March 3, 2017
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State closes the regular season on the road for the third time in four years, traveling to Iowa for a 1 p.m. ET Sunday matchup. The game will be broadcast on BTN with Greg Amsinger and Stephen Bardo on the call.
STORYLINES
- The Nittany Lions are looking to end a four-game losing streak, while the Hawkeyes are seeking their fourth-consecutive win.
- Four players are averaging in double figures for Penn State, led by freshmen Tony Carr (13.4) and Lamar Stevens (12.6). Three freshmen are among the top five scorers and are each of top-three rebounders. Carr is averaging 17.5 points, 3.6 rebounds and 5.1 assists over the last 10 games and 20.7 ppg over the last three contests.
- A freshman leads Penn State in scoring (Carr), rebounding (Watkins), assists (Carr) and blocks (Watkins).
- Tony Carr has a Penn State freshman record 123 assists after averaging 6.0 over the last three games. He broke the previous record of 112 set in 2004 at Minnesota Feb. 25.
- Mike Watkins owns the No. 5 spot on the single-season block chart with 75, the most of any PSU player besides Calvin Booth. Booth owns each of the top four spots of the season records. Watkins needs 16 rebounds to break Jesse Arnelle's 65-year old freshman rebound record (254; 1952).
SETTING THE SCENE
- With a win, Penn State would match the most Big Ten wins (7) under Patrick Chambers and reach at least seven Big Ten wins in back-to-back seasons for just the third time in 25 seasons (1994-95, 1996-97 and 2007-08, 2008-09).
- The Lions have posted seven or more league wins just eight times since joining the Big Ten.
- Penn State has won its regular-season finale in each of the last two seasons, defeating Illinois at home last year and Minnesota on the road in 2015.
- Iowa and Penn State are the two youngest teams in the Big Ten.
SCOUTING IOWA
- The Hawkeyes are on a three-game win streak after knocking off No. 21 Wisconsin, 59-57, on the road Thursday. They sit at 17-13 on the season and 9-8 in the Big Ten.
- Senior Peter Jok is leading the league in scoring with 20.1 points per game and is fifth among all Power 5 scorers. He has tallied 30 or more points five times this season, including twice in Big Ten play.
- Jok and freshman Jordan Bohannon each have 71 3-pointers on the season. The pair accounts for 56 of the team's made 3s and a combined average of 4.9 per game. More than 76 percent of Bohannon's field goals have come from behind the arc.
SERIES HISTORY
- Penn State holds a 15-28 record in the series vs. Iowa with wins in four of the last 10 games. Ten of the last 14 matchups have been decided by single-digits.
- The teams split the regular-season meetings last year with each squad winning at home. The Nittany Lions upset then No. 4/6 Iowa, 79-75, Feb. 17, 2016 in the Bryce Jordan Center.
- Penn State is 3-16 playing in Iowa City with the last road win occurring in 2001 - a 78-73 victory. Gyasi Cline-Heard led the way with 20 points and Joe Crispin added 15.
CURRENT ROSTER VS. IOWA
Six players on the current roster have taken the court against Iowa. Shep Garner averages 12.3 points per game in four career meetings with a current player series-high 18 points in the home win last season.
Player | GP-GS | PPG | RPG | SERIES HIGH |
S. Garner | 4-4 | 12.3 | 2.0 | 18, vs IOWA (2/17/16) |
I. Washington | 2-0 | 5.0 | 3.5 | 9, vs IOWA (2/17/16) |
J. Moore | 4-2 | 3.5 | 2.0 | 8, at IOWA (2/3/16) |
D. Zemgulis | 2-0 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 6, at IOWA (2/3/16) |
P. Banks | 4-2 | 2.5 | 3.0 | 8, vs IOWA (2/17/16) |
J. Reaves | 1-1 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2, vs IOWA (2/17/16) |
LAST TIME AGAINST THE HAWKEYES
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. (Feb. 17, 2016) - Donovon Jack scored 19 points on 8-of-9 shooting, and Penn State beat No. 4 Iowa 79-75 on Wednesday night. The Nittany Lions (13-13, 4-9 Big Ten) had lost five of six, but Shep Garner and Brandon Taylor had 18 points apiece in the school's second victory over a Top 25 team in two weeks. Penn State also beat No. 22 Indiana 68-63 on Feb. 6.
Peter Jok scored 28 points for Iowa (20-6, 11-3), and Jarrod Uthoff had 19. Adam Woodbury grabbed 10 rebounds. The Hawkeyes pulled within three on Jok's 3-pointer in the final seconds. But the Nittany Lions went 11 of 12 at the line in the final 1:25.
OTHER MEMORABLE MATCHUPS
March 12, 2015 (PSU, 67-58): Penn State outscored Iowa 48-31 in the second half, shooting 54 percent in the period compared to Iowa's 22 percent showing. The Lions used 17-7 run to take 36-34 lead with 11:01 to play and did not trail for the remainder of the game. D.J. Newbill finished with 18 points for the 13th-seeded Nittany Lions.
Jan. 26, 2011 (PSU, 65-51): One of the two home games in the last eight not separated by five or fewer points was decided by Talor Battle's 23-point outing that gave Penn State its third-consecutive Big Ten home win.
March 27, 1995 (PSU, 67-64): Pete Lisicky nailed a 3-pointer with 2.1 seconds left to send the Nittany Lions to the semifinals of the NIT.
LOOKING AHEAD
The 2017 Big Ten Tournament marks the 20th anniversary of the tournament, with its first appearance on the East Coast, at the Verizon Center March 8-12. Penn State will begin play on Wednesday as either the No. 11, 12 or 13 seed pending weekend results.