DES MOINES, Iowa – The Drake University men's basketball team makes the short, 1.8-mile trip to Wells Fargo Arena Saturday afternoon to face Iowa in the annual Hy-Vee Classic. Tipoff for the 69th meeting in the series is set for 1 p.m. on the Big Ten Network. Iowa State and UNI will complete the doubleheader with a 3:30 p.m. contest.
The Hawkeyes (5-6) are the second Big Ten team the Bulldogs (5-5) face this week as the team suffered a narrow, 68-67, loss at Minnesota Monday evening. The Bulldogs nearly upended the previously ranked No. 14 Golden Gophers despite Reed Timmer, the team's leading scorer being held to a season-low eight points. However, Timmer is leading the Missouri Valley Conference in scoring and 17th in the nation at 20.7 points per game.
His 53.2 percent shooting from the three-point arc has helped Drake make 10 or more three-pointers in a game five times this season and 17 times in the past two seasons. Drake is converting at a 42.3 percent clip from the arc, the second-highest mark in the Valley this season and the 13th best rate in the nation.
Despite a starting lineup that has only one player taller than 6-3, Drake has outrebounded its opponents on average this season. The Bulldogs have been outrebounded just five times this season. However, that lineup will face a tall task, literally, this weekend as Iowa ranks as the nation's seventh tallest team while the Bulldogs are the eighth shortest team in the country.
Protecting the ball will be another critical component to success as Drake has averaged 9.2 turnovers per game in its five wins and 15.0 per game in the five losses. In the last two games, Drake has held a combined 40-4 advantage in points off turnovers. The Hawkeyes committed just seven turnovers in their last outing, but recorded 18 miscues in each of their previous outings.
Following Saturday's game, the Bulldogs return to the road to face South Dakota State Dec. 19 at 7 p.m. in Brookings, S.D.
