Iowa-Purdue breakdown

RECORDS

Iowa 15-3, 6-0 Big Ten; Purdue 17-3, 5-2 Big Ten

TV

12:06 p.m. BTN (Cory Provus, Jon Crispin, Mike Hall)

LOCATION

Carver-Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, Iowa (15,400)

LINE

Iowa by 2 1/2 (opened at minus-7)

SERIES

Purdue leads series 87-74; Iowa beat Purdue 70-63 at West Lafayette, Ind., on Jan. 2

PROFILE

Iowa is ranked 9th by both AP and USA Today/Coaches poll; Purdue is ranked 22nd by both AP and USA Today/Coaches poll

KEY MATCHUP

Iowa center Adam Woodbury vs. Purdue centers A.J. Hammons and Isaac Haas. No team in the country has the kind of girth in the post like Purdue. Both players stand at least 7 feet and weigh at least 250 pounds. They're also effective as the Boilermakers' top two scorers. They combine for 24.4 points, 12.3 rebounds and nearly four blocks a game. They alternate possessions in waves, almost like hockey line shifts. Hammons is the better athlete but Haas is taller and wider.

Woodbury can match his opponents in height but is more agile. Iowa's offense doesn't run through the post as much as Purdue's, but Woodbury still gets his hands on the ball on many possessions. He's Iowa's best defensive communicator and critical in slowing down the Boilermakers' inside tandem.

When they played at Mackey Arena, Haas and Hammons combined for 17 points and 12 rebounds in 40 minutes. Woodbury battled with six points and seven boards. It will take that kind of effort again for the Hawkeyes to sweep the Boilermakers.

KEY STATISTICS

SCORING/OPP: Iowa 81.6/67.8; PUR 79.5/61.0

FG%/OPP FG%: Iowa 46.8/40.8; PUR 46.4/36.7

3PT%/OPP 3PT%: Iowa 40.3/29.7; PUR 35.5/30.1

FT%: Iowa 73.7: PUR 75.0

LIKELY STARTERS

Iowa: G Mike Gesell (6-2; 8.9 ppg, 7.0 apg; 3.6 rpg); G Anthony Clemmons (6-2; 8.5 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 3.8 apg); G Peter Jok (6-6; 14.8 ppg, 3.4 rpg); F Jarrod Uthoff (6-9; 18.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg; 3.1 bpg); C Adam Woodbury (7-1; 8.7 ppg, 6.6 rpg)

Purdue: G Johnny Hill (6-3; 5.7 ppg, 2.2 apg, 2.9 rpg); G Vince Edwards (6-8; 9.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 3.8 apg); G Rapheal Davis (6-6; 8.8 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.0 apg); F Caleb Swanigan (6-9; 10.4 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.0 bpg); C A.J. Hammons (7-0; 13.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 2.5 bpg)

KEY RESERVES

Iowa: G Brady Ellingson (6-4; 3.6 ppg, 0.8 rpg); F Dominique Uhl (6-9; 7.3 ppg, 4.2 rpg); F Nicholas Baer (6-7; 5.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg); F Ahmad Wagner (6-5, 2.6 ppg, 2.4 rpg)

Purdue: C Isaac Haas (7-2; 10.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 1.1 bpg); G Kendall Stephens (6-7; 7.2 ppg; 1.4 rpg game); G Dakota Mathias (6-4; 5.2 ppg, 2.4 rpg, 2.3 apg); G Ryan Cline (6-5; 3.9 ppg, 1.2 rpg; G P.J. Thompson (5-10; 5.8 ppg, 2.2 rpg)

WORTH WATCHING

Iowa point guard Mike Gesell was hampered with a slight hamstring injury before and against Rutgers. He still played 33 minutes and dished nine assists despite not scoring.

Gesell — and the rest of his teammates — will go against a physical, persistent and aggressive Purdue defense. Boilermakers guard P.J. Thompson drew rave reviews for his second-half defense against Ohio State's Kam Williams, who hit four 3-pointers in the first half but none in the second. Purdue guard Rapheal Davis was the Big Ten's top defender last year, and center A.J. Hammons has led the league in blocks three consecutive years. He ranks second behind Iowa's Jarrod Uthoff in blocks this year.

Purdue ranks second nationally in defensive points per possession (0.86) and is third in field goal percentage defense (36.7). Iowa hits 46.8 percent of its shots.

Boilermakers guard Kendall Stephens, son of former Purdue star Everette Stephens, did not make the trip because of personal reasons.

'He lost one of his best friends and a high school teammate recently,' Purdue Coach Matt Painter said in a statement. 'He has had a hard time dealing with the loss of his friend and we are going to give him as much time as he needs to heal.'

Stephens ranks sixth in scoring at 7.2 points per game and his 174 career 3-pointers rank ninth in Purdue history. He has a team-high 37 3-pointers this year.

BOTTOM LINE/PREDICTION

Both teams are in the midst of terrific seasons. Iowa has won 12 consecutive Big Ten games, the program's best streak since 1970. Iowa is 6-0 for the first time in Big Ten play since 1987 and has won five of its six league games by double digits. It's the Hawkeyes' best 18-game start since equaling a 15-3 mark in 1997-98.

Purdue is 17-3, tying its best 20-game start in the last 28 years. Purdue's 1987-88 team started 18-2 and its 2010-11, 2009-10 and 1993-94 versions started 17-3.

The last time Iowa swept Purdue was in 2004. Three weeks ago, the Hawkeyes battled back from a 19-point deficit to end a seven-game losing streak at Mackey Arena.

This has the potential to be Iowa's most challenging home game this year. The Boilermakers' stifling defense can be difficult to penetrate, especially in the post. If the Hawkeyes struggle shooting from the perimeter, it could be a long day.

'I think you know what you're going to get,' Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said. 'It's been very consistent since Matt's (Painter) gotten there. I think it was like that when (Gene) Keady was there. They're going to guard you, they're going to pressure you, they're going to pick you up. It's physical but it's not over the top where they're committing crazy fouls. They play intelligently defensively, but they work and they compete. So bottom line is you want to beat Purdue, you've got to compete.'

Purdue is inconsistent from the perimeter but has the potential to get hot, like it did in the first half against Iowa. The game could come down to Woodbury. If he stays out of foul trouble and stays on the court, Iowa should win. If not, the Boilermakers have the advantage.

IOWA 71, PURDUE 68

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