Huskers Aim for Upset at No. 20 Iowa

The Nebraska women's basketball team hits the road in the mid-week for a Thursday night Big Ten showdown with No. 20 Iowa. Tip-off between the Huskers (15-7, 5-6 Big Ten) and the Hawkeyes (18-4, 9-2 Big Ten) is set for 6:30 p.m. (CT) at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City.

Live radio coverage of Thursday's game can be heard on B107.3 FM and 1400 AM KLIN in Lincoln and ESPN 590 AM in Omaha beginning at 6 p.m. (CT). Stations across the state will also carry the broadcast on the Learfield IMG College Husker Sports Network. Free live audio can be found at Huskers.com, the Huskers App and on TuneIn.

A live video stream will be provided by Iowa for BTN+ subscribers.

The Hawkeyes enter the week tied atop the Big Ten standings after suffering their second Big Ten loss of the season with a 78-63 setback at Michigan on Sunday afternoon in Ann Arbor. The loss to the Wolverines snapped Iowa's nine-game winning streak that stretched back to the opening game of Big Ten play - a 78-69 loss at Nebraska on Dec. 28.

While Iowa had its nine-game Big Ten winning streak snapped, it still enters the game against the Cornhuskers with several home winning streaks intact. The Hawkeyes own a 32-game home winning streak at Carver-Hawkeye dating back to Nebraska's 92-74 win over Iowa on Jan. 28, 2018. Iowa has won 18 straight Big Ten home games since the loss to the Huskers.

Iowa is ranked No. 20 nationally in this week's Associated Press Top 25, but that doesn't tell the full story of the Hawkeyes' position in the big picture. Iowa was No. 5 in the official NCAA RPI last week and entered this week at No. 12 in the RPI.

In the first meeting this season between Nebraska and Iowa, Husker junior center Kate Cain led five Huskers in double figures with 16 points and 12 rebounds. Nicea Eliely (12), Hannah Whitish (11), Sam Haiby (10) and Leigha Brown (10) helped the Huskers put together one of their most complete efforts of the season.

Senior point guard Kathleen Doyle led Iowa with 19 points in the first meeting, while sophomore post Monika Czinano added 16 points and 17 rebounds. McKenna Warnock pitched in 14 points and six rebounds off the bench for the Hawkeyes.

Nebraska leads the all-time series with Iowa, 15-14.

Nebraska Cornhuskers at No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes
Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020, 6:30 p.m. (CT)
Carver-Hawkeye Arena (15,400) - Iowa City, Iowa
Live Video: BTN+ 
Live Radio: Husker Sports Network (6 p.m.)
Matt Coatney (PBP), Jeff Griesch (Analyst)
Lincoln - B107.3 FM & 1400 AM KLIN; Omaha - ESPN 590 AM
Huskers.com, Huskers App, TuneIn

Nebraska Cornhuskers (15-7, 5-6 Big Ten)
13 - Ashtyn Veerbeek - 6-2 - So. - F - 7.9 ppg, 4.9 rpg
31 - Kate Cain - 6-5 - Jr. - C - 9.2 ppg, 7.6 rpg
3 - Hannah Whitish - 5-9 - Sr. - G - 9.4 ppg, 3.4 rpg
4 - Sam Haiby - 5-9 - So. - G - 11.0 ppg, 3.8 rpg
5 - Nicea Eliely - 6-1 - Sr. - G - 9.1 ppg, 4.1 rpg
Off the Bench
32 - Leigha Brown - 6-1 - So. - F - 13.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg
34 - Isabelle Bourne - 6-2 - Fr. - F - 5.9 ppg, 4.8 rpg
2 - Trinity Brady - 5-11 - Fr. - G - 1.8 ppg, 1.3 rpg
14 - Grace Mitchell - 6-2 - Sr. - F - 1.7 ppg, 1.3 rpg
44 - Kayla Mershon - 6-3 - So. - F - 1.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg
11 - Kristian Hudson - 5-5 - RSr. - G - 1.2 ppg, 0.8 rpg
1 - Makenzie Helms - 5-8 - Fr. - G - 0.3 ppg, 0.5 rpg
Out for Season
33 - Taylor Kissinger - 6-1 - Jr. - G - 8.4 ppg, 2.8 rpg
Head Coach: Amy Williams (Nebraska, 1998)
Fourth Season at Nebraska (57-56); 13th Season Overall (250-165)

No. 20 Iowa Hawkeyes (18-4, 9-2 Big Ten)
43 - Amanda Ollinger - 6-1 - Sr. - F - 7.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg
25 - Monika Czinano - 6-3 - So. - F/C - 14.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg
3 - Makenzie Meyer - 5-9 - Sr. - G - 15.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg
5 - Alexis Sevillian - 5-5 - Jr. - G - 6.9 ppg, 2.4 rpg
22 - Kathleen Doyle - 5-9 - Sr. - G - 18.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg
Off the Bench
14 - McKenna Warnock - 6-1 - Fr. - G/F - 7.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg
24 - Gabbie Marshall - 5-6 - Fr. - G - 4.9 ppg, 0.9 rpg
20 - Kate Martin - 6-0 - So. - G - 2.4 ppg, 2.3 rpg
1 - Tomi Taiwo - 5-10 - So. - G - 2.0 ppg, 0.7 rpg
11 - Megan Meyer - 5-8 - Fr. - G - 1.7 ppg, 0.4 rpg
23 - Logan Cook - 6-1 - So. - F - 1.3 ppg, 1.3 rpg
21 - Zion Sanders - 5-8 - Jr. - G - 0.6 ppg, 0.3 rpg
31 - Paula Valiño Ramos - 6-3 - Jr. - F/C - 0.0 ppg, 1.0 rpg
Head Coach: Lisa Bluder (Northern Iowa, 1983)
20th Season at Iowa (414-221); 36th Season Overall (770-363)

Scouting The Iowa Hawkeyes
• Iowa heads into Thursday's game tied atop the Big Ten standings at 9-2, while ranking No. 20 in the AP Poll this week with an 18-4 overall record.
• The Hawkeyes own a 32-game home winning streak and 18-game Big Ten home winning streak.
• Iowa had its nine-game overall winning streak snapped on Sunday with a 78-63 loss at Michigan.
• The Hawkeyes were outrebounded 39-24 at Michigan, and allowed Michigan to hit 52.7 percent (29-55) of its shots from the field. Iowa also surrendered 12 offensive rebounds.
• Through 11 Big Ten games, Iowa is leading the conference in scoring (78.5 ppg), field goal percentage (.490), free throw percentage (.762) and assists (18.8 apg). The Hawkeyes also rank second in the Big Ten in three-point field goal percentage (.358) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.278), and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.2).
• Senior point guard Kathleen Doyle (18.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 6.2 apg) is the motor that drives the Hawkeyes in 2019-20. Doyle owns 1,404 points, 398 rebounds, 653 assists and 221 steals in her career. She is averaging a Big Ten-best 21.8 points and a Big Ten-best 5.9 assists in league play. Doyle had 19 points (4-15 FG) but just one assist and five turnovers in the first meeting with Nebraska.
• Fellow senior guard Makenzie Meyer has added 15.0 points per game. During non-conference play, Meyer led the Hawkeyes with 15.9 points per game while adding 4.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists. Meyer, who is in her fourth year as a starter, is averaging 14.0 points, 3.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists. She had just five points (1-7 FG) in the first meeting with the Huskers.
• Junior guard Alexis Sevillian gives the Hawkeyes a very experienced backcourt. Sevillian who is averaging 6.9 points and 2.4 rebounds per game, has started more than 50 games in her career. She had five points (2-10 FG) in the first meeting with the Huskers this season.
• Inside, sophomore Monika Czinano (14.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg) and senior Amanda Ollinger (7.1 ppg, 8.6 rpg) have filled in for National Player of the Year Megan Gustafson (27.8 ppg, 13.4 rpg) and Hannah Stewart (11.1 ppg, 6.7 rpg). 
• Czinano is averaging 14.3 points and 5.0 rebounds in Big Ten play while shooting 66.3 percent from the field. However, she has been bothered by an ankle injury the past several games. In the first meeting with Nebraska, Czinano had 16 points (6-8 FG) and 17 rebounds, including eight offensive boards.
• Ollinger has been Iowa's biggest warrior on the glass, averaging 7.5 points and 8.5 rebounds in league play while hitting 58.3 percent of her field goal attempts. She had five points and five rebounds in the first meeting with the Huskers.
• Freshman McKenna Warnock has increased her production in league play, averaging 9.4 points and 5.2 rebounds while making a pair of starts in place of Czinano. Warnock has hit 48.4 percent (15-31) of her three-point attempts in Big Ten play. She had 14 points and six rebounds off the bench, including 3-for-3 three-point shooting in the first meeting with Nebraska.
• Freshman guard Gabbie Marshall (2.7 ppg) and sophomore guard Tomi Taiwo (1.4 ppg) have played in every Big Ten game, while redshirt freshman Kate Martin (1.1 ppg) has made eight appearances in conference action.
• Iowa owns a minus-3.0 rebound margin and a minus-1.2 turnover margin in Big Ten play, as opponents are averaging 10.3 more field goal attempts per game than the Hawkeyes. Iowa has made nine more field goals than their Big Ten opponents, including 13 more threes, while outscoring opponents by an average of 5.7 points per game at the free throw line.

Nebraska vs. Iowa Series History
• Nebraska leads the all-time series with Iowa, 15-14, including a 78-69 win over the Hawkeyes in the first meeting this season in Lincoln (Dec. 28). Iowa swept the season series last year, including a 77-71 decision in Iowa City on Jan. 3, 2019.
• Leigha Brown led Nebraska with 20 points at Iowa, while Hannah Whitish added 14 for the Huskers.
• The Huskers are 6-6 all-time against Iowa in Lincoln, dating back to a 67-66 win over the Hawkeyes at the Bob Devaney Sports Center on Dec. 22, 1979.
• Nebraska defeated then-No. 20 Iowa 74-65 at Pinnacle Bank Arena on Jan. 16, 2018. The Huskers snapped Iowa's five-game series winning streak despite 29 points and 18 rebounds from Hawkeye All-American Megan Gustafson in that game.
• The Huskers completed a 2018 Big Ten sweep of Iowa with a 92-74 win on Jan. 28, 2018, after the Huskers built a 36-point lead midway through the third quarter. Nebraska led 56-26 at the half, and the 56 points were the most ever allowed by the Hawkeyes in a first half at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. That is Iowa's last home loss, as the Hawkeyes carry a 32-game home winning streak.
• The Huskers are 4-6 all-time against the Hawkeyes in Iowa City with five of the last seven games being decided by two possessions or less, including one overtime finish (Iowa, 78-72, Jan. 26, 2015). 
• Nebraska is 5-2 all-time against Iowa on neutral courts dating back to the first meeting in the series, a 71-63 Husker win at the Jennies' Classic in Warrensburg, Mo., on Jan. 13, 1978.
• The Huskers dominated the series in their first years in the Big Ten. From 2011-12 through 2013-14 (three seasons) the Huskers went 8-0 against the Hawkeyes, culminating with a 72-65 victory in the 2014 Big Ten Tournament Championship Game at Bankers Life Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.

Nebraska Streaks
• Kate Cain owns Nebraska's longest streak of consecutive starts (83).
• Nicea Eliely owns Nebraska's second-longest streak of starts (78).
• Nicea Eliely and Leigha Brown are the only Huskers to score points in each of Nebraska's first 22 games this season.
• Kate Cain and Isabelle Bourne are the only Huskers to record at least one rebound for Nebraska in all 22 games this season.
• Eliely was the only Husker to score in all 30 games last season, and the only Husker to score in all of Nebraska's games against Big Ten Conference foes. She has scored in 56 consecutive games overall. She did not score in a win over Penn State on Feb. 22, 2018, the only time in the past three seasons (including 2019-20, 76 games) that Eliely was shut out.
• The Huskers have knocked down at least one three in 364 straight games dating back to a loss at UTEP on Dec. 20, 2008. Nebraska has hit at least two three-pointers in 243 consecutive games.

Numbers to Watch 
(1) Kate Cain's next block will be the 250th of her career, a continuing school record. Cain ranks 15th in Big Ten history in blocked shots.
(2) Kristian Hudson needs two assists to reach 400 in her career (383 at FIU).
(6) Hannah Whitish is six assists away from No. 6 on the Nebraska career assist list (444, Amy Stephens, 1986-89).
(11) Hannah Whitish is 11 points away from moving into a tie for No. 19 on the Nebraska career scoring list (1,183, Jan Crouch, 1976-79).
(14) Leigha Brown is 14 points away from 600 in her career.
(19) Kate Cain needs 19 blocks to match the career total of her mother, Alison (Martinsky) Cain, during her career at Fairfield. Alison finished with 1,071 points, 768 rebounds and 268 blocks (No. 2 in Fairfield history).
(25) Kate Cain needs 25 blocks to crack the top 10 list in Big Ten Conference history.

Husker Nuggets
• Nebraska is No. 43 in the Massey Ratings (Feb. 3),  with 11 Big Ten teams in the top 64: Maryland (8), Northwestern (13), Indiana (16), Iowa (18), Purdue (33), Michigan (35), Rutgers (37), Ohio State (38), Minnesota (46) and Michigan State (63).
• In the official NCAA RPI (Feb. 3), 10 Big Ten teams are ranked in the top 75: Maryland (9), Iowa (12), Indiana (14), Northwestern (15), Ohio State (25), Purdue (26), Michigan (40), Rutgers (45), Minnesota (54) and Nebraska (73).
• Through 22 games, Nebraska is allowing an average of 65 points per game, after allowing 70.1 points per game last season. NU's 2018 NCAA Tournament team allowed 63.6.
• Opponents are shooting 37 percent from the field and 30.3 percent from three-point range against NU. Last year, Husker foes hit 41.1 percent, including 33.4 percent from three. In 2017-18, Nebraska led the Big Ten in field goal percentage defense (.371) and three-point field goal percentage defense (.299).
• Nebraska has held eight opponents to 55 points or less this season. Last year, NU held only two foes (Radford-39, Kansas-52) to 55 or less. NU held 11 opponents to 55 or less in 2017-18.
• NU's bench has outscored opponent reserves in 18 of 22 games in 2019-20. The Husker bench has outscored opposing benches in 46 of the last 52 games, including double-digit edges 33 times.
• This season, NU's bench has outscored opposing benches 561-352 (25.5-16.0 ppg).
• Nebraska has hit 10 or more threes 19 times in the last three seasons (84 games), including four times in the last 13 contests. Through the first 20 seasons with the three-point shot in women's basketball (1988-2007), Nebraska hit 10 threes in a game just six times (311 games).