12/3 Big Ten Preview: Iowa Set to Host Western Illinois

There’s only one Big Ten game tonight with #3 Iowa set to host Western Illinois.

Game of the Day

Western Illinois Leathernecks at #3 Iowa Hawkeyes

• Time/TV: 8:00 PM ET (BTN)

The Hawkeyes will host the Leathernecks of Western Illinois tonight. In Iowa’s first two games they’ve averaged 100 points per game, with star Luka Garza averaging 33.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game. Joe Wieskamp, Patrick McCaffery and Keegan Murray are all averaging double doubles and the Hawkeyes are shooting 51.6% from the field so far early in the season.

Western Illinois won five games last year and will now be breaking in new head coach Rob Jeter. Jeter spent just over a decade at Milwaukee in the Horizon League, making it to the NCAA Tournament twice. Jeter started coaching under former Wisconsin head coach Bo Ryan before getting the job at Milwaukee in the 2000s and will be back at head coach for the first time since 2016 (he spent time on the coaching staff at UNLV and Minnesota in between).

Unfortunately for Jeter, the three leading scorers from last year all transferred out, including Kobe Webster, who averaged 17.1 points per game and left for Nebraska. The next two guys up both graduated, leaving the leading returning scorer senior Anthony Jones, who averaged 5.0 points per game last year. An inexperienced Western Illinois program does add UAB transfer Tamell Pearson and Chattanooga transfer Rod Johnson Jr. However, the Leathernecks will be a young team with little to no experience trying to come together on the road against a top three team.

Iowa has had no problem so far this season and Western Illinois is unlikely to prove any more of a challenge.

Pick: Iowa