Iowa Hawkeyes host North Dakota tonight

Iowa looks to win its fourth consecutive game when it hosts North Dakota on Tuesday. The Hawkeyes put a four-game losing skid in the rearview mirror by beating Stetson, then No. 25 Iowa State and Northern Iowa on Saturday to climb back over .500; they hope to continue their recent resurgence by improving to 6-2 in Iowa City this season.

Iowa gave up an average of 91 points during its losing streak but has tightened up defensively by holding opponents to an average of 59.3 points during its winning run. ?We?ve shown what we?re capable of but can we do it on a consistent basis?? Iowa coach Fran McCaffery told reporters. ?We have a really good team coming to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Tuesday and we have to make sure we stay dialed in defensively.? Peter Jok has registered seven 20-point games this season and hopes to lift the Hawkeyes past North Dakota in their first meeting with a Big Sky foe since downing Idaho State 70-53 in 2010.

TV: 9 p.m. ET, BTN

ABOUT NORTH DAKOTA (5-4): Sophomore forward Conner Avants poured in a career-high 22 points on 11-of-12 shooting from the field and is 20-of-23 over his last three games. Cortez Seales scored a season-high 15 points but the Fighting Hawks struggled defensively, allowing North Dakota State to shoot 52.6 percent from the field. ?We got away from who we have been up until this point defensively,? North Dakota coach Brian Jones told reporters. ?When you play a quality opponent you can?t think you can win by just showing up and this is a great lesson for our guys to learn.?

ABOUT IOWA (6-5): Jok continued his torrid pace in December as he led the way with 21 points to go along with eight rebounds to pass four players on the Hawkeyes? all-time scoring list with 1,131 for his career. Sophomore forward Nicholas Baer provided a spark off the bench as he scored 11 points and secured 11 rebounds for the first double-double of his career. Freshman forward Tyler Cook, who averaged 13.7 points and 5.3 rebounds in his first six games, fractured his right index finger in practice in late November but is expected to return in time for the Big Ten opener against Purdue on Dec. 28.

TIP-INS

1. Jok is ranked fifth nationally in points per game (23.5).

2. Iowa is 62-2 when holding opponents to fewer than 61 points under McCaffery.

3. North Dakota has lost its last four meetings to Big Ten foes by an average margin of 25 points.

PREDICTION: Iowa 79, North Dakota 65