[9:05 PM] Iowa @ Notre Dame

Who will WIN this matchup?

Iowa Hawkeyes (3-3)

@ Notre Dame Fighting Irish (6-0)

 

• Picked to finish seventh in the preseason ACC poll despite returning most of its core from last year’s Elite Eight squad, Notre Dame upended Northwestern 70-66 in the Legend Classic last Tuesday. The Irish parlayed their first in-season tournament title in six years into a 91-60 rout of Chicago on Saturday, draining a season-high 17 3-pointers for their fourth win of at least 25 points.

• Iowa is in danger of falling below .500 for the first time since coach Fran McCaffery’s first season at the helm in 2010-11 and has lost three of four overall, including a 74-41 pummeling at the hands of No. 6 Virginia during last weekend’s Emerald Coast Classic for their most lopsided loss since a 34-point drubbing at Michigan State in 2011-12. The Hawkeyes did beat the Irish in 2013 to start their three-game winning streak in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, but Notre Dame edged Iowa at the Advocare Invitational last season and holds a 9-6 lead in the all-time series.

• Peter Jok (25.3 points) ranks second in Division I in scoring and enjoyed the best offensive performance by a Hawkeye in 40 years in Saturday’s 100-92 loss to Memphis, going 11-of-16 from the field, 8-of-11 beyond the arc and 12-of-12 from the foul line. Iowa wasted the 42-point performance by giving up 54 points in the paint as well as 22 second-chance points and allowing 100 points in a game for the first time since 2012. Freshman forward Tyler Cook (13.7) is Iowa’s only other double-digit scorer and has been a steady complement to Jok so far, averaging 15.2 points on 30-of-48 from the field in five outings since a six-point effort on 1-of-7 shooting in his college debut.

• Sophomore forward Matt Ryan (7.7 points) had it going Saturday, coming off the bench to knock down a personal-best 7-of-14 3-pointers (including his first five attempts in his first six minutes of action) on his way to a career-high 23 points to help the Irish overcome an early deficit. Bonzie Colson – a 6-5 junior forward – has posted three straight double-doubles and leads the team in scoring (17.2), rebounding (9.7) and blocks (1.3).

• The Irish lead the country in fewest turnovers (7.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.47).
 

StreakSmarts Pick: Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Confidence: 5/10

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