Illinois–Iowa men's basketball rivalry
Sport | College basketball |
---|---|
First meeting | February 14, 1908 Iowa 46 – Illinois 36 |
Latest meeting | March 8, 2020 Illinois 78 – Iowa 76 |
Stadiums | State Farm Center, Carver–Hawkeye Arena |
Statistics | |
Meetings total | 162 |
All-time series | Illinois leads, 86–76 |
Largest victory | Illinois, 118–85 (1990) |
Longest win streak | Illinois, 7 (2008–2012) |
Current win streak | Illinois, 1 (2020–present) |
The Illinois–Iowa men's basketball rivalry is an intra-Big Ten Conference, college sports rivalry between the Illinois Fighting Illini and Iowa Hawkeyes. Multiple factors have played into the creation of the games between the two schools; Illinois and Iowa share a state border and are located about 242 miles (389 km) apart, and they share recruiting ground. The rivalry has been evidenced both on the court and off the court. Among the off the court elements of the rivalry, recruiting of basketball talent has resulted in battles for specific athletes. The most notable battle turned into the Pearl/Thomas Incident which began when both schools sought the services of Deon Thomas and resulted in recruiting restrictions and a one-year post-season ban for Illinois.[1]
History
Illinois and Iowa first met on February 14, 1908 with an Iowa victory, 46–36. The teams would not meet again until 1913 in Urbana, Illinois, however, after 1924 the teams would play every year with the exception of six seasons. Since the two teams are both in the Big Ten Conference, they meet at least once per season. The location of the game alternates between State Farm Center, formerly Assembly Hall, in Champaign, and in Iowa City at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. There have only been a total of four neutral site games in this series. Illinois leads the series 86-76, a head-to-head record that has become closer after the Hawkeyes ability to win 10 of the last 15 meetings since 2012.
Pearl/Thomas incident In 1986 head coach Tom Davis took over an Iowa team from George Raveling that included two key forwards, Ed Horton and Kevin Gamble, each from Lanphier High School in Springfield, Illinois. Utilizing the success of those players, Bruce Pearl, assistant coach and key recruiter for Iowa, was working the state of Illinois to acquire Deon Thomas, a highly talented Chicago Public League player from Simeon High School. Simultaneously, Jimmy Collins, assistant coach to Lou Henson and the Fighting Illini, was also attempting to acquire Thomas. Pearl brought allegations to the NCAA that Illinois assistant coaches had acted improperly in the recruitment of Thomas, including secretly tape-recorded phone conversations with Thomas that were used in the investigation. While the allegations of improper conduct were unfounded by the NCAA, the investigation did uncover other violations that cost the University of Illinois with restrictions in football and basketball in the manner of limiting scholarships, recruiting and tournament participation.[2][3][4]
In a game played in Iowa City on February 2, 2020, after an intensely physical game which saw 14 lead-changes and 8 ties, the Hawkeyes would come out on top with a final score of 72–65.[5] During the closing seconds of the game, with Illinois' defense supposedly willing to let the final 12 seconds expire, sophomore guard Joe Wieskamp dunked to extend the Iowa lead to 10 points. This appeared to agitate the Illini players and, after a 3-point field goal by Illinois guard Ayo Dosunmu, with four seconds left, the Hawkeyes in-bounded the ball to C. J. Fredrick and it appeared that Illinois was trying to intentionally foul. Fredrick kicked it out to Connor McCaffery, who was hugged by Dosunmu. Mike Eades, an official for the game, elected not to call the foul as the clock expired. The exchanges between both teams spilled over into the post-game handshake line when Illinois assistant coach Ron Coleman took exception to Joe Wieskamp's dunk with 12 seconds left to give the Hawkeyes a double-digit lead. Coleman shouted profanities in the direction of coach McCaffery, leading the coach to instruct his Hawkeyes to head to the locker room, skipping the handshake line. The Illini staff eventually held their players near the scorer's table to let the Iowa players get to the tunnel to the locker room and off the court.[6][7]
Occasional feuds and incidents between the schools' programs have fueled the competition over the years. Iowa has the advantage in the history of the Big Ten Tournament. Of the 20+ years the conference tournament has been held, Illinois and Iowa have played a total of 4 times. Iowa holds the record of 3-1 over Illinois. In the 2016 Big Ten Tournament the Hawkeyes were the fifth seed and the Illini, who were seeded twelfth, faced each other in the second round. Illinois won the game 68–66. This is the only upset of the tournament portion of the rivalry with Illinois, a 12 seed, defeating Iowa as the fifth seed.[8]
Game results
Winning team is shown. Ranking of the team at the time of the game by the AP poll is shown by the team name.
- *Denotes game played during the Big Ten Tournament
Illinois victories | Iowa victories | Tie games |
|
Series statistics
- Series Record: Illinois leads 86 to 76
- Current Streak: Illinois, 1 win
- Illinois when ranked: 25-22
- Iowa when ranked: 24-13
- When both teams are ranked: Iowa leads 11-6
- Illinois when unranked: 60-53
- Iowa when unranked: 51-67
- When both teams are unranked: Illinois leads 49-39
- In overtime games: Illinois leads 6-3
- Neutral site: Iowa leads 3-1
- Illinois' longest winning streak: 7
- Iowa's longest winning streak: 6
- Illinois' largest winning margin: 33 points (March 4, 1990)
- Iowa's largest winning margin: 24 points (January 3, 1976)
References
- ^ "Bruce Pearls memo to the NCAA". Archive.org. Retrieved February 3, 2020.
- ^ Sherman, Ed (November 8, 1990). "NCAA STUNS ILLINOIS WITH STIFF PENALTIES". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ Libit, Dan (March 22, 2011). "Bruce Pearl's First Con, And The World That Created A Monster". Deadspin. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ Tupper, Mark (April 2, 2012). "23 years later, Pearl apologizes to Collins". Quad City Times. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ HawkeyeSports.com
- ^ Coss, Matt (February 2, 2020). "Juice returns to Iowa-Illinois hoops rivalry". Quad City Times. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ Eickholt, David (February 3, 2020). "Connor McCaffery discusses chippy end of Illinois-Iowa". 247Sports.com. Retrieved February 4, 2020.
- ^ 2019-20 Big Ten Media Guide
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