By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa — At this time last year, building up strength was atop Adam Woodbury’s list of offseason priorities. Strength is an attribute centers need to have in order to survive the grind that is Big Ten basketball and this was something Woodbury recognized and addressed.

As he continues to address his strength even further though, Woodbury isn’t the only Hawkeye center placing a priority on it. Senior center Gabe Olaseni played his entire junior season weighing between 220-225 pounds. Right now, he’s undergoing a bulking up process similar to what Woodbury endured a year ago.

“Coach McCaffery had a conversation with me that he wanted me to bump my weight up to around 230,” Olaseni said. “So I’m up to 233 right now. I feel like I can get up to 240. I feel as though I’m running the same and I’m jumping higher.

“It’s all about strength this offseason.”

Olaseni’s present strength was the first thing Woodbury said he noticed as being different about him, even though the two go head-to-head with one another every day in practice and did so in Prime Time League action Thursday. With that in mind, Woodbury is continuing to stick to what allowed him to have more success as a sophomore and he believes it’s making him better now.

“I think my jumper has gotten a little bit better from last year. I’m more confident in it,” Woodbury said. “I think I may be in a little bit better shape. I’ve gotten bigger and stronger this offseason and I’ve got a couple of months left to get even stronger.

“I feel really good about my game right now.”

The physicality is on display when they go head-to-head. It might also be on display even more if the two wind up playing more minutes together in 2014-15 with Olaseni learning more about playing the 4-spot, which would in theory allow him to complement Woodbury inside.

“Last year, a lot of the fouls I got were just two shots to the line,” Olaseni said. “I kind of want to translate those into And-1s. Just being able to finish around the rim, just being able to keep the ball high and finish high and just dunk everything around the rim.

“It’s not just strength in my upper body. It’s in my legs. I’m squatting a lot more. I’m doing what it takes to be able to take that next step in terms of finishing.”

Culver’s/McCurry’s 105, Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company 90

Being short-handed for the second straight week didn’t seem to phase Culver’s/McCurry’s in its 105-90 win over Merchants/Iron. In fact, it could have been worse than it ended up being.

Initially, senior forward Aaron White didn’t have intentions of playing Thursday since he’s participating at the Kevin Durant Nike Skills Academy this weekend in Washington, D.C. But since his flight to the nation’s capital wasn’t scheduled to depart until Friday morning, White decided to suit up Thursday for his Culver’s/McCurry’s squad and tallied 15 points and nine rebounds in the win.

White left the game for good during the second half as his team built a lead that was as big as 82-56. Culver’s/McCurry’s moved to 2-0 with the win and is expected to have incoming sophomore guard Trey Dickerson making his PTL debut for it next week.

“I just wanted to play a little bit of pick-up and get my legs going,” White said. “I’m fortunate enough that we were winning tonight and I didn’t have to play in the second half.”I didn’t play pick-up this week with the guys, so I needed something so I wasn’t rusty tomorrow.”

The story for Merchants/Iron was the play of junior guard Mike Gesell. He looked more aggressive attacking the rim on Thursday and it showed in the stat line as he finished with a team-high 25 points on 10-of-20 shooting from the floor.

“I’m looking to be a lot more aggressive this season,” Gesell said. “With Dev, our leading scorer, moving on to the league, I think as a role for myself, I need to step up and be a little bit more of a scorer, especially being an upperclassman now. That’s something that I’m looking to do to improve my offensive game.”

Merchants/Iron, which dropped to 1-1 this summer with the loss, also received a 9-point, 6-rebound showing in defeat from incoming freshman forward Dominique Uhl. It also got an 8-point, 7-rebound game from incoming freshman walk-on Nicholas Baer.

Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale 111, L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare 109

In the battle of big men, it was Woodbury who had the upper hand Thursday as his Autowash/Homes squad defeated Olaseni and Pelling/Comfort Care, 111-109.

But as intriguing as this contest sounded like it would be coming in, physicality played a role as both Woodbury and Olaseni combined for 11 fouls between the two of them.

“We always go at each other,” Olaseni said. “With the fouls, I guess it’s kind of annoying. We shouldn’t really be on the bench in PTL. We should be out there playing.

“But at the same time, we just have to play through our emotions and just play through it.”

Woodbury led the charge for Autowash/Homes — who is now 1-1 this summer — by putting up nearly identical numbers to what he had last week, as he finished with 26 points on 12-of-20 shooting and nine rebounds. Olaseni on the other hand had 17 points on 8-of-16 shooting and six rebounds for Pelling/Comfort Care, who dropped to 0-2 with the loss.

“He’s a tough match-up for anybody,” Woodbury said. “I think his size and athleticism are pretty unmatched from anybody I’ve seen in the first two years of my college career. It’s a really tough match-up for me, but I think I hold my own.”

Pelling/Comfort Care also received a 17-point performance from senior guard Josh Oglesby, who shot 5-of-12 from the floor in defeat.

Jill Armstrong of Skogman Realty 87, BlendCard 78

Thursday’s nightcap saw Armstrong move to 2-0 after defeating BlendCard 87-78. The loss drops BlendCard to 0-2.

The story here was mainly two things. One was Armstrong’s ability to dominate the boards, out-rebounding BlendCard 53-27. The other was BlendCard’s sloppiness with the ball, particularly in the early part of the second half when its halftime lead evaporated.

Armstrong received a double-double from junior forward Jarrod Uthoff, who finished with 19 points on 8-of-21 shooting along with 14 of those 53 rebounds his team tallied Thursday. In defeat, BlendCard received a 15-point effort from sophomore guard Peter Jok, who shot 5-of-13 from the floor.

*PTL play resumes July 3 at the Cedar Valley SportsPlex in Waterloo, starting with two games at 6 p.m. Central — Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale vs. Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company and Jill Armstrong of Skogman Realty vs. Culver’s/McCurry’s — followed by a 7:30 p.m. Central contest between L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare and BlendCard. Be sure to visit HawkeyeDrive.com for ongoing coverage of the PTL this summer.

PLAYER INTERVIEWS:

Mike Gesell:

Adam Woodbury:

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

Here’s a rundown of what Iowa basketball fans can expect Thursday evening with the three Prime Time League games taking place inside the Jones & Roberts Gyms at the North Liberty Community Center:

Culver’s/McCurry’s (1-0) vs. Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company (1-0)

6 p.m., Roberts Gym

Although this is the lone contest featuring a pair of teams that were victorious last week, this match-up won’t have the same luster.

That’s because Culver’s/McCurry’s will be without the services Thursday of senior forward Aaron White, who is participating at the Kevin Durant Nike Skills Academy in Washington, D.C., this weekend. White posted a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds for Culver’s/McCurry’s in its 95-89 win over Autowash/Homes. Culver’s/McCurry’s will also remain without incoming sophomore guard Trey Dickerson, who is expected to make his PTL debut next week following his arrival on UI’s campus.

Meanwhile, Merchants/Iron should remain at full strength again this week after beating BlendCard 102-95 in its opener thanks in large part to a 40-point performance from UNI’s Nate Buss. Making his PTL debut for Merchants/Iron last week was incoming freshman forward Dominique Uhl, who had 18 points, four rebounds and five assists in the victory. Dickerson’s absence prevents the point guard battle between him and junior Mike Gesell, who is coming off a 15-point, 6-assist performance for Merchants/Iron last week.

Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale (0-1) vs. L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare (0-1)

6 p.m., Jones Gym

If there’s any major storyline in PTL action this week, it will likely come from this game between teams looking to avoid 0-2 starts to the summer. That’s because this match-up pits the battle of Hawkeye centers with junior Adam Woodbury leading Autowash/Homes against a Pelling/Comfort Care squad featuring senior Gabe Olaseni, the top pick in this year’s PTL draft.

Despite falling 95-89 to Culver’s/McCurry’s, Autowash/Homes received a strong showing last week from Woodbury, who shot 12-of-24 from the floor and finished with 27 points and nine rebounds. Autowash/Homes was also without the services of junior guard Anthony Clemmons, who is still back in his home state of Michigan and won’t be suiting up again Thursday (Clemmons is expected to return in July, however).

As for Pelling/Comfort Care, it will be seeking stronger performances from both Olaseni and senior guard Josh Oglesby. The Hawkeye duo shot a combined 9-of-36 from the floor in Pelling/Comfort Care’s 83-69 loss to Armstrong last week. However, both players finished with 15 points each and Olaseni also tallied 17 boards in defeat.

Jill Armstrong of Skogman Realty (1-0) vs. BlendCard (0-1)

7:30 p.m., Roberts Gym

The intrigue in Thursday’s nightcap will be centered around a pair of Hawkeyes who were reserves last season and could potentially be vying for starting spots in 2014-15. Junior forward Jarrod Uthoff and his Armstrong squad look to move to 2-0 while sophomore guard Peter Jok and BlendCard look to avoid starting 0-2.

Uthoff — who was the second pick in this year’s draft — put up a showing in Armstrong’s 83-69 win over Pelling/Comfort Care last week that has become typical of him in the PTL, finishing with 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists. His 22 points came on 9-of-18 shooting, all of which occurred inside the 3-point arc. As it was last week, Armstrong will likely remain without incoming freshman guard Brady Ellingson for Thursday’s game.

On the flip side, BlendCard will seek a bigger performance Thursday from last summer’s leading scorer after Jok finished with just 15 points on 6-of-10 shooting last week in its 102-95 loss to Merchants/Iron. In addition to Jok, the name to watch for BlendCard is UNI’s Seth Tuttle, who had 27 points last week and will likely be guarding Uthoff inside the majority of the night.

*Be sure to visit HawkeyeDrive.com following Thursday’s action at the North Liberty Community Center for ongoing coverage of the Prime Time League this summer.*

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

RIVERSIDE, Iowa — In the world of college basketball, there might not be a bigger advocate than Dick Vitale. His passion for the game oozes on ESPN every season and any compliments he gives toward either the Iowa or Iowa State basketball programs don’t go unnoticed throughout the state.

In the fight against cancer, there might not be a bigger advocate than Dick Vitale. Every year, he holds a gala in Sarasota, Fla., that gets people from all over the globe to donate money towards cancer research. Ask him about a family with a child fighting cancer and that same passion he shows towards college basketball is on display. In fact, it’s even more genuine.

Vitale’s crusade brought him back to Iowa for the second year in a row for a two-day fundraiser at Riverside Casino and Golf Resort sponsored by both his Dickie V Foundation and the 380 Foundation. It consisted of a gala held Friday evening, followed by a day of golf Saturday afternoon at the Blue Top Ridge Golf Course.

“To my last breath, my last breath, I’m going to beg and I’m going to plead with people to give us money for kids battling cancer,” Vitale said.

The growth in this annual event was more evident than ever before. Just like last year, Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery partook in this event again like he does numerous fundraisers with a similar cause. This time around though, he participated after seeing cancer strike his family last spring when his 14-year-old son Patrick had surgery to remove a malignant tumor from his thyroid.

Patrick was among the kids recognized by Vitale during the gala Friday evening and Fran McCaffery called it, “one of the best days of his life,” when he and his family recently learned that Patrick’s second scan was clear.

“For me, the support for Patrick has been overwhelming throughout the entire state,” McCaffery said. “Those who had cancer and all different people from Iowa State, Northern Iowa, Drake and obviously all the different teams at Iowa. From [former wrestler] Tony Ramos, to the women’s basketball team, to what Josh Oglesby did, the baseball team, we’ll never forget.

“It really made a difference for our family as we battled these last few months.”

Another difference with this year’s event was McCaffery wasn’t the only Division-I coach in the state on hand. Upon returning home from Greece Friday afternoon, Iowa State head coach Fred Hoiberg immediately made the trek across state for the gala and was back again Saturday for the golf portion of the fundraiser.

Hoiberg said he felt honored after receiving phone calls from both Vitale and McCaffery in the spring asking to be part of the event. He also mentioned how he knows firsthand as a heart disease survivor how fundraisers like Vitale’s can have a heavy influence.

“It’s amazing to see the passion he has for this,” Hoiberg said of Vitale. “To see him get up and walk around the room with his wireless mic and he’s sweating all over the place, it just speaks to who he is.

“To be a small part of that, it really is an honor.”

Both coaches mentioned attending Vitale’s gala in the past. McCaffery and his wife Margaret were both in Sarasota last month for this year’s gala, which Vitale said raised $2.1 million for pediatric cancer research.

“I’m amazed to watch him and the energy level he brings to this fight for the V Foundation,” McCaffery said. “I’m just proud to be a part of it.

“To go to a function and raise $2.1 million in one night is an amazing experience, so any time Dick asks me and Margaret to be anywhere, we’re going to be there.”

As much honor as both McCaffery and Hoiberg felt being associated with this weekend’s event, Vitale was just as appreciative of both coaches helping him in his crusade. He said his respect for McCaffery skyrocketed last March when the latter flew back to Iowa City for Patrick’s surgery the morning of Iowa’s NCAA Tournament game against Tennessee, then flew back to Dayton afterwards to coach the game.

“The state of Iowa is fortunate that you’ve got two unbelievable people,” Vitale said. “Forget about just coaching, family people. People that you want your child to be around. People that you want the kind of guidance that they’re going to give.

“They’re quality guys, man. They’re helping us here raise some dollars and I love that.”

VIDEO: DICK VITALE

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

NORTH LIBERTY, Iowa — Exactly three months have passed since the Iowa Hawkeyes were eliminated from the NCAA Tournament by Tennessee. For a team that danced for the first time in eight years and has most of its nucleus back from a season ago, not much needs to be different.

If anything is different, it’s that senior forward Aaron White and junior center Adam Woodbury are even more aware of their roles. In White’s case, that reality hit him the moment he sat down with head coach Fran McCaffery following last season’s conclusion.

“This is my team,” White said. “That’s what he told me. He really wants me to lead by example. I’ve been through the ringer. I’ve been in almost every situation you could ask for as a college player. He realizes that and he has full trust in me.

“We basically sat down and he told me he wants me to continue working on my body, getting stronger and other that that, it’s my team and to conduct myself that way.”

Much like Devyn Marble at this time last year, White has NBA ambitions. Instead of going home when the opportunity presented itself, he opted to remain in Iowa City and get in as much time at the team’s practice facility as possible. With his senior season approaching, White doesn’t anticipate making any drastic changes to his game in terms of elevating it to another level.

White also recently got invited to the Kevin Durant Skills Academy, which takes place next week in Washington, D.C. According to the camp’s web site, the “top 15 college wing players” receive invites. Oddly enough, White said he learned the news of his invite while getting his phone fixed.

“My phone was broken and I was actually at the AT&T store,” White said. “Coach Sherm[an Dillard] was calling me and he was like, ‘Where have you been? I’ve called you six times.’ I was pumped.”

As for Woodbury, a lot was made about his NCAA Tournament showing against the Volunteers and for good reason. That evening, he dropped 16 points and eight rebounds and looked every bit the part of the player McCaffery has always envisioned him becoming.

Woodbury said he has only seen “bits and pieces” of that game and hasn’t gone back to re-watch it start to finish. But that didn’t leave him without observations.

“In the grand scheme of things, it was only one game, but it gave me some confidence going into this spring and this offseason,” Woodbury said. “I know what I’m capable of. I mean, that’s something I could have done just about every night. It just didn’t happen to work out that way.”

Last offseason, one of Woodbury’s biggest priorities was building up strength. With that bulk well-established now, one of his biggest goals now is continuing to show the consistency he believes he provided as a sophomore.

“They knew what I was bringing every night,” Woodbury said. “I wasn’t scoring a lot. That wasn’t asked of me. But hopefully maybe this year, I’ll be able to score a little bit more.”

Culver’s/McCurry’s (white) 95, Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale (purple) 89

Fittingly, White and Woodbury went head-to-head Thursday in the first night of Prime Time League games this summer at the North Liberty Community Center. This time around, White got the best of Woodbury as his Culver’s/McCurry’s squad defeated Autowash/Homes 95-89 in a game that wasn’t really as close as the final score indicated.

Culver’s/McCurry’s was in control from the start and had built a lead that was 56-37 at halftime and was as many as 20 points (81-61) before Autowash/Homes managed to rally back and get within one point at 88-87 inside the last two minutes.

White finished the contest with a double-double of 25 points and 10 rebounds, shooting 6-of-19 from the floor and 13-of-19 from the free-throw line. Culver’s/McCurry’s was without the services of incoming sophomore guard Trey Dickerson, who is expected to make his PTL debut next month when games are being played in Waterloo.

Autowash/Homes received a 27-point, 9-rebound showing from Woodbury, who shot 12-of-24 from the floor in defeat. Like Culver’s/McCurry’s, Autowash/Homes was also without a Hawkeye guard. Junior Anthony Clemmons is currently in his home state of Michigan and is expected back at the end of the month when the UI’s next summer school period commences.

Jill Armstrong of Skogman Realty (gray) 83, L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare (light blue) 69

In a game that featured a much quicker pace, junior forward Jarrod Uthoff and his Armstrong squad built a 13-point halftime lead and didn’t look back as it defeated Pelling/Comfort Care, 83-69.

Uthoff had a performance that has been typical of him in PTL play, as he finished with 22 points, eight rebounds and five assists. But the interesting aspect of his stat line was all 18 of his shot attempts came inside the arc. Uthoff said he was merely taking advantage of mismatch situations that presented themselves Thursday.

One of his biggest priorities at the moment is adding weight, saying he wants to be 5-10 pounds bigger before November when the 2014-15 season begins. Uthoff is currently listed at 208 pounds.

“It’s an uphill battle for me,” Uthoff said. “I eat as much as I can and just burn a lot of calories.”

Meanwhile, Pelling/Comfort Care received a pair of 15-point efforts from its senior duo of Gabe Olaseni and Josh Oglesby. Olaseni — who was the league’s top draft pick this summer — also hauled in 17 boards, but was less than enthused about shooting 5-of-19 from the floor because he wasn’t able to showcase the post moves he said he has worked on this offseason.

“That was the first time I was double and triple-teamed in my life,” Olaseni said following Thursday’s contest. “I didn’t handle it well.”

Armstrong was minus the services of incoming freshman guard Brady Ellingson, who isn’t expected to play in the PTL until next month.

Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company (light orange) 102, BlendCard (burnt orange) 95

The best PTL game of the evening was the nightcap as Merchants/Iron held on to defeat BlendCard, 102-95.

From Iowa’s perspective, the story for Merchants/Iron on Thursday was the performance of incoming freshman Dominique Uhl. The 6-8 forward shot 7-of-11 from the floor to finish with 18 points, along with five assists and four rebounds. Uhl just arrived on the UI campus last weekend and Thursday marked his first basketball activity of any kind with any Iowa teammates.

“This was the first time I had seen him play and he played very well,” said junior guard Mike Gesell, who is playing alongside Uhl this summer on Merchants/Iron. “He was a little tentative at first, but that’s how it goes when you’re playing against older guys. Once he got going, he played very well. He showed his athleticism, he showed that he could shoot the ball. He’s going to be a very good offensive player.”

Throughout the evening, Uhl showcased a plethora of skills when he had the ball in his hands. Whether it was knowing when to go for a lay-up, finding an open teammate or throwing down a dunk over two defenders, Uhl showed off traits that could prove beneficial come winter.

As he gets acclimated to being in Iowa, Uhl believes there are a variety of areas in his game that need work between now and November.

“I’m just trying to get stronger all the time,” Uhl said. “I got to work on my body, work on my shot and always try to work on my ball-handling and just get used to college life.”

In addition to Uhl’s performance, Merchants/Iron also received a 15-point, 6-assist outing from Gesell and an 8-point game from incoming freshman walk-on Nicholas Baer. Northern Iowa’s Nate Buss finished with a game-high 40 points on 17-of-27 shooting.

As for BlendCard, Northern Iowa’s Seth Tuttle finished with 27 points on 10-of-14 shooting. It also received a 15-point outing from sophomore guard Peter Jok, who shot 6-of-10 from the floor. Junior walk-on Okey Ukah had six points and two rebounds.

*PTL play resumes June 26 at the North Liberty Community Center, starting with two games at 6 p.m. Central — Culver’s/McCurry’s vs. Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company and Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale vs. L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare — followed by a 7:30 p.m. Central contest between Jill Armstrong of Skogman Realty and BlendCard. Be sure to visit HawkeyeDrive.com for ongoing coverage of the PTL this summer.

PLAYER INTERVIEWS:

Aaron White:

Dominique Uhl:

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

The Prime Time League starts its 28th year as a summer basketball league in Iowa on Thursday with a trio of games taking place inside the two gyms at the North Liberty Community Center.

For the first time since 2011, the PTL features players from both the Iowa Hawkeyes and Northern Iowa Panthers, with the latter opting to return to the summer league following a two-year hiatus. All games will be played on Thursday nights for each of the next seven weeks, including two Thursdays (July 3 and 10) where games will be played at the Cedar Valley SportsPlex in Waterloo. The PTL championship game is scheduled for the evening of July 31. This year’s edition features six teams.

As usual, the names of the teams are solely based on league sponsors (as of Wednesday evening, one team didn’t have sponsors listed). There will be two games played at 6 p.m. Central, followed by one at 7:30 p.m.

L.L. Pelling/Comfort Care Medicare vs. Jill Armstrong Team at Skogman Realty

6 p.m., Roberts Gym

This contest features the league’s top two draft picks. Pelling/Comfort Care drew the first overall pick and used it on senior center Gabe Olaseni, who averaged 6.5 points and 4.9 rebounds per game for the Hawkeyes last season.

Olaseni was among the Iowa players who impressed most in the PTL last summer, as he averaged 25.3 points and 13.4 rebounds in seven games. Joining him this summer on Pelling/Comfort Care is senior guard Josh Oglesby, who could put himself in position to be a starter for the Hawkeyes in 2014-15 with a productive offseason both in the PTL and in summer workouts.

Armstrong will be led this summer by junior forward Jarrod Uthoff, who helped lead his PTL squad last year to a league championship. In his first full season of playing at the collegiate level, Uthoff averaged 7.6 points and 4.6 rebounds for the Hawkeyes in 2013-14 and like Oglesby, could potentially position himself this summer to become a starter for Iowa in 2014-15.

Uthoff will be playing alongside incoming freshman guard Brady Ellingson on Armstrong this summer. However, Ellingson isn’t on the UI campus yet and isn’t expected to make his PTL debut until next week.

Culver’s/McCurry’s vs. Westport Touchless Autowash/IAHomesForSale

6 p.m., Jones Gym

Senior forward Aaron White and junior center Adam Woodbury headline this PTL affair Thursday evening. For the fourth straight summer, White will play for the Culver’s/McCurry’s squad coached by Ron Nove after he selected the 6-8 forward with the third overall pick in last weekend’s PTL Draft. White will have more availability for Culver’s/McCurry’s this summer after only playing in one PTL game last year before taking part in the World University Games for Team USA.

As for Woodbury, he’ll be the focal point of Randy Larson’s squad this summer and looks to continue building off a strong 16-point, 8-rebound performance against Tennessee in the NCAA Tournament. Woodbury’s team also features junior guard Anthony Clemmons, who has won the PTL championship each of the previous two summers.

Culver’s/McCurry’s also features incoming sophomore guard Trey Dickerson. The junior college transfer won’t be making his PTL debut however until July 3.

BlendCard vs. Vinton Merchants/Marion Iron Company

7:30 p.m., Roberts Gym

Thursday’s PTL nightcap is the lone contest of the day where all Hawkeye players participating are expected to be available.

BlendCard was the only PTL squad to use a first-round pick on a Northern Iowa player (Seth Tuttle), but it also features sophomore guard Peter Jok, who had a 29.3 points per game average that led all Iowa players who participated in the PTL in 2013. Like Woodbury, Jok is also looking to build off a strong NCAA Tournament showing where he scored 10 points off the bench for Iowa in its first round game against Tennessee. In addition to Jok, BlendCard will also feature junior walk-on Okey Ukah, who averaged 15.3 points and 9.4 rebounds per game in the PTL last summer.

Merchants/Iron is led by junior guard Mike Gesell, who averaged a PTL-high 11 assists per game last summer and is coming off a sophomore campaign where he became Iowa’s starting point guard. Playing alongside Gesell on Merchants/Iron this summer are a pair of freshmen making their PTL debuts Thursday. One is freshman forward Dominique Uhl, who will be in the mix for significant playing time in 2014-15 following the departure of Kyle Meyer. The other is freshman Nicholas Baer, who will be joining the Hawkeyes as a walk-on in 2014-15.

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

IOWA CITY, Iowa — When Gabe Olaseni first arrived on Iowa’s campus in the summer of 2011, his first Prime Time League experience came playing alongside former Iowa guard Bryce Cartwright, who was picked first overall in that year’s draft. As the 6-10 center prepares for his senior season, it was he who was taken with the top selection in the 2014 Prime Time League draft on Sunday.

PTL coach Kevin Sanders drew the first pick and considered using it on UNI’s Seth Tuttle before he ultimately settled on Olaseni. As a junior last season, the London native averaged 6.5 points and 4.9 rebounds per game for the Hawkeyes.

Following Olaseni in the draft order were the two most recent No. 1 overall picks entering Sunday’s draft. Junior forward Jarrod Uthoff was taken second overall by Dan Ahrens and for the fourth straight summer, Ron Nove will coach senior forward Aaron White after taking last year’s top pick with the third overall selection.

After Ray Swetalla used the fourth overall pick on junior guard Mike Gesell, then Kevin Lehman took the first UNI player when he selected Tuttle fifth. PTL director Randy Larson held the sixth and final pick of the first round and used it on junior center Adam Woodbury.

A pair of Hawkeyes went at the top of the second round before four straight Panther players went off the board. Junior guard Anthony Clemmons went seventh and will play alongside Woodbury, while sophomore guard Peter Jok went eighth and will team up this summer with junior forward Okey Ukah. The first pick of the third round was senior guard Josh Oglesby, who will play with Olaseni this summer, while incoming sophomore guard Trey Dickerson ended up on White’s squad with the 15th overall selection.

Incoming freshman forward Dominique Uhl was selected in the fourth round by Gesell’s team and incoming freshman guard Brady Ellingson will play alongside Uthoff this summer after he was taken in the fifth round with the 26th overall pick. Also playing alongisde Gesell and Uhl this summer will be incoming Iowa freshman walk-on Nicholas Baer, who was taken 28th overall.

The PTL begins June 19. Games will be played every Thursday up through July 31, when the PTL’s championship game is scheduled to take place. Two games will take place at 6 p.m. Central and one at 7:30 p.m. Central. The first two games feature Olaseni’s squad versus Uthoff’s and White’s team against Woodbury’s. The nightcap features Gesell’s team against Jok’s squad. On the nights of July 3 and 10, PTL action will take place at the Cedar Valley SportsPlex in Waterloo.

HAWKEYES IN THE PTL (team in parentheses; team sponsors TBD):

1st (overall pick) — Gabe Olaseni (Team 1)

2nd — Jarrod Uthoff (Team 2)

3rd — Aaron White (Team 3)

4th — Mike Gesell (Team 4)

6th — Adam Woodbury (Team 6)

7th — Anthony Clemmons (Team 6)

8th — Peter Jok (Team 5)

13th — Josh Oglesby (Team 1)

15th — Trey Dickerson (Team 3)

21st — Dominique Uhl (Team 4)

25th — Jason Price* (Team 1)

26th — Brady Ellingson (Team 2)

28th — Nicholas Baer (Team 4)

29th — Okey Ukah (Team 5)

* indicates former Iowa player

UNI PANTHERS IN THE PTL (names in italics):

Olaseni/Oglesby/Price (Team 1) — Paul Jesperson, Ted Friedman

Uthoff/Ellingson (Team 2) — Jeremy Morgan, Bennett Koch

White/Dickerson (Team 3) — Deon Mitchell, Marvin Singleton

Gesell/Uhl/Baer (Team 4) — Wyatt Lohaus, Nathan Buss

Jok/Ukah (Team 5) — Seth Tuttle, Wes Washpun

Woodbury/Clemmons (Team 6) — Matt Bohannon, Klint Carlson

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

HawkeyeDrive.com has learned the Prime Time League games being played at Waterloo’s Cedar Valley SportsPlex are now scheduled for the Thursday evenings of July 3 and 10.

Originally, the two nights Waterloo was slated to host the PTL were June 26 and July 17 with the North Liberty Community Center hosting all other games on Thursdays between June 19 and July 31. However, PTL director Randy Larson and Cedar Valley SportsPlex recreation services manager Matt Gallagher both confirmed Thursday afternoon to HawkeyeDrive.com the schedule changes listed on the league’s web site earlier in the day to be accurate.

The Prime Time League will conduct its draft June 15 at 6 p.m. Central in Iowa City. The first night of games is still June 19 at the North Liberty Community Center, which will now host the games previously scheduled to be played at the Cedar Valley SportsPlex.

NEW 2014 Prime Time League Schedule:

June 19 – North Liberty Community Center (North Liberty, Iowa)

June 26 – North Liberty Community Center (North Liberty, Iowa)

July 3 – Cedar Valley SportsPlex (Waterloo, Iowa)

July 10 – Cedar Valley SportsPlex (Waterloo, Iowa)

July 17 (PTL first round) – North Liberty Community Center (North Liberty, Iowa)

July 24 (PTL semifinals) –  North Liberty Community Center (North Liberty, Iowa)

July 31 (PTL championship) – North Liberty Community Center (North Liberty, Iowa)

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

The Big Ten made a pair of announcements Thursday regarding the future of both its championship game in football and its basketball tournament.

On the football side of things, Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis will remain the site of the Big Ten Championship Game through 2021. It has been the lone site used for the game since it was first established by the conference in 2011.

As for hoops, the Big Ten men’s basketball tournament will go back to rotating between the United Center in Chicago and Bankers Life Fieldhouse between 2019-2022. This announcement comes one month after the Verizon Center in Washington, D.C. was named the site for the 2017 Big Ten Tournament. Chicago, which will host next year’s tourney, will have it in 2019 and 2021, while Indianapolis reclaims it in 2016, 2020 and 2022.

“These two cities have been tremendous hosts and partners with first-class facilities and an outstanding base of Big Ten alumni and fans who support conference events,” Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said in a statement released by the conference Thursday. “We are proud of the history that we have developed with these two great cities and look forward to maintaining a significant presence in both locations.”

Not included in the Big Ten’s release was mention of the 2018 Big Ten Tournament, but according to The Chicago Tribune’s Teddy Greenstein, there’s a chance it could be held at Madison Square Garden in New York City. If this were to happen, it would be the first Big Ten tourney played in The Big Apple.

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

When the Prime Time League reconvenes next month, the North Liberty Community Center won’t be its sole locale.

For the first time in its existence, PTL games will be played outside of the Iowa City corridor as league commissioner Randy Larson revealed Friday that the Cedar Valley SportsPlex in Waterloo will be the host for contests played the nights of June 26 and July 17. News of Waterloo receiving PTL games this summer was first reported Friday morning by Pat Harty of the Iowa City Press-Citizen.

This move was done in part to accommodate Northern Iowa, who has decided to have players play the PTL again following a two-year hiatus. The league only used four teams in 2012 when UNI first pulled out of it and went back up to six teams last summer minus the Panthers’ participation.

Another item of note is that PTL games will now only take place on Thursday evenings this summer. Following the league’s draft on June 15, the first night of action will be June 19 in North Liberty, followed by the first of the two evenings in Waterloo the following week. North Liberty will host both semifinal games on July 24, as well as the PTL title game on July 31.

Scheduling is similar to last summer in that there will be one game played at 6 p.m. Central, followed by two games happening simultaneously at 7:30 p.m. Central each of the first five weeks before playoff games. According to a release sent out by Larson on Friday, all 11 players Iowa currently has on scholarship as well as walk-ons Kyle Denning and Okey Ukah are expected to participate this summer.

By Brendan Stiles

HawkeyeDrive.com

The Big Ten Conference will conduct a press conference in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday to announce its men’s basketball tournament will be played at the Verizon Center in 2017, according to multiple reports.

Currently, the league is in the middle of an alternating rotation between Chicago and Indianapolis as host sites for the Big Ten Tournament that ends in 2016 with the United Center hosting next year’s event and Bankers Life Fieldhouse hosting again in 2016 after doing so last March. The nation’s capital will be the first city not named Chicago or Indianapolis to host the now 5-day event with the conference officially adding both Maryland and Rutgers in July.

Under the new format starting next season, there will be two opening round games pitting the league’s bottom four teams against one another. The winner of the 11/14 game would play the following day against the No. 6 seed, while the 12/13 winner draws the No. 5 seed. From there, the format would be like it has been since 2011-12 after the addition of Nebraska.

In an interview with The Washington Post’s Alex Prewitt, Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany said 2017 would not be the only time D.C. would host the Big Ten Tournament.

On Monday, the Big Ten announced a partnership with the Big East to open the 2015-16 season and the seven concurrent seasons with the Gavitt Tipoff Games, eight games between teams from the two conferences slated to be played at various campus venues.