Fun Facts: Iowa-Penn State

There are those who would have you believe wrestling and ice hockey are more-popular winter sports at Penn State right now than men's basketball.

Those who would have you believe that know what they're talking about.

Nonetheless, Iowa plays basketball at Penn State Saturday, so that requires some Fun Facts. Here they are:

1. This will mark the third-straight meeting between Iowa and Penn State that was played at Penn State. The Hawkeyes won the previous two.

2. Penn State Coach Patrick Chambers has a Big Ten record of 15-54.

3, Chambers and Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery are both from the Philadelphia area, played college basketball in Philly (Philadelphia U./Pennsylvania), and were assistant coaches in Philly (Villanova/Penn).

4. Iowa's Aaron White has 96 more free throw attempts than any of his teammates. Penn State's D.J. Newbill has 89 more free throw attempts than any of his teammates.

5. Iowa's Josh Oglesby hasn't missed a free throw all season. He is 9-for-9.

6. Newbill is the leading scorer (20.5 points per game) of any player in a Power 5 conference. Through Wednesday, he ranked 10th in the nation.

7. Newbill averages more points per game than any two of his teammates combined.

8. His full name is Devonte Jerrell Newbill. His siblings are named Dominic, Dante and Diamond. Penn State's Jordan Dickerson has siblings named Jayquan, Julius and Jadeina.

9. Penn State freshman guard Shep Garner's full name is Shepard Author Garner III. The Nittany Lions don't win much, but they have some great names.

10. Guard Tim Frazier averaged 14.9 points for Penn State last year. He had 11 points and 10 assists in the NBA D-League All-Star Game on Feb. 15. He has spent most of this season with the Maine Red Claws of the D-League, but has had two 10-day contracts with the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers.

11. Two of Frazier's teammates in that All-Star game were former Iowa State guards Chris Babb and Diante Garrett.

12. This will be the 40th meeting between Iowa and Penn State. The first was the Hawkeyes' 82-53 win over the Lions in the 1955 NCAA tournament's Sweet 16. Iowa went on to the Final Four, where it lost in the semifinals to another Pennsylvania school, La Salle.

13. There is no actual 'Happy Valley” at Penn State. The PSU campus the city of State College are in the Nittany Valley, near its confluence with Penns Valley. According to this Penn State website listing myths about the university, the term 'Happy Valley” may have been created by (gulp) sports writers and broadcasters.