Iowa MBB ticket sales soaring

IOWA CITY -- Ticket sales are soaring along with expectations for the Iowa men's basketball program.

Season ticket sales have surpassed the 2012-13 totals, and the school believes it could surpass 10,000 for the first time since 2002-2003. Iowa has sold more than 8,700 season tickets, exceeding last year's total by more than 1,000. The school still is accepting ticket requests, it announced.

According to the school, its ticket office has received more than 2,200 new inquires since March. The school received 390 requests after the 2011-12 season. The Hawkeyes won 25 games last year, finished second in the NIT and are ranked by a majority of preseason publications entering the upcoming season. Iowa returns 93 percent of its scoring and all five of its regular starters.

In 2012-13, Iowa boasted the nation's eighth-largest attendance increase and finished sixth among Big Ten schools, averaging 13,625 fans per game. That's the school's best number since the 2001-02 season. Iowa ranked 21st nationally.

Iowa's Big Ten home schedule this year is bullish. The Hawkeyes face Michigan State, Ohio State, Michigan, Wisconsin, Illinois, Northwestern, Minnesota, Nebraska and Purdue at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa also plays host to Notre Dame in an ACC-Big Ten Challenge match-up.