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Wieskamp named freshman of the week

Joe Wieskamp was named freshman of the week by the Big Ten.
Joe Wieskamp was named freshman of the week by the Big Ten.

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- University of Iowa forward Joe Wieskamp was named Big Ten Freshman of the Week, it was announced Monday by the conference office.

Wieskamp (6-foot-6, 205 pounds) helped led Iowa to a pair of victories last week at Penn State (89-82) on Wednesday and at home versus Illinois (95-71) on Sunday.

Wieskamp made all of his shot attempts in Iowa's double digit win over Illinois, going 8-of-8 from the field, including making all six 3-point attempts, and sinking both foul shots. Wieskamp’s 6-of-6 from 3-point range equaled a school record for 3-point percentage (Jeff Horner 6-of-6 versus Penn State in 2004 and Jim Bartels 6-of-6 at Ohio State in 1995). The native of Muscatine, Iowa, is one of three Big Ten freshmen to go 6-of-6 or better from 3-point territory in a single game in the last 10 seasons, joining Michigan’s Nik Stauskas (2012-13) and Ohio State’s D’Angelo Russell (2014-15).

Wieskamp helped Iowa set a Carver-Hawkeye Arena team record for field goal percentage, making 68 percent of its attempts (34-of-50) versus the Fighting Illini. The previous mark was 67.5 percent (27-of-40) versus Air Force on Dec. 28, 2004. At Penn State, Wieskamp’s 10 points -- all scored in the second half -- helped the Hawkeyes amass its highest point total (89) in a game at State College, dating back to 1955.

In two games, Wieskamp averaged 17 points and six rebounds. He made 61 percent of his field goal attempts (11-of-18), including a staggering 66.7 percent (6-of-9) from 3-point range, and drained all six free throw attempts.

Iowa’s 16-3 record matches its best start in the Fran McCaffery era (2015-16).

Wieskamp and the 19th-ranked Hawkeyes (16-3, 5-3) return to action Thursday against No. 6 Michigan State (16-2, 7-0). Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. Tickets are available through the Iowa Athletic Ticket Office by calling 1-800-IA-HAWKS or ordering online at hawkeyesports.com/tickets.

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