GameDay Preview: A Huge Challenge Awaits with Garza, Hawkeyes

Iowa has surprised some by staying in the hunt for a Big Ten title, and big man Luka Garza has been a big reason why.

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — Iowa has designs on staying connected in the race for a Big Ten championship, and that means coming to Mackey Arena to get a victory on Wednesday night. That hasn't been easy to do this year, even for some of the best teams in the country.

Iowa, just a game out of first, has had some recent success against the Boilers, winning five of the last nine meetings. This one should be another great battle.

Here are the particulars on the game:

• Who: Iowa Hawkeyes (16-6, 7-4 in the Big Ten) vs. Purdue Boilermakers (12-10, 5-6 in the Big Ten) 
• When: 7 p.m. ET, Wednesday, Feb. 5
• Where: Mackey Arena, West Lafayette, Ind. 
• Latest Line: Purdue is a 4.5-point favorite as of Wednesday morning, according to VegasInsider.com
• Rankings: Iowa is ranked No. 17 in both the Associated Press poll and Coaches poll. Purdue is no longer receiving votes in either poll.
• Kenpom.com rankings: Iowa is No. 13, Purdue is ranked No. 29. 
• TV: Big Ten Network
• Announcers: Kevin Kugler, Shon Morris
• Radio: Purdue Radio Network
• Announcers: Larry Clisby, Rob Blackman, Ralph Taylor

I had an opportunity to take a good look at the Hawkeyes with my counterpart in Iowa City, John Bohnenkamp of Sports Illustrated Iowa.

In the video above, John talked about how great Luka Garza has been this year for the Hawkeyes. He's a national player of the year candidate to some, and is averaging 23 points and 10 rebounds per game.

We also talked about how well Iowa has been playing on the road this year, thanks to a tough nonconference schedule, and then John broke down the Hawkeyes' chances of the  staying in that top group in the Big Ten.