Florida A&M (1-9) vs. Iowa State (7-4)
James H. Hilton Coliseum, Ames, Iowa; Tuesday, 7 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Two sophomore guards will be on display as MJ Randolph and Florida A&M will go up against Tyrese Haliburton and Iowa State. Randolph is averaging 12.8 points over the last five games. Haliburton has scored 21 percent of the team’s points this season and is averaging 19.8 over his last five games.

BIG MEN ON CAMPUS: Iowa State’s Haliburton has averaged 17.3 points, 5.7 rebounds and 7.7 assists while Rasir Bolton has put up 13.3 points. For the Rattlers, Randolph has averaged 11.4 points and five rebounds while Rod Melton Jr. has put up 10.5 points.

CREATING OFFENSE: Haliburton has directly created 49 percent of all Iowa State field goals over the last five games. The sophomore guard has 39 field goals and 30 assists in those games.

PERFECT WHEN: Iowa State is a perfect 5-0 when the team blocks at least seven opposing shots. The Cyclones are 2-4 this season when they block fewer than seven shots.

ASSIST DISTRIBUTION: The Cyclones have recently created baskets via assists more often than the Rattlers. Iowa State has an assist on 54 of 87 field goals (62.1 percent) over its previous three outings while Florida A&M has assists on 31 of 80 field goals (38.8 percent) during its past three games.

DID YOU KNOW: The Iowa State offense has scored 81.4 points per game this season, ranking the Cyclones 23rd nationally. The Florida A&M defense has allowed 74.8 points per game to opponents (ranked 245th).

Northern Iowa (11-1, 0-0) vs. Illinois State (5-7, 0-0)
Redbird Arena, Normal, Illinois; Tuesday, 3 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: Illinois State looks for its fifth straight win over Northern Iowa at Redbird Arena. The last victory for the Panthers at Illinois State was a 54-53 win on Jan. 25, 2015.

SENIOR STUDS: Northern Iowa’s AJ Green, Spencer Haldeman and Isaiah Brown have collectively scored 45 percent of the team’s points this season and have accounted for 44 percent of all Panthers scoring over the last five games.ACCURATE AJ: Green has connected on 32.6 percent of the 89 3-pointers he’s attempted and has made 16 of 36 over his last five games. He’s also made 88.4 percent of his free throws this season.

TWO STREAKS: Northern Iowa has won its last three road games, scoring 75 points and allowing 62.7 points during those contests. Illinois State has won its last three home games, scoring an average of 68 points while giving up 57.7.

PASSING FOR POINTS: The Panthers have recently converted buckets via assists more often than the Redbirds. Illinois State has an assist on 31 of 77 field goals (40.3 percent) over its previous three outings while Northern Iowa has assists on 43 of 79 field goals (54.4 percent) during its past three games.

DID YOU KNOW: Northern Iowa is ranked second among MVC teams with an average of 77.8 points per game. The Panthers have averaged 87.4 per game over their five-game winning streak.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

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(Learfield Sports/Radio Iowa) — It was another big day for former Iowa State star Allen Lazard in Green Bay’s 23-20 win at Detroit. Lazard had four receptions, including a fourth quarter touchdown catch to tie the game as the Packers earned the two seed and will have a first round bye in the NFC playoffs. The Packers rallied after trailing 17-3 at the half.

The Packers rallied for the win with 13 fourth quarter points.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Luka Garza scored 23 points and Ryan Kriener added a career-high 20 as No. 25 Iowa closed its non-conference schedule with a 93-51 win over Kennesaw State. Joe Wieskamp had 18 points for the Hawkeyes (10-3), who also had a season-high 14 steals.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Mecole Hardman and Damien Williams led the Chiefs to a 31-21 victory over the Chargers that allowed Kansas City to leapfrog New England for the No. 2 seed in the AFC and a first-round playoff bye. Hardman returned a kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown and Williams ran for 124 yards and a pair of touchdowns. His second came just as the Dolphins were scoring the go-ahead TD in their 27-24 win in Foxborough. The combination of outcomes means New England will play next week while the Chiefs can begin preparing for the divisional round.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Haanif Cheatham scored 17 points and Nebraska opened up an 18-point, first-half lead and went on to beat Texas A&M-Corpus Christi 73-52. Nebraska, up by 13 at intermission, saw Texas A&M-Corpus Christi cut the lead to 10 at 38-28 early in the second period. But the Islanders were able to get no closer while Nebraska gradually stretched the lead, going up 20 on Jervay Green’s slam dunk and, six seconds later, layup that made it 57-37. Nebraska built its first half lead by holding the Islanders to just one field goal in a nearly 11-minute stretch.

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Matt Pile totaled 18 points and nine rebounds and Marlon Ruffin hit two free throws with 6 seconds left in the game as Omaha held off South Dakota State 81-78. Noah Freidel sank two free throws with 2:11 remaining to give South Dakota State a 76-75 lead, but Pile and KJ Robinson answered with back-to-back layups to put the Mavericks up 79-76 with 26 seconds left.

WICHITA, Kansas (AP) — Grant Sherfield posted 15 points, shooting a perfect 6-for-6, grabbed 11 rebounds for his first double-double and Wichita State beat Abilene Christian 84-66. Sherfield scored 11 points after halftime when he grabbed five rebounds blocked a shot and had three steals. Tyson Etienne added 13 points for Wichita State (11-1), which earned its fifth straight victory. Jaime Echenique added 12 points and Jamarius Burton 11.

MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Cartier Diarra hit a crucial 3-pointer in the late seconds of the game that capped off a career-high 25 points along with a team-high seven assists with five rebounds and Kansas State defeated Tulsa 69-67. Diarra made 8 of 16 shots from the floor, including 6 of 11 from 3-point range, as the Wildcats (7-5) collectively shot 38% from the floor and 34% from distance.

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) — Sometimes, Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said, teams can come back from Christmas break and not be focused. He knew that wasn’t going to happen with the Hawkeyes in Sunday’s game against Kennesaw State. The No. 25 Hawkeyes were sharp in a 93-51 home win to close the non-conference portion of their schedule.

Luka Garza scored 23 points and Ryan Kriener added a career-high 20 for the Hawkeyes (10-3). Kriener made all nine of his shots, while Garza was 9-of-11. Getting them the ball was a big part of Iowa’s game plan, and McCaffery knew his team understood. “I thought our guys recognized when Luka was hot early,” McCaffery said. “We recognized when Kriener was going.”

“We knew we had to get out here and take care of business,” Garza said. “I thought we did a good job of that, executing (the game plan). We all came back in shape. We really pushed each other every day in practice. For this game, we were focused, taking care of this.”

“This is probably the best shape this team has been in as a whole since I’ve been here coming off the winter break,” Kriener said. “That speaks a lot to our commitment. As a senior, that’s one of those little things that means a lot to me.”

The Hawkeyes had season highs with 14 steals and 27 assists. Iowa had 34 points off 24 Kennesaw State turnovers, and had 64 points in the paint, compared to just 22 for the Owls.
It was a season-high in points for the Hawkeyes, who shot 60% (39-of-65) for the game.

The Hawkeyes played their first home game in 20 days, and after a stretch of seven games that included three neutral-court games and three road games, needed an easy one. That is why McCaffery gave them three days off after a Dec. 21 win over Cincinnati in Chicago.

POLL IMPLICATIONS
The Hawkeyes got into the rankings last week and should stay with this win, although the Owls weren’t much of a challenge.
UP NEXT
Iowa: The Hawkeyes get back into the Big Ten schedule with a game against Penn State at the Palestra in Philadelphia on Jan. 4. Iowa went 1-1 in two conference games in early December, losing at Michigan and defeating Minnesota at home.

(By DAVE SKRETTA AP Basketball Writer) – Michigan State’s basketball team has always been considered among the Big Ten favorites this season, but the surprising start by coach Juwan Howard at Michigan has the Wolverines eyeing the top of the league standings.

Throw in Maryland, surprising starts by Ohio State and Indiana, and complete wild cards such as Iowa, and the Big Ten figures to be one of the most intriguing conference races in major college basketball.

Mecole Hardman and Damien Williams led the Chiefs to a 31-21 victory over the Chargers that allowed Kansas City to leapfrog New England for the No. 2 seed in the AFC and a first-round playoff bye. Hardman returned a kickoff 104 yards for a touchdown and Williams ran for 124 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Kansas City Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu (32) intercepts a pass intended for Los Angeles Chargers wide receiver Mike Williams (81), as cornerback Rashad Fenton (27) watches, during the first half of an NFL football game in Kansas City, Mo., Sunday, Dec. 29, 2019. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

His second came just as the Dolphins were scoring the go-ahead TD in their 27-24 win in Foxborough. The combination of outcomes means New England will play next week while the Chiefs can begin preparing for the divisional round.