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Justin VanLaere
MBB: Iowa vs. Creighton Preview/Prediction | Hawkeye Nation
MBB: Iowa vs. Creighton Preview/Prediction
By Justin VanLaere
Well, here it is. The first big challenge of the year for the Iowa Hawkeye men’s basketball team. The Hawks will head west; the Bluejays will head east. The two teams will meet in the middle in Des Moines for the Dale Howard Classic.
Game Info
Creighton Bluejays (3-0) vs Iowa Hawkeyes (3-0)
POMEROY RATINGS: Iowa – 57, Creighton – 65
RPI: Iowa – 139, Creighton– 89
Tip Off: Sunday, November 20th 2011; 3:06 PM CST
Des Moines, IA – Wells Fargo Arena (15,436)
TV: BTN
Radio: AM 600, 1040, and 800. SirusXm Channel 128.
Iowa leads the overall series 14-10. The last time these two teams met was 10 years ago in the NCAA Tournament, a game Iowa won.
LINE: Iowa is a 1.5 point favorite. Pomeroy predicts a 1 point win for Iowa.
LIVE CHAT DURING THE GAME RIGHT HERE!
Probable Starters
IOWA
PG – Bryce Cartwright, 6’1”, 188 lb, SR
G – Matt Gatens, 6’5”, 212 lb, SR
G – Eric May, 6’5”, 217 lb, JR
F – Melsahn Basabe, 6’7”, 225 lb, SO
C – Devon Archie, 6’9”, 222 lb, SR
CREIGHTON
G – Antoine Young, 6’0”, 175 lb, SR
G – Jahenns Manigat, 6’1”, 175 lb, SO
G – Grant Gibbs, 6’4”, 210 lb, JR
F – Doug McDermott, 6’7”, 220 lb, SO
F – Gregory Echenique, 6’9”, 270 lb, JR
Creighton returns 76% of their offense and 57% of their defense from a 23-16 team that made it to the CBI Championship (three starters and ten letterwinners). Doug McDermott returns after posting a record-setting freshman campaign (one where he led the team in points and boards) for the Bluejays last season. McDermott is on the Naismith and Wooden lists, and will undoubtedly be the player Iowa is most concerned about. Not to be overlooked is the Bluejays senior guard, Antoine Young, who, like Cartwright, lead his conference in assists. Also of note is the matchup of Grant Gibbs and Matt Gatens – the two are former teammates on Martin Bros AAU teams and very close friends.
CRAZY STATS THAT DON’T MEAN MUCH RIGHT NOW
Common Opponents-
Chicago State: Iowa won 95-63, Creighton won 95-61.
North Carolina A&T: Iowa won 95-79. Creighton won 97-65.
Iowa in the National Ranks:
Creighton in the National Ranks:
KEYS TO GAME FOR IOWA:
- Don’t Let the Other Four Beat You. McDermott is going to get his. He’s a super talented sophomore, but he isn’t going to beat the Hawkeyes single-handledly. Iowa cannot be too concerned collapsing and helping with McDermott, it will open too much up for the rest of the team… a team that can knock down the outside shot.
- Guard Play. The matchup at the PG position today will be a fun one to watch, for sure. Both guys are steady, senior leaders who will log a ton of minutes for their respective teams. Manigat and Gatens can both stroke it from outside. While the battle down low is important, I think guard play wins this game.
- Wake Up Call for Basabe. Hawkeye fans haven’t seen much from Mel so far this year. He hasn’t made many mistakes, is converting his FTs at a terrific clip, but I think fans are expecting more from him. Iowa will needs his best in the game to pull off the win.
- 5 Spot Needs to Stay Out of Foul Trouble. With Brommer likely out for this game, as well, Iowa is thin at the C position. If Archie can’t get into the flow or he picks up fouls early trying to defend Echenique, you’ll see White make his appearance. How will the true frosh respond in his first road game is yet to be determined, however he will be giving up a lot of mass to Echenique in the post.
PREDICTION: Personally, I am very excited to watch this game. It will certainly allow Iowa to gauge where they are at this point in the early season. The Bluejays will bring a potent offense right at Iowa and this could be a high scoring affair. A prediction is pretty tough this early on, but I can honestly see either team coming away with the victory. I’m really having a tough time settling on a score and a winner. Foul trouble and how the refs dictate the flow will be a huge determinant in this game. FINAL SCORE: Iowa 83, Creighton 86
MBB: Iowa vs. Creighton Preview/Prediction
By Justin VanLaere
Well, here it is. The first big challenge of the year for the Iowa Hawkeye men’s basketball team. The Hawks will head west; the Bluejays will head east. The two teams will meet in the middle in Des Moines for the Dale Howard Classic.
Game Info
Creighton Bluejays (3-0) vs Iowa Hawkeyes (3-0)
POMEROY RATINGS: Iowa – 57, Creighton – 65
RPI: Iowa – 139, Creighton– 89
Tip Off: Sunday, November 20th 2011; 3:06 PM CST
Des Moines, IA – Wells Fargo Arena (15,436)
TV: BTN
Radio: AM 600, 1040, and 800. SirusXm Channel 128.
Iowa leads the overall series 14-10. The last time these two teams met was 10 years ago in the NCAA Tournament, a game Iowa won.
LINE: Iowa is a 1.5 point favorite. Pomeroy predicts a 1 point win for Iowa.
LIVE CHAT DURING THE GAME RIGHT HERE!
Probable Starters
IOWA
PG – Bryce Cartwright, 6’1”, 188 lb, SR
G – Matt Gatens, 6’5”, 212 lb, SR
G – Eric May, 6’5”, 217 lb, JR
F – Melsahn Basabe, 6’7”, 225 lb, SO
C – Devon Archie, 6’9”, 222 lb, SR
CREIGHTON
G – Antoine Young, 6’0”, 175 lb, SR
G – Jahenns Manigat, 6’1”, 175 lb, SO
G – Grant Gibbs, 6’4”, 210 lb, JR
F – Doug McDermott, 6’7”, 220 lb, SO
F – Gregory Echenique, 6’9”, 270 lb, JR
Creighton returns 76% of their offense and 57% of their defense from a 23-16 team that made it to the CBI Championship (three starters and ten letterwinners). Doug McDermott returns after posting a record-setting freshman campaign (one where he led the team in points and boards) for the Bluejays last season. McDermott is on the Naismith and Wooden lists, and will undoubtedly be the player Iowa is most concerned about. Not to be overlooked is the Bluejays senior guard, Antoine Young, who, like Cartwright, lead his conference in assists. Also of note is the matchup of Grant Gibbs and Matt Gatens – the two are former teammates on Martin Bros AAU teams and very close friends.
CRAZY STATS THAT DON’T MEAN MUCH RIGHT NOW
Common Opponents-
Chicago State: Iowa won 95-63, Creighton won 95-61.
North Carolina A&T: Iowa won 95-79. Creighton won 97-65.
Iowa in the National Ranks:
- Scoring – 93 PPG (3rd)
- Assists per Game – 22.7 (2nd)
- Assist % – 70.8 (7th)
- Assist/TO Ratio – 1.66 (14th)
- Points Per Poss – 1.23 (12th)
- FT % – 77.8 (18th)
- Rebounds per Game – 43.7 (23rd)
Creighton in the National Ranks:
- Scoring – 87.3 PPG (19th)
- Assists per Game – 22.0 (3rd)
- Assist % – 71.0 (6th)
- Assist/TO Ratio – 1.89 (7th)
- Points Per Poss – 1.23 (12th)
- eFG% – 57.7 (21st)
KEYS TO GAME FOR IOWA:
- Don’t Let the Other Four Beat You. McDermott is going to get his. He’s a super talented sophomore, but he isn’t going to beat the Hawkeyes single-handledly. Iowa cannot be too concerned collapsing and helping with McDermott, it will open too much up for the rest of the team… a team that can knock down the outside shot.
- Guard Play. The matchup at the PG position today will be a fun one to watch, for sure. Both guys are steady, senior leaders who will log a ton of minutes for their respective teams. Manigat and Gatens can both stroke it from outside. While the battle down low is important, I think guard play wins this game.
- Wake Up Call for Basabe. Hawkeye fans haven’t seen much from Mel so far this year. He hasn’t made many mistakes, is converting his FTs at a terrific clip, but I think fans are expecting more from him. Iowa will needs his best in the game to pull off the win.
- 5 Spot Needs to Stay Out of Foul Trouble. With Brommer likely out for this game, as well, Iowa is thin at the C position. If Archie can’t get into the flow or he picks up fouls early trying to defend Echenique, you’ll see White make his appearance. How will the true frosh respond in his first road game is yet to be determined, however he will be giving up a lot of mass to Echenique in the post.
PREDICTION: Personally, I am very excited to watch this game. It will certainly allow Iowa to gauge where they are at this point in the early season. The Bluejays will bring a potent offense right at Iowa and this could be a high scoring affair. A prediction is pretty tough this early on, but I can honestly see either team coming away with the victory. I’m really having a tough time settling on a score and a winner. Foul trouble and how the refs dictate the flow will be a huge determinant in this game. FINAL SCORE: Iowa 83, Creighton 86
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