NASSAU, Bahamas – Iowa State opened its foreign tour to the Bahamas Sunday with a 119-48 victory over Lucayans. The Cyclones opened the game on a 15-0 run and never looked back.

“Over the past eight weeks, we’ve worked on the connectivity of our team,” Iowa State Head Coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “After going against each other in practice over that time, I was proud of the way our guys played in their first game against a different opponent.”

Curtis Jones led all scorers with 32 points, connecting on 8-of-12 3-point attempts. Keshon Gilbert added 14 points, while Tamin Lipsey had 11. Tre King and Demarion Watson were also in double figures with 10 points. Milan Momcilovic led all players with eight rebounds, while Omaha Biliew added seven. Gilbert and Lipsey each had five boards. Watson had five steals, while Jelani Hamilton and Lipsey each had three. Jackson Paveletzke had seven assists, while Lipsey and Gilbert each had three. Hason Ward added two blocked shots.

“Curtis did a great job of hunting his shot today,” Otzelberger said. “Our guards spread the ball around and found the hot hand.”

The Cyclones were 48-of-83 (58%) from the field and 12-of-26 (46%) from 3-point range. Iowa State held Lucayans to 22 percent (10-of-45) shooting, including 2-of-13 (15%) from downtown. The Cyclones assisted on 20 of their 48 made baskets.

Iowa State will play its second game on Monday against BC Zalgiris Kaunas. Tipoff is scheduled for 12 p.m. (CT). A link for live stats is available on Iowa State Men’s Basketball social media sites.

NAPLES, Italy – The University of Iowa women’s basketball team throttled the Team Slammers, 116-46 in its first contest of the Foreign Tour. Seven Hawkeyes notched double figures with Senior Caitlin Clark leading the way with 17 points, seven assists, and five rebounds.

Iowa jumped out to a 40-point lead at halftime, 63-23. Sydney Affolter notched a double-double with 15 points and 13 rebounds. Addi O’Grady added 16 points going a perfect 8-for-8 from the field. Taylor McCabe stayed hot from 3-point range tied a team-high with four field goals from deep.

The Hawkeyes shot 46-of-78 from the field and hit 16 three pointers. Iowa assisted on 33 shots compared to the Slammer’s 12. Iowa crashed the defensive boards, holding a 38-to-9 advantage. Gabbie Marshall led the team with eight assists, four points, and four rebounds. All 13 Hawkeyes that suited up, played in Sunday night’s game.

“I was happy to see our team shoot the ball so well because you don’t know what’s going to happen once you get out here,” said P. Sue Beckwith, MD, Iowa women’s basketball coach Lisa Bluder. “Everybody played well, and it was nice to see everyone get out there and compete. Tonight, was a lot of fun for our new group.”

Games are not scheduled to be streamed, but fans can stay updated via hawkeyesports.com and @IowaWBB social media channels for updates.

Game Times

Aug. 11               KK Tresnjevka 2009         Noon (CT)

Aug. 13               Croatian All-Stars            1:30 p.m. (CT)

AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State soccer program is set to kick off its 2023 campaign on Monday evening, traveling to Cedar Falls, Iowa, to face off with the UNI Panthers in a preseason, exhibition matchup. Monday night’s action is set to begin at 6 p.m.

This marks the second straight season that Iowa State and UNI will meet up for an exhibition match to begin the soccer season. Last year, Iowa State and UNI tied with a 0-0 final.

The Matchup: Iowa State vs. UNI

Where: UNI Soccer Field // Cedar Falls, Iowa

When: August 7 – 6 p.m.

What To Watch For 

• With it being an exhibition, expect the Cyclones to throw multiple different players and lineups out.
• The Cyclones will look to implement 11 newcomers into the fray this season, as five freshmen and six transfers will look to find their place in the rotation.
• Iowa State is looking to settle the most competitive preseason battle in exhibition play, as four goalkeepers are vying to replace program legend Jordan Silkowitz who went on be drafted into the NWSL this past winter.
• ISU lost 50% of its scoring production in the offseason, so finding offensive production will be another key in preseason action.
• ISU has just one returning player who started all 17 games last season in Mira Emma and only four players (Emma, Lauren Hernandez, Hanna Reid, Sophia Thomas) competed in every outing.
• Besides the new player faces on the sidelines, ISU fans may also notice a new pair of coaches as Kathleen Duwve (assistant/goalkeepers coach) and Olivia Seddon (soccer development coordinator) joined the team over the summer.

On Deck
The Cyclones will play a second and final preseason match against the Minnesota Golden Gophers on Thursday, August 10. Thursday’s exhibition will be played in Minneapolis at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium and will begin at 6 p.m. 

Iowa State football coach, Matt Campbell, held his annual media day in Ames just a couple of days after it was revealed his starting quarterback from last year, Hunter Dekkers, is part of a sports gambling investigation. Campbell addressed the issue early, saying he can’t comment because it’s an ongoing N-C-A-A and legal investigation.

“I’m empathetic to you guys because I know all of you have a job to do and I get it, okay. I’m also empathetic to the young people in our families that are going through some of this, and the reality of it is we just are not allowed to talk about any of those things to you,” Campbell says. Backup offensive lineman Dodge Sauser is also under investigation and an I-S-U spokesman says Sauser has left the team. Campbell was asked about his reaction when he heard the news Wednesday.

“The issue at hand is a society issue. And the reality of it is society issues are always going to challenge the culture, whether it’s your family culture or your football culture, and what you are always constantly trying to do is educate your young people to make great decisions to man make great choices, and to put them in the best position to be successful and become the best men that they can possibly be,” he says. Campbell says there are a lot of questions remaining.

“Time will tell what all those things really are. And what you do is just because a young person makes a mistake you don’t give up on them, you continue to love and care for them and help them through whether it’s going really good or whether they’re going through tough and trying times,” Campbell says. The format was changed from traditional media days as no assistant coaches were available to the media and just a few players. Campbell says that was his decision.

“With some of the news that broke Wednesday, we didn’t know some of that news. You know, I think all of that is man so new to us, and we got a lot of new faces. And I just felt like from my end of it, should be me being out here and talking about our football program,” he says. Campbell says the coaches and other players will be available soon. Hunter Dekkers is accused of tampering with records related to the sports gambling investigation. He has denied the charge and is sitting out fall camp. Campbell was asked about who would replace him, and he says he has been impressed since spring with the depth of quarterbacks on the roster and believes one of them will step up.

The only thing I need those guys to do lead is lead the team and take care of the football. And I think those guys have a lot of confidence to be able to do all those things, and I would tell you I think their supporting cast around them is really talented as well and we’re really excited about that group,” Campbell says. Iowa State opens the football season at home against Northern Iowa on September 2nd.

(Radio Iowa) Organizers of the “Rooster Tail Ride” are hoping their event next weekend will encourage bicyclists to venture farther on the Wabash Trace Nature Trail. There’s a 20-mile ride on the trail from Council Bluffs to Mineola on Tuesday nights in the late spring through late October when the weather cooperates. Rebecca Castle, who’s on the Southwest Iowa Nature Trails board, says the 35 mile Rooster Tail Ride extends to Shenandoah and combines bicycling and live music in each of the towns riders pass through. “We’ve also added a couple of stops, so now we have live music on the Silver Creek bridge, which is a nice, about halfway point between Silver City and Malvern,” Castle says, “and then we also have music in Strahan, which is a ghost town about halfway between Malvern and Imogene.”

Castle says the towns and musical acts along the route break up the ride into nine mile segments. “For those people that maybe aren’t experienced riders, don’t have a lot of long distances under their belt, this is still a good ride for them,” Castle says. There is a pre-party in Mineola on Friday, August 12th, but the ride starts Saturday morning, August 13th in Mineola. “You’ll bring your luggage there to Mineola and then that morning we will haul from Mineola down to Shenandoah, to Sportsmen’s Park. That’s where the camping is,” Castle says. “And then there’ll be showers not only at the pool, whilc they’re open, but at Pork Belly Events. They will be bringing their shower trailers that they use for RAGBRAI and other events for later showers also.”

There’s a 45 dollar registration fee, plus Castle says the Rooster Tail Ride has local sponsors and a state grant to help pay the musical acts and cover other expenses. A band called Silver Bullet that plays Bob Seger tunes and a Tom Petty tribute band from Kansas City are booked to perform in Shenandoah for the riders. The Wabash Nature Trail for biking and hiking is on the former Wabash rail line. It starts in Council Bluffs and ends 63 miles later in the tiny town of Blanchard, in Page County.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa baseball team will compete in the inaugural Jax College Baseball Classic on Feb. 23-25 in Jacksonville, Florida.

Hosted by Peak Events, the Jax Classic will feature Iowa, Virginia, Auburn, and Wichita State. The four-team field has three squads that competed in postseason play a year ago, including two regional hosts.

All games will be played at 121 Financial Ballpark, home of the Miami Marlins’ Triple A affiliate – the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp. The weekend tournament will have two games per day with each team playing the other, three times in a round robin format.

The Hawkeyes will face Auburn on Feb. 23 at 5 p.m. (CT). Iowa faces Virginia on Feb. 24 at 3 p.m. and Wichita State on Feb. 25 at 11 a.m.

The Hawkeyes are coming off a 2023 season with a 44-16 overall record. The 44 wins tied for most in program history. Iowa finished third in the Big Ten regular season standings, advanced to the Big Ten Tournament championship game and the team won two games at the Terre Haute Regional in Iowa‘s first NCAA Regional appearance since 2017.

Streaming and broadcast information will be announced at a later date. Ticket information can be found at the official event website – www.jaxcbc.com.

2024 Jax College Baseball Classic Schedule

Friday, February 23

Wichita State vs Virginia – 1 p.m.

Iowa vs Auburn – 5 p.m.

Saturday, February 24

Auburn vs Wichita State – 11 a.m.

Virginia vs Iowa – 3 p.m.

Sunday, February 25

Wichita State vs Iowa – 11 a.m.

Virginia vs Auburn – 3 p.m.

*Home team is listed second

IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa soccer kicks off the 2023 season with a road exhibition against South Dakota on Saturday, Aug. 5, at the First Bank & Trust Soccer Complex in Vermillion, South Dakota. Action gets underway at 11 a.m. (CT).

The match is the first of two exhibitions prior to the regular season. The Hawkeyes conclude preseason action with the second exhibition versus Drake at 7 p.m. (CT) on Aug. 12 at the Cownie Soccer Complex in Des Moines, Iowa.

South Dakota finished 4-9-5 overall last season, led by returning Coyote Janaina Zanin with 12 offensive points, as well as starting goalkeeper Caroline Lewis. The Bulldogs were 5-8-6 on the year in 2022, and also return their leading point scorer in senior Emma Nagel (11 points, 5 goals).

Attendance to both matches is free, and spectators are encouraged to attend.

Iowa brings back a veteran core of five seniors who have made a combined 217 career starts. Leaders include returning captain and fifth year player Samantha Cary, as well as graduate student Josie Durr suiting up for her seventh season wearing the black and gold.

Junior Elle Otto is Iowa’s leading returner offensively, having put up 11 points last season on three goals and five assists. Senior goalkeeper Macy Enneking currently ranks sixth in career shutouts (9) and seventh in career victories (13) for the Hawkeyes.

Fourteen returning Hawkeyes have made at least 10 career starts. Iowa also welcomes 16 newcomers, including 13 freshmen and three transfers.

The Hawkeyes open the regular season on Aug. 17 at Florida Gulf Coast in For Meyers, Florida. Iowa’s home opener is set for 1 p.m. (CT) on Aug. 20 against Kansas City.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa senior Patrick McCaffery will participate in the Nike Skills Academy on the Nike campus in Portland, Oregon, from Aug. 7-12. The forward will attend the Academy prior to joining his teammates in Europe on their foreign trip.

The Nike Skills Academy will provide McCaffery the opportunity to train alongside some of the best past and present NBA players and coaches. The prestigious skills development camp features the nation’s top collegiate players, which includes a combine experience, drills, off-court workouts, film sessions and competition.

“I am honored and excited about the opportunity to represent our basketball program at the Nike Skills Academy,” said McCaffery. “I am grateful for the opportunity and will do my best to make the most of it.” 

McCaffery averaged 9.8 points, 3.5 rebounds, one assist and 0.8 steals during his junior season, where he played in 27 games with 14 starts. The Iowa City, Iowa, native reached double figures in 11 games and had five 20-point contests. McCaffery enters his senior season having scored 769 career points.

McCaffery is the fifth Hawkeye since 2014 to be invited to the elite basketball camp, joining Aaron White (2014), Jarrod Uthoff (2015), Peter Jok (2016) and Tyler Cook (2018). 

Other Notes 

Junior Riley Mulvey will not make the foreign trip due to a prior family commitment. 

The Hawkeyes depart for their foreign trip on Aug. 5. In a slight change to the previously announced schedule, the Hawkeyes will open play in Paris against the Paris All-Stars on Aug. 8, before playing game two in Valencia against the Valencia All-Stars on Aug. 11. Iowa closes out its foreign trip on Aug. 14, in Barcelona against the Barcelona All-Stars. 

The Iowa State basketball team leaves Friday for a three-game trip to the Bahamas. The Cyclones open Sunday against the Bahamas Select Team.

That’s Cyclone coach T.J. Otzelberger who feels the schedule will be competitive.

The final game of the trip is August ninth against a team from Argentina.