Minnesota center Ashley Ellis-Milan sank her first triple of the year to close the deficit to three. On their next offensive possession, Ellis-Milan scored a traditional 3-point play to even the contest at 56-56. Both teams then exchanged buckets before the Golden Gophers secured the victory by scoring the game’s final six points.
Iowa’s Megan Skouby posted game highs in scoring (21 points) and rebounding (11 boards). It marked Skouby’s first career double-double and the 11 rebounds were a personal best. Wendy Ausdemore contributed 14 points, while Kristi Smith added 13.
Ellis-Milan tallied 21 points and seven rebounds, while Kiara Buford netted 10 points off the bench. Iowa held Minnesota’s leading scorer, Emily Fox, to only five points (2-14 FG).
Iowa shot the ball well in the first half, 12-24 (.500) from the field and 5-11 (.455) from 3-point range. However, the Hawkeyes missed all nine 3-point attempts and was only 12-31 (.387) overall from the field in the final 20 minutes.
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