Iowa coach Steve Alford says the Hawkeyes will be playing to win on Wednesday night but will also be playing for conference pride. The Hawks will host North Carolina State as part of the A-C-C/Big Ten Challenge, a string of games matching teams from the two leagues.
The series has been dominated by the A-C-C which has won the first six and Alford would like to see that change. Alford says the Big Ten has taken a hit in the media the last several years because they haven’t won the challenge. He says a win will help the conference’s marketability.
Alford says the Big Ten is a great league to play in and he says the league’s record stands for itself. He says the A-C-C is also a great league and you’ll have some great teams going after each other. The Hawkeyes are 4-1 and ranked 14th in the latest A-P top-25.