Iowa-Ohio State breakdown

RECORDS

Iowa 12-5 (3-1 Big Ten); Ohio State 14-4 (3-2 Big Ten)

TV

1 p.m. ESPN (Bob Wischusen and Dan Dakich)

PREVIOUS MEETING

Iowa won 71-65, Dec. 30, Columbus, Ohio

KEY MATCHUP

Marc Loving vs. Jarrod Uthoff.

Loving, a sophomore forward, leads the Big Ten in 3-point percentage. He's buried half of his 3-point attempts (32 of 64) and ranks second at Ohio State in scoring with 11.7 points. Loving scored 10 points in the teams' first meeting on Dec. 30. Uthoff was the game's key performer with 18 points, seven rebounds and five assists and had a crucial 3-pointer from the corner. You can bet Ohio State will do everything it can to deny Uthoff, who averages 16.8 points a game in Big Ten play and earned league player of the week honors for his performance. Conversely, Ohio State has so many offensive weapons that Iowa can't afford to lose track of Loving along the wing.

KEY STATISTICS

SCORING/OPP:

Iowa 70.5/61.1; OSU 81.2/60.3

FG%/OPP FG%:

Iowa 41.6/39.0; OSU 50.9/38.5

3PT%/OPP 3PT%:

Iowa 31.3/31.7; OSU 38.3/30.4

FT%:

Iowa 76.2; OSU 70.6

LIKELY STARTERS

Iowa:

G Mike Gesell (6-2); G Peter Jok (6-6); F Jarrod Uthoff (6-9); F Aaron White (6-9); C Adam Woodbury (7-1)

Ohio State:

G Shannon Scott (6-1); G D'Angelo Russell (6-5); G/F Marc Loving (6-7) F Sam Thompson (6-7); C Amir Williams (6-11)

KEY RESERVES

Iowa

: C Gabe Olaseni (6-10); G Anthony Clemmons (6-2); G Josh Oglesby (6-6); G Trey Dickerson (6-1); G Brady Ellingson (6-4); F Dominique Uhl (6-9)

Ohio State:

G Kam Williams (6-2); F Jae'Sean Tate (6-4); F Anthony Lee (6-9); F Keita Bates-Diop (6-7); C Trey McDonald (6-8)

KEY STORYLINES

1. Defense.

Ohio State switched from zone to man defense after the Hawkeyes beat the Buckeyes in the Big Ten opener. It's a huge change for Ohio State, and the move allows its athletes to operate more freely in defense. Maybe it slightly curtails a transition spurt, but the Buckeyes will benefit from the move.

'It's kind of weird. They played zone for like 13 straight games and then it worked for a game and half in the Big Ten, or didn't work, however you want to look at it, and now they've gone straight to man,” Iowa forward Aaron White said. 'It's a little strange, I've never seen anything like that. But Coach (Fran McCaffery) said he called it. Coach said he knew they'd do that. But it changes it in that aspect that they're going to be into you a little bit more.”

Even with the switch, Ohio State ranks second in Big Ten field-goal percentage on defense.

2. Energy level.

Iowa has struggled to maintain its energy level in the second half against top competition this year. In its eight games against currently or formerly ranked opponents, Iowa has been outscored 84-27 from halftime through the initial second-half timeout. Iowa overcame that issue against Minnesota and built a 17-point lead early in the second half, then nearly collapsed before winning by two.

Perhaps the worst example for Iowa came against Michigan State nine days ago. Iowa led by 11 at halftime but fizzled in the second half and was outscored 47-22 in a 14-point loss.

'Part of it was they were making pretty much everything. We weren't making anything,” White said. 'We were missing free throws. It was a weird game in that aspect. The energy was kind of strange for our team. It was a weird game for our team.”

Iowa has the potential to build on the Minnesota win, if only because they trailed by four points in a tough environment late in the second half before pulling out the win.

'The fact that we fought through I think is a testament to our team's character,” Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said. 'I was really proud of how we fought because even though we weren't stopping them, we kept scoring. When we were not scoring on a couple of our losses, the Iowa State game, Michigan State game stick out in my mind, we couldn't stop them, and we weren't scoring.”

3. Offense.

Ohio State remains one of the league's best offensive teams, ranking first in scoring margin, turnover margin and field-goal percentage. Freshman guard D'Angelo Russell averages 18.1 points a game, third in the Big Ten. He struggled from the perimeter against Iowa, hitting just 4 of 16 shots, including 1 of 8 from 3-point range. But Russell since has popped Illinois for 22, Minnesota for 27 and Michigan for 21. He scored just 13 against both Iowa and Indiana, and the Buckeyes dropped both games.

Iowa's backcourt has been inconsistent on offense. Point guard Mike Gesell leads the unit with 6.8 points per game. Peter Jok scored 13 points against Minnesota and eight against Michigan State, but he missed all five shots and didn't score against Nebraska. Josh Oglesby was strong off the bench against the Buckeyes in the opener, scoring eight points, but since has just three points.

BOTTOM LINE

Ohio State has a much better offense in both points and percentage. The teams are virtually equal in defense, blocked shots, assists and steals. Iowa is the better free-throw shooting team, the stronger rebounding club and has an edge in the post.

The Hawkeyes won the first game in Columbus, but Iowa has struggled at home before large crowds. Iowa is just 2-6 in its last eight games at Carver-Hawkeye Arena before crowds exceeding 15,000. One of those losses came to Ohio State last year after the Hawkeyes - like this year - won in Columbus.

Ohio State's overall athletic advantage and shooting prowess can't be denied. Iowa clamped down defensively in the teams' first meeting and hit several big shots late to pull out the road win. It might take a better overall performance today to sweep the Buckeyes. It's not impossible, but it will difficult.

PREDICTION: Ohio State 73, Iowa 67

l Comments: (319) 339-3169; scott.dochterman@thegazette.com