It was a cold start to the game to say the least for both teams, as Penn State shot just 25 percent from the field (7-of-28) in the opening half, and the Hawkeyes weren’t much better at just 32 percent on 8-of-25 from the floor. It seemed as though Iowa was in control however as they lead by as many as nine late in the half, behind 11 points from first team all-Big Ten selection Aaron White and ten from Jarrod Uthoff. The Hawkeyes also played good defense in forcing six Penn St. turnovers, and holding Nittany Lions leading scorer D.J. Newbill to just seven points, as they took a 27-19 lead into halftime.

The beginning of the second half brought more of the same, as the Hawkeyes (21-11) scored on their first two offensive possessions on a dunk by Uthoff and a three-point play by Mike Gesell to stretch the lead out to 32-21. Then the floor dropped out, as Penn State went on a blistering 15-2 run over the next seven-plus minutes to get back into the game, and took a two point lead on a layup by Geno Thorpe with just over 11 minutes remaining in regulation.

The Hawkeyes remained stagnant after the Nittany Lion run, and the pivotal point in the game came as Adam Woodbury missed a layup with Iowa trailing 42-40, on what appeared to be a missed basket interference call on Penn State’s Brandon Taylor as he ripped the ball down off the rim. Head coach Fran McCaffery was issued his second technical foul in as many games on the ensuing argument and after stepping outside of the coaches box.

Penn State (18-15) would capitalize as D.J. Newbill made the two ensuing free throws, and hit a deep jumper and 3-pointer on the Nittany Lion’s next two possessions to go on a personal 7-0 run and extend the lead to 49-42 with just 7:02 to go.

Iowa however, refused to go quietly as a Uthoff 3-pointer and Gabe Olaseni thunderous putback dunk would bring the Hawkeyes to within four with 4:04 left to go. Both teams would trade free throws back and forth, and the Hawkeyes would have a chance to tie it up trailing 58-56 with 1:42 to go. Jarrod Uthoff got the ball in his hands and a very good look from about 17-feet at the left elbow, but the jumper that he usually makes would fall short and so would the Hawkeyes.

“I can’t believe I missed it,” said Uthoff, who came just shy of a double-double with 17 points and seven rebounds. “I thought it was good. It came out my hand clean, and I liked the fadeaway. A lot of times on my jump shot, it’s normally good. Just missed it.”

Penn State would put the Hawkeyes away for good on a 3-point play on a hard drive to the hoop by senior Ross Travis in route to his 17 points, and Iowa would get no closer as the Nittany Lions would salt it away from the free throw line.

“Yeah, they (the seniors) really stepped up at a critical point in the game to give us a little cushion, D.J.’s little run, and Ross did it throughout the entire game. He played really hard, battling those guys inside. They’re huge, and he was fearless in there.” said Penn St. head coach Pat Chambers. “I’m happy for the players. For January and some of February, we were getting knocked around pretty good in the media, in the social media. I’m really happy for them.”

With the victory, Penn State has now won three Big Ten Games in a five-day span, which is the same number that they had won in all of January and February. They will now look to continue their Cinderella run against the fourth-seeded Purdue Boilermakers tomorrow afternoon, whom they lost a close overtime game to in State College back in January, much like they had to the Hawkeyes two weeks ago before today’s win.

Aaron White led the Hawkeyes with a team-high 21 points and 13 rebounds in his 37 minutes of play, but it was all for not as Iowa shot just 26 percent from the field as a team and were outscored by the Nittany Lions 48-31 in the second half.

The Hawkeyes now will have to regroup quickly, as although they have safely been in the NCAA tournament field for a number of weeks now, the early BIG tournament loss could greatly affect their seeding, and they will learn of their matchup and first weekend destination this Sunday night.

The post Hawkeyes Can’t Find Form in Upset Loss To Penn St. appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament 2nd Round

1:30pm, United Center, Chicago, Ill.

The fifth-seeded Iowa Hawkeyes will take on thirteenth-seeded Penn State in the second round of the Big Ten Men’s basketball tournament on Thursday afternoon at the United Center. This, following the Nittany Lion’s first round 68-65 victory over the twelfth-seeded Nebraska Cornhuskers on Wednesday afternoon, behind 26 points from D.J. Newbill.

The Hawkeyes are considered by many to be the hottest team in the Big Ten entering this week’s conference tournament, after rattling off six wins in a row to end the season, since last losing at Northwestern in overtime 66-61 back on February 15th. Iowa has won four of these last six by double-digits and has shot 44.5 percent from the field and just under 75 percent from the free throw line during this stretch.

The biggest reason for Hawkeyes recent success has of course been the re-emergence of senior forward Aaron White, who is averaging just over 21 points and 9 rebounds a game during the current win streak, and put a bow on his home Hawkeye career with a spectacular 25 point 8 rebound performance on an emotional senior day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, as the Hawkeyes blew out Northwestern 69-52, and White became the program’s 2nd all-time leading scorer, just behind that of Roy Marble. White was also named as a unanimous first-team all Big Ten selection earlier this week.

Penn State counters White with senior guard D.J. Newbill, who has averaged 20.7 points and 4.8 rebounds per game this season, and has been one of the lone bright spots for the Nittany Lions, who were just 4-14 in the BIG, in this, now head coach Pat Chamber’s fourth season at the helm. They have however, found some late season success as evidenced by their 79-76 victory over Minnesota at the Barn this past Sunday on Newbill’s game winning 3-pointer at the buzzer, before Wednesday’s grind it out win over Nebraska.

Iowa won the team’s only regular season meeting 81-77 in overtime in State College back on February 28th. Aaron White scored a team-high 21 points and stole a D.J. Newbill inbounds pass with 30 seconds left in OT, which allowed the Hawkeyes to salt the game away from the free-throw line. Four Hawkeyes total scored in double figures, including Josh Oglesby, who had 12 points on 4-of-8 from three-point range. Iowa was also 25-27 from the charity stripe.

Aside from Newbill, the key for the Hawkeyes will be continuing their stellar defensive play, in which they are forcing 12.6 opponent TO/game on the season, and forced the Nittany Lions into 15 in the victory two weeks ago. They must also stop the duo of Shep Garner and Geno Thorpe, who are averaging 9.1 and 8.8 PPG respectivly this season, and combined for 31 points in the loss to the Hawkeyes.

The winner of Thursday’s contest gets fourth-seeded Purdue in Friday’s quarterfinals. Both teams are winless in their one and only meeting with the Boilermakers earlier this season.

The post Hawkeyes/Penn St. Big Ten Tourney Game Preview appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It was a back and forth game between both teams in the first half as neither held a lead of more than seven points. Alexa Hart scored 14 of her 24 points in the first half on 7-of-10 from the floor to lead the Buckeyes, who missed all 10 first half three-pointers that they attempted. Ally Disterhoft scored seven of her 11 points in the first half, and senior sharpshooter Melissa Dixon led the way for the Hawkeyes with nine points on 3-of-6 from three-point range, as the teams headed into halftime tied at 37.

Dixon continued her hot shooting in the second half, draining three more three-pointers in route to a team-high 22 points. Junior Kali Peschel also followed up her 13 point performance in the previous night’s win over Nebraska, with 12 more tonight, once again shooting 3-of-5 from long-range. The Hawkeyes used this hot shooting to build a 72-65 lead with just under seven minutes remaining and it looked as though the Hawkeyes had taken control. The Buckeyes however turned up the heat defenseively and used an 8-0 run to get back into the game, and a layup by Alexa Hart gave the Buckeyes a 74-73 lead.

“Coach McGuff said do what you gotta do, but don’t let Dixon catch it and don’t let Doolittle get in the paint.” said the Buckeyes Kelsey Mitchell on getting back into the game in the second half. “It was just the act of us coming together, and saying we needed to buckle down on defense to win the game.” “So we tried our hardest and I guess it worked.”

Both teams traded baskets in the final four minutes and the Hawkeyes played the foul game on the Buckeyes Alexa Hart, who is just a 44 percent free throw shooter. The gamble paid off as Hart hit just one of her four free throws down the stretch and kept the Hawkeyes within striking distance. Disterhoft had a chance to give Iowa the lead from the free throw line trailing 80-79 with 17 seconds to go, but missed both attempts. That would set the stage for Doolittle to play hero, as she tied it up off an inbounds play under the basket after a timeout by head coach Lisa Bluder with just 3.4 seconds remaining.

I asked coach Bluder what she was thinking while drawing up the final play that sent the game into overtime and gave the Hawkeyes new life.

“We had two possibilities, one was for a three and one was for Beth on that roll-back.” “And it depended on how they were going to set up what one we were going to do.” said coach Bluder.”We took the roll-back and had that good high-percentage shot, which put us into overtime.”

She also talked about the difficulty of playing without senior point guard Samantha Logic in overtime, as Logic fouled out with 17 seconds left in regulation.

“Without Sam, you know, she’s a person that plays every single minute for us, and to not have her for those last five minutes, that was really huge.”

Four Hawkeyes total scored in double figures, including Logic who would record yet another double-double with 12 points and 10 assists on 5-of-10 from the floor. Bethany Doolittle also added a total of 21 points in 35 minutes of play.

The Hawkeyes still had life in the overtime period, as Whitney Jennings made a pair of free throws with 42 seconds remaining to draw Iowa to within one point at 86-85. However, Mitchell then nailed a clutch 3-pointer on the very next possession with just 14 seconds left to seal it for the Buckeyes. Two final free throws would give the super freshman a game-high 29 points, and the Buckeyes and trip to the championship game.

“Kelsey is a special player, and special players make big plays.” said Ohio State head coach Kevin McGuff. “And she (Mitchell), certainly did that tonight.”

The win puts the Buckeyes (23-9) into the BIG championship game against the top-seeded Maryland Terrapins, who are still undefeated in conference play in just their first season in the Big Ten conference.

The Hawkeyes (24-7) will now move onto the NCAA tournament where they are likely to be either a three or four-seed, meaning that they will play their first two rounds at the friendly confines of Carver-Hawkeye Arena, where Iowa is a perfect 16-0 at home this season.

“I’m confident that we will be a top four seed in the country, which means we would get to host,” said coach Bluder. “Our fans have been marvelous and I know they will come out to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for those NCAA Tournament games. I believe this team can do something really special this year.”

The post Hawkeyes Lose OT Thriller To Buckeyes In BIG Semis appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Hawkeyes (25-6) got off to a hot start hitting their first four shots from the field to take a 9-2 lead just two minutes into the game. Iowa would lead by as many as eight points in the first half behind 11 points from senior center Bethany Doolittle, who was taken out after her second foul with 9:24 remaining in the half.

The real story of the game was the play of the Hawkeye bench, led by Kali Peschel who scored 13 points on 3-of-5 from three-point range and gave the Hawkeyes the spark they needed, especially with Doolittle in foul trouble throughout most of the game.

“Coming off the bench, I know my role is to get in there, play defense and get rebounds and hit that open shot.” said Peschel. “I credit my teammates so much, they do a great job of finding me in those situations and it’s always nice when the ball goes in the hoop.”

The Hawkeyes also got strong play off the bench from Claire Till, who scored just two points, but grabbed eight rebounds and made countless other hustle plays in her 15 minutes as the Hawkeyes took a 36-33 lead into halftime.

“Kali and Claire came in today and just played so well when Beth had foul trouble.” said Iowa point guard Samantha Logic who scored 15 points and had six assists on 6-of-13 from the field. “We have so much confidence in them every single time they come out on the floor. They played huge minutes for us.”

The Hawkeyes opened the second half on a 17-5 run to take their largest lead of the game at 53-38 with just under 14 minutes left to play. Nebraska would get no closer than five with under a minute to play as the Hawkeyes finished it off from the free throw line, going 16-of-20 for the game as a team.

Four Hawkeyes total scored in double figures, including Ally Disterhoft who continued her stellar play against the Huskers this season, finishing just shy of a double-double with 16 points and nine rebounds.

The Cornhuskers (21-11) were led in scoring by senior Tear’a Laudermill who had 16 points to go along with five assists, and Emily Cady who scored 15 points and grabbed 8 rebounds.

Iowa extended its winning streak over Nebraska to three games, and snaps a three-game Big Ten tournament losing skid to the Huskers, who had defeated Iowa in all eight previous meetings between the two teams entering this season.

“This was a good way for us to start tournament play.” said Iowa head coach Lisa Bluder. “We talked a lot about rebounding and defense and I think we did a good job in both of those categories today.”

With the victory, the Hawkeyes now move onto the tournament semi-finals tomorrow night where they will face the winner of sixth-seeded Minnesota and third-seeded Ohio State.

The post Hawkeyes Complete Sweep of Huskers in Big Ten Tourney appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament Quarterfinals

6pm, Sears Centre Arena, Hoffman Estates, Ill.

The 14th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes and Nebraska Cornhuskers renew their rivalry as they face- off in Big Ten Women’s basketball tournament quarterfianls action Friday night at the Sears Centre.

The #2 seeded Hawkeyes earned a double-bye in the tournament, while the #7 seeded Huskers used a dominating performance Thursday night against Illinois to force what will now be the third meeting of the season between the two teams.

Nebraska beat the Illini 86-71 Thursday night behind a career-high 26 points from Natalie Romeo who was 7-of-11 from three-point range, which tied the Nebraska school record.

The Hawkeyes counter Romeo with a deadly long-range shooter of their own in senior Melissa Dixon, who is currently second in the Big Ten and sixth in the nation in three-point shooting this season at just under 45% from long-range. Dixon has also shattered the Iowa school record books not once, but twice earlier this season, hitting 10 3-pointers in a win over Drake and 9-10 from distance in a 102-99 win over Northwestern.

The Hawkeyes have won both previous meetings with the Huskers this season including a 78-72 overtime thriller in Iowa City back on January 26th. The Hawkeyes shot nearly 60 percent from the field in the second half and overtime to erase a 10-point deficit with just under 13 minutes to play to beat the Huskers for the first time since they had joined the conference.

Sophomore Ally Disterhoft has been a huge reason for the Hawkeyes success against Nebraska this season as she scored all 20 of her points in the 2nd half and overtime and also added 10 rebounds in the win in Iowa City, and had 14 points and 7 rebounds in the Hawkeyes 69-61 victory on Feb. 12th in Lincoln.

The key for the Hawkeyes will be stopping Huskers senior forward Emily Cady who is ranked fourth in the Big Ten in rebounding this season and scored 19 points and pulled down 18 boards in the season’s first meeting.

Iowa will also need another big performance from do-everything point guard Samantha Logic, who is the reigning espnW national player of the week after a 20 point, 10 rebound and nine assist performance in a win over Wisconsin and scoring 24 points to go along with 13 assists in Sunday’s Senior Day victory over Minnesota.

The Hawkeyes had lost all eight of their previous meetings with the Huskers before this season, including in the second round of the Big Ten tournament back in 2013 and in the championship game of the Big Ten tournament a year ago in Indianapolis, dropping a 72-65 heart-breaker.

The Hawkeyes will need to continue this season’s success against the Huskers if they hope to move on to the tournament semi-finals on Saturday.

The post Hawkeyes vs. Huskers Women’s Tourney Game Preview appeared first on KRUI Radio.

There was a rare change to Iowa’s starting lineup as sophomore Peter Jok got the nod at shooting guard over the injured Anthony Clemmons, who did play six minutes off the bench before spraining his other ankle and leaving the game for good. Jok made the most of his start, scoring 12 points on two of four from 3-point range in 22 minutes of play.

Aaron White led the way for the Hawkeyes with a game-high 23 points, and also added nine rebounds and five steals.”His energy level I really thought was what was the difference in the game. He was all over the glass, he was all over the floor” said Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery.

Josh Ogelsby also played a big role for the Hawkeyes, shaking off a disappointing start to his season by draining his first three 3-pointers off the bench, in route to a nine point and three rebound performance.

North Florida proved to be a tough challenge for the Hawkeyes, as although the Ospreys got down 13 at halftime, battled back time and again in the second half and cut the Hawkeye lead to five with just over eight minutes left in regulation.

“This is a tremendously talented team, incredibly well coached team. I really think they can win that league.” said coach McCaffery of the Ospreys.”They don’t go away. They just keep coming. They’ve got shot makers, they’ve got drivers, post players, a good player that didn’t play. So they’re going to be really good.”

The Ospreys were led by junior guard Trent Mackey, who made six of seven from deep in the first half in route to a career-high 18 points. Mackey also has Iowa ties, as his father Jon went to Iowa, and he himself had attended numerous Hawkeye basketball camps as a kid growing up.

North Florida head coach Matthew Driscoll post-game also gave his assessment of Iowa’s scoring droughts following halftime in many games so far this season.

“Your guys, they get down when they miss a shot. Coach doesn’t get on them, coach doesn’t sub them, Coach doesn’t do anything. Your guys have to get a little bit thicker skin and understand I’m going to miss some shots but I can’t let it affect the next one.” said Driscoll.

“It’s not a confidence thing, because obviously they’ve got guys who can shoot the ball. It’s not a confidence that they can’t make them. It’s a confidence thing where if they miss like one they’re like, ‘Man.’ So I think that’s something that they’ve got to fix, and I think it’s personal. I think they need to fix it.”

The difference in the game proved to be from the free throw line, as the Hawkeyes made 26 of their 28 attempts, compared to the Ospreys, who shot just seven total free throws.

The Hawkeyes (9-4) will now take some much needed time off for the holidays, before returning practice on the 26th in order to get ready for the start of Big Ten play at Ohio State on December 30th.

The post Hawkeyes Hold Off Pesky Ospreys appeared first on KRUI Radio.

We now find ourselves on the cusp of a Stanley Cup Final featuring two teams that weren’t supposed to be here. The Los Angeles Kings, who are coming off an incredible 7-game series, where they defeated the defending Cup champion Chicago Blackhawks in route to their third Game 7 road win of these playoffs. From the East, come the New York Rangers, the team that has emerged from what was a decidedly down Eastern Conference this season, but had to survive tough-fought 7-game series with both the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins, before discarding the Montreal Canadiens, hampered by injured goaltender Carey Price, in six to reach this Cup Final.
Although, the Kings enter the Cup Finals as heavy favorites and still feature many of the key contributors that helped them win the Cup back in 2012, this is why I believe that the Rangers will beat the odds one more time and lift Lord Stanley’s Cup.

Offense

Although, the Rangers don’t boast a go-to number one center like the King’s Anze Kopitar (who still currently leads the playoffs in points), or the suddenly found goal scoring prowess of Jeff Carter and newly acquired Marian Gaborik, they do have a scary-deep group of forwards that can roll four strong lines, and each of whom have contributed timely goals throughout these playoffs. Newly acquired Martin St. Louis, Ryan McDonagh, and Derek Stepan currently are tied for the team lead in playoff points with 13, and eight players in total currently have double digit points. I believe that if the Rangers top line of Stepan, Chris Kreider, and Rick Nash can keep up with the likes of Kopitar and the Kings other top forwards, and can also continue to get huge goal scoring contributions from the likes of guys such as Zuccarello, Derick Brassard, and Brad Richards, then I believe that the Rangers offense could outlast that of the highly potent Kings.

Defense

Although, the Rangers defense leading into this series has once again been perhaps overshadowed by the spectacular play of King’s defenseman Drew Doughty, who showed in the series against the Blackhawks just why he is one of the best-in the-world, the Rangers defense has been quietly solid, due in large part to the pairing of McDonagh and Dan Girardi. McDonagh like Doughty, is a spectacular two-way defenseman and him along with Girardi both still possess the shot-blocking prowess stressed almost to a fault by former head coach John Tortorella. The Rangers also feature the defensive pairing of Marc Staal and Anton Stralman who may be just as if not more important than the top line in stopping the Kings onslaught. Much like on the offensive side of the puck, what the Rangers defense lacks in talent it makes up for in depth and benefit from guys like McDonagh who can be a lock-down defender when he needs to be. The Rangers defense has also been near the top thus far in these playoffs allowing just 2.25 goals against per game. So although, the Rangers have yet to face a team with the offensive firepower like that of the Kings, if the defense can lock down just enough and avoid the scoring bunches that doomed the Blackhawks throughout the Western Conference Final, then I believe that the Rangers may have the edge defensively.

Special Teams

In what may prove to be the biggest factor of which team wins this series and walks away with the Cup may be that of the special teams units. The Rangers power play which ranked 15th in the regular season and just 10th among playoff teams, currently with a 13.6% conversion rate, and featured an abysmal 0-36 drought to begin the playoffs before coming alive at the end of the Penguins series, must be far more consistent if they hope to keep up with the Kings offensively and make this a long series. It will be up to the likes of Martin St. Louis and Brad Richards to continue to make the Rangers power play a credible threat against an unspectacular Los Angeles penalty kill unit killing just 81.2 percent of penalties in these playoffs.

For as inconsistent the Rangers power play has been this post-season, that’s just how good their penalty kill has been. The Rangers tremendous penalty kill unit has picked up right where they left off from the regular season where they were third in the league killing 85.3 percent of penalties, and now rank second in the playoffs killing 85.9 percent of their penalties. This unit is spearheaded by the aforementioned dynamic-duo of Girardi and McDonagh, as well as Bryan Boyle, Dominic Moore, and Carl Hagelin. Although, the Kings power play came alive somewhat during their series win over the Blackhawks and they are converting 25.4 percent of their power play opportunities in the playoffs so far, I believe that it will be hard for the Kings to keep up this consistency and the Rangers penalty kill will prove just too tough.

Goaltending

All eyes will be on the matchup between super star goalies Jonathan Quick for the Los Angeles Kings and Henrik Lundqvist for the Rangers, who surprisingly is making his first Stanley Cup Final appearance in the net after a consistently great career in the crease thus far. Many believe that King Henrik is the only reason that the Rangers have any kind of chance in this series and he does have to be spectacular just to keep his team in the series against a suddenly very powerful Kings offensive attack. Lundqvist has been spectacular thus far in the playoffs and currently boasts an impressive .928 save percentage and a blistering 2.03 goals against average in 20 playoff games this post season. He has also been referred to as “Mr. Game 7,” based on his perfect record in the last five Game 7’s that he has appeared in. Although, Jonathan Quick has a Stanley Cup ring and the reputation as one of if not the best goaltender currently in the world, he was decidedly below average against the Blackhawks, but it would not surprise me for Mr. Quick to return back to form once the bright lights of the Stanley Cup Final are shined upon him. I do believe however that Henrik Lundqvist will ultimately be able to outshine Jonathan Quick and will finally be able to lift his long awaited Stanley Cup.

Coaching

Rangers head coach Alain Vigneault and his laid back style have been a breath of fresh air behind New York’s bench this season and he has reinvigorated an offense all but forgotten by previous and defensive-minded head coach John Tortroella. He has also instilled much-needed confidence in goaltender Henrik Lundqvist and has stepped back and allowed his veteran laden team to play their game. I believe that Vigneault still has a bad taste in his mouth after losing a heart breaking 7-game series in the Stanley Cup Finals in 2011 while at the helm of the Vancouver Canucks. So, although Kings coach Darryl Sutter has a Stanley Cup ring and an impressive record since returning to behind the bench, I believe that Vigneault is better suited tinkering with his lines and making the necessary adjustments that will be crucial as the series goes on.

This is why although the Kings may appear to be the better team on paper; I believe that the Rangers have recaptured some of the magic that helped them win the Cup back in 1994, and this along with a confident Henrik Lundqvist will allow the New York Rangers to lift Lord Stanley’s Cup for the first time in over 20 years and once again be able to bask in the ticker tape on their parade through the Canyon of Heroes.

Either way, we’re in for one heck of a Stanley Cup Final

The post Party Like It’s 1994: Why The Rangers Will Defeat The Kings To Reclaim Lord Stanley’s Cup appeared first on KRUI Radio.

In the regular season, MacKinnon lead all rookies in goals (24), and has led the league in assists (39), points (63), and is tied in game-winning goals with five. If that’s not impressive enough, Mackinnon’s 13-game point streak from January 25^th to March 6^th broke Wayne Gretzky’s record of 12 for the longest run by an 18-year-old in NHL history. MacKinnon has also led the Avalanche to 100 points in a season for the first time since 2003-04 and the team is playing in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since 2010. It is safe to say that MacKinnon is a lock to win the Calder Trophy, the award given to the NHL’s Rookie of the Year, and with the award would be the first number one overall draft pick to win it since the Blackhawk’s Patrick Kane in 2007-08.

MacKinnon’s phenomenal rookie season has also carried over into the playoffs where he currently leads all players with 10 points (2 goals and 8 assists) through five games and the Avalanche currently lead the Minnesota Wild in their best-of-seven first round series.

Although Nathan MacKinnon has not exactly flown under the radar in his first NHL season, his incredible performance thus far cannot be emphasized enough when you stop to consider his age and the fact that he’s playing in the toughest playoffs in all of sports. More incredible, is how unlikely it is for a player of his age and caliber to not only play, but also contribute at the highest level and on the biggest stage. MacKinnon and the Avalanche are must watch television at the moment and are the trendy pick by many to lift Lord Stanley’s Cup come June. It is safe to say that the future is bright for hockey in the city of Denver, and Nathan MacKinnon is the biggest reason why. Just remember, you were warned.

The post Avalanche Warning: Nathan MacKinnon Is Here To Stay appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Hawkeyes (18-6, 7-4) came out firing early in the game as Marble knocked down 3 of his 6 3-pointers in the first 5 minutes as Iowa jumped out to an 11-4 lead and never looked back. The offensive barrage by the Hawkeyes sent the sold-out Carver-Hawkeye Arena crowd into a frenzy that would last all afternoon long.

The Wolverines (17-6, 9-2) were able to fight back and a Zak Irvin 3-pointer capped off an 8-0 Michigan run that cut the Hawkeye lead to 33-25 with just under 4 minutes to go in the first half. Irvin scored a career high 19 points including 4-6 from long range. The Hawkeyes however were able to weather the storm and went on a 10-4 run of their own to end the half that was capped off by yet another Devyn Marble 3-pointer to beat the first half buzzer and gave Iowa a 43-29 lead at the break.

“That was a player of the year candidate performance today,” said Michigan coach Jon Beilein of Roy Devyn Marble. “He’s a senior and they’re always going to make it happen and it’s a great story.”

The Hawkeyes picked up where they left off to start the 2^nd half and the Wolverines never got closer than 14 as the Hawkeyes ran away with it.

Iowa was also able to put the clamps on defensively and held Wolverines leading scorer Nik Stauskas to 10 points on just 1-3 from 3-point range. Caris LeVert added a team high 22 for Michigan, who have now lost two of their last three after starting out Big Ten play 8-0.

“We were locked in defensively,” said Iowa coach Fran McCaffery on the defense that the Hawkeyes played against the Wolverines and especially on Stauskas. “We felt like to beat Michigan we needed to play the kind of defense that we played because they have so many different weapons, and it wasn’t only about getting stops, but getting stops and being able to run in transition and create good offensive opportunities.”

The Hawkeyes now get a much needed week off before continuing Big Ten play next Saturday afternoon as they go on the road to play Penn State in Happy Valley.

The Wolverines will finish off a stretch of 5 games in 13 days on the road at Ohio State on Tuesday night before returning home where they close with 5 of their final 7 conference games at home.

The post Marble’s Big Day Leads Hawkeyes In Rout Over Michigan appeared first on KRUI Radio.

“Gabe was all over the place tonight, and was obviously able to grab the huge offensive rebound late,” said Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery. “ The fact that he was able to give us some big minutes down the stretch is huge for our team going forward.”

The Fighting Illini however, were able to recover and used a 23-6 run to end the first half and cut the Hawkeye lead to 40-36 going into the break. The Illini charge was lead by Joseph Bertrand who scored 12 of his game-high 20 points in the first half to keep his team in it. The Hawkeyes fell into a scoring drought eerily similar to the one that doomed them on Tuesday against the Spartans as they went without a field goal for the final 7:37 of the first half.

Illinois (13-9, 2-7 Big Ten) continued their hot shooting in the second-half and a 3-pointer by Tracy Abrams gave the Illini the lead at 62-61 with just over ten minutes left in the ball game, their first lead since starting the game up 2-0. The Illini would extend their lead to 66-61 on a layup by Drake transfer Rayvonte Rice to cap off a 7-0 run, and it looked like the Hawkeyes were on their way to dropping another close one. Iowa however went on a 5-0 run of their own to tie the game at 66, and took the lead for good with a bucket by Mike Gesell that made it 72-70 with just under 4 minutes to play.

The Hawkeyes (17-5, 6-3) locked down defensively and were finally able to make some clutch free throws down the stretch to escape the State Farm Center with a hard fought 81-74 victory. The win snapped Iowa’s 11-game losing streak in Champaign and gives them their first road victory over the Fighting Illini since 1999.

“You never want to lose two in a row and I think that it says a lot about our team’s character that we were able to hold on tonight,” McCaffery said. “You look at how everyone is beating everyone in this conference right now and it would have been easy for us to just fold up, but if you want to compete for a conference title then you’ve got to be able to fight back.”

The loss for the Fighting Illini was their 7^th in a row after starting off Big Ten play at 2-0 and further dampens what was their already fading NCAA Tournament hopes. Illinois continues its home stretch and will host the struggling Wisconsin Badgers on Tuesday night.

“This one stings because of how hard our guys played and I couldn’t be more proud of the toughness and togetherness we showed in the loss,” Illinois head coach John Groce said. “We’re going to have to build on this and figure out how to give that same effort that we gave for the final 30 minutes going forward.”

The Hawkeyes now turn their focus to the 24^th ranked Ohio State Buckeyes who will come to Iowa City on Tuesday night looking to avenge an 84-74 loss suffered at the hands of the Hawkeyes earlier this season. The Hawkeyes can ill-afford many more losses if they hope to stay in the Big Ten race with one loss Michigan State and the undefeated Michigan Wolverines.

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