University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Head to Iowa City to Face Hawkeyes
2/11/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Minnesota at Iowa:
• After a pair of home games, the Minnesota Golden Gophers will hit the road for two. First up is a matchup against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday, Feb. 13 in Iowa City. The game, scheduled to tip at 5:00 p.m. Central, will be broadcast by the Big Ten Network with Eric Collins and former Hawkeye Kenyon Murray on the call.
• The Gophers won the series opener with the Hawkeyes 69-59 on Jan. 16 at Williams Arena. Trevor Mbakwe led Minnesota with 16 points and 11 rebounds while Ralph Sampson III contributed 11 points and tied a career-high with seven blocks. Iowa freshman Melsahn Basabe paced the Hawks with 20 points and 13 boards.
• Minnesota has won all five matchups with Iowa in the Tubby Smith era, including its last two trips to Iowa City. Prior to that, the Gophers had lost four straight at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
• The Gophers have lost four straight games heading into Iowa City, only the third time in Tubby Smith’s coaching career that has occurred. The other two came during the 1992-93 season with Tulsa and the 1995-96 season with Georgia. Both of those team’s avoided a fifth-straight loss.
About the Golden Gophers:
• Golden Gopher Head Coach Tubby Smith’s all-time record stands at 466-192 (20th Season), while his record at Minnesota is 79-47 (Fourth Season).
• Ralph Sampson III & Trevor Mbakwe both collected a double-double on Nov. 12 against Wofford. It was the first time since 2005 that a pair of Gophers finished with a double-double in the same game (Jonathan Williams - 11 points, 10 rebounds; Vincent Grier - 15 points, 10 rebounds vs. Iowa)
• Mbakwe has a total of 14 double-doubles on the season.
• Mbakwe’s 14 double-doubles are tied for eighth nationally.
• Mbakwe contributed back-to-back 16 rebound games this season against Cornell and St. Joseph’s. His 16 boards against Cornell (12/4) were the most by a Gopher since Zack Puchtel pulled down 15 against Michigan in the first round of the 2006 Big Ten Tournament. He has four 16-rebound games this season.
• Mbakwe leads the team and the Big Ten Conference in rebounding at 10.6 rebounds a game to go along with 13.2 points per game. Mbakwe was named the Most Outstanding Player at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off and Big Ten Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 15-21.
• Mbakwe’s 10.6 rebound average is 12th best in the country.
• Sophomore Rodney Williams contributed the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 rebounds against Akron (12/15).
• Williams led the team with a career-high six assists on Jan. 26 against Northwestern.
• Senior Blake Hoffarber leads the team lead in scoring with a career-high 14.2 points per game and is also dishing out a career and team-high 3.9 assists per game.
• Hoffarber has played the most career games against Iowa with five and is averaging 10.0 ppg in those games, also a team-high.
• Hoffarber became the 36th Gopher player to reach the 1,000 point plateau with his sixth point against Akron (12/15). He currently sits at 1,185 points.
• Sampson III is third on the team in scoring at 11.1 points per game, leads the team with 2.17 blocks per game and is second in rebounding at 5.7 rebounds per game.
• Sampson has put together seven straight double-digit scoring games, the longest streak in his Gopher career.
• Sampson contributed his fourth career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds against Illinois (2/10). It was his second of the season.
• Sampson tied a career-high with seven blocks against Iowa (1/16). He comes into the game against Iowa with 155 career blocks, sixth all-time on the Gophers’ list. He is second in the Big Ten Conference this season with a 2.17 blocks per game average.
• The Gophers lead the Big Ten Conference in blocked shots and are fourth in the league in steals through 24 games. They have swatted 143 shots for an average of 5.96 bpg and swiped 170 balls for an average of 7.10 spg. Minnesota has led the conference in both categories the last two seasons.
• The Gophers also lead the conference in Rebounding Offense (38.8), Offensive Rebounds per game (13.50) and Defensive Rebounds per game (25.50).
About the Hawkeyes:
• Fran McCaffery is in his first season as the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes. He came to Iowa City after five seasons as the head coach at Siena. He has also been the head coach at UNC Greensboro and Lehigh. He holds a career record of 261-191 in 15 seasons.
• The Hawkeyes come into the game following a 62-59 overtime loss at home against Wisconsin.
• Iowa’s lineup boasts a trio of double-digit scoring averages in guards Matt Gatens (12.8 ppg) and Bryce Cartwright (11.0 ppg) and freshman forward Melsahn Basabe (10.8). Basabe leads the team in rebounding at 7.1 rpg.
• Gatens averaged 12.0 ppg and May 11.5 ppg last season against Minnesota.
• Iowa is playing the remainder of the season with out last season’s starting point guard Cully Payne due to a sports hernia.
Series History:
• Minnesota holds a 94-81 record all-time against Iowa. The series dates back to 1902.
• The Gophers have won the last five contests against the Hawkeyes, including the last two matchups in Iowa City.
• The Gophers won the season series opener 69-59 on Jan. 16 at Williams Arena.
• Minnesota defeated Iowa twice last season, 86-74 in Iowa City on Jan. 2 and 88-53 on March 7 at Williams Arena.
• Tubby Smith is 6-1 against Iowa as a head coach, including 5-0 while at Minnesota.
• Minnesota holds a record of 694-744 all-time within the Big Ten Conference.
• After a pair of home games, the Minnesota Golden Gophers will hit the road for two. First up is a matchup against the Iowa Hawkeyes on Sunday, Feb. 13 in Iowa City. The game, scheduled to tip at 5:00 p.m. Central, will be broadcast by the Big Ten Network with Eric Collins and former Hawkeye Kenyon Murray on the call.
• The Gophers won the series opener with the Hawkeyes 69-59 on Jan. 16 at Williams Arena. Trevor Mbakwe led Minnesota with 16 points and 11 rebounds while Ralph Sampson III contributed 11 points and tied a career-high with seven blocks. Iowa freshman Melsahn Basabe paced the Hawks with 20 points and 13 boards.
• Minnesota has won all five matchups with Iowa in the Tubby Smith era, including its last two trips to Iowa City. Prior to that, the Gophers had lost four straight at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
• The Gophers have lost four straight games heading into Iowa City, only the third time in Tubby Smith’s coaching career that has occurred. The other two came during the 1992-93 season with Tulsa and the 1995-96 season with Georgia. Both of those team’s avoided a fifth-straight loss.
About the Golden Gophers:
• Golden Gopher Head Coach Tubby Smith’s all-time record stands at 466-192 (20th Season), while his record at Minnesota is 79-47 (Fourth Season).
• Ralph Sampson III & Trevor Mbakwe both collected a double-double on Nov. 12 against Wofford. It was the first time since 2005 that a pair of Gophers finished with a double-double in the same game (Jonathan Williams - 11 points, 10 rebounds; Vincent Grier - 15 points, 10 rebounds vs. Iowa)
• Mbakwe has a total of 14 double-doubles on the season.
• Mbakwe’s 14 double-doubles are tied for eighth nationally.
• Mbakwe contributed back-to-back 16 rebound games this season against Cornell and St. Joseph’s. His 16 boards against Cornell (12/4) were the most by a Gopher since Zack Puchtel pulled down 15 against Michigan in the first round of the 2006 Big Ten Tournament. He has four 16-rebound games this season.
• Mbakwe leads the team and the Big Ten Conference in rebounding at 10.6 rebounds a game to go along with 13.2 points per game. Mbakwe was named the Most Outstanding Player at the Puerto Rico Tip-Off and Big Ten Player of the Week for the week of Nov. 15-21.
• Mbakwe’s 10.6 rebound average is 12th best in the country.
• Sophomore Rodney Williams contributed the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 rebounds against Akron (12/15).
• Williams led the team with a career-high six assists on Jan. 26 against Northwestern.
• Senior Blake Hoffarber leads the team lead in scoring with a career-high 14.2 points per game and is also dishing out a career and team-high 3.9 assists per game.
• Hoffarber has played the most career games against Iowa with five and is averaging 10.0 ppg in those games, also a team-high.
• Hoffarber became the 36th Gopher player to reach the 1,000 point plateau with his sixth point against Akron (12/15). He currently sits at 1,185 points.
• Sampson III is third on the team in scoring at 11.1 points per game, leads the team with 2.17 blocks per game and is second in rebounding at 5.7 rebounds per game.
• Sampson has put together seven straight double-digit scoring games, the longest streak in his Gopher career.
• Sampson contributed his fourth career double-double with 16 points and 11 rebounds against Illinois (2/10). It was his second of the season.
• Sampson tied a career-high with seven blocks against Iowa (1/16). He comes into the game against Iowa with 155 career blocks, sixth all-time on the Gophers’ list. He is second in the Big Ten Conference this season with a 2.17 blocks per game average.
• The Gophers lead the Big Ten Conference in blocked shots and are fourth in the league in steals through 24 games. They have swatted 143 shots for an average of 5.96 bpg and swiped 170 balls for an average of 7.10 spg. Minnesota has led the conference in both categories the last two seasons.
• The Gophers also lead the conference in Rebounding Offense (38.8), Offensive Rebounds per game (13.50) and Defensive Rebounds per game (25.50).
About the Hawkeyes:
• Fran McCaffery is in his first season as the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes. He came to Iowa City after five seasons as the head coach at Siena. He has also been the head coach at UNC Greensboro and Lehigh. He holds a career record of 261-191 in 15 seasons.
• The Hawkeyes come into the game following a 62-59 overtime loss at home against Wisconsin.
• Iowa’s lineup boasts a trio of double-digit scoring averages in guards Matt Gatens (12.8 ppg) and Bryce Cartwright (11.0 ppg) and freshman forward Melsahn Basabe (10.8). Basabe leads the team in rebounding at 7.1 rpg.
• Gatens averaged 12.0 ppg and May 11.5 ppg last season against Minnesota.
• Iowa is playing the remainder of the season with out last season’s starting point guard Cully Payne due to a sports hernia.
Series History:
• Minnesota holds a 94-81 record all-time against Iowa. The series dates back to 1902.
• The Gophers have won the last five contests against the Hawkeyes, including the last two matchups in Iowa City.
• The Gophers won the season series opener 69-59 on Jan. 16 at Williams Arena.
• Minnesota defeated Iowa twice last season, 86-74 in Iowa City on Jan. 2 and 88-53 on March 7 at Williams Arena.
• Tubby Smith is 6-1 against Iowa as a head coach, including 5-0 while at Minnesota.
• Minnesota holds a record of 694-744 all-time within the Big Ten Conference.
Players Mentioned
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