The biggest factor in Iowa’s favor as well as the largest deterrent is the young, raw talent of the Hawkeyes. The best player on the team is no doubt a dynamic sophomore, Tyler Cook. At 6-9, the forward out of Saint Louis flashed looks of high potential consistently throughout his freshman year. Tyler Cook’s effect on the game cannot always be shown in his stat lines; however, Cook’s impacts every possession, regardless of his possession of the ball.

Jordan Bohannon, Isaiah Moss, and Brady Ellingson will be dominating the guard spots as sophomores and juniors. Bohannon and Moss can both score off the dribble and distribute to make plays at will, even as mere sophomores. Ellingson, however, will be more of a pure point guard. With the powerhouse Tyler Cook at forward, clear leaders at guard slots, and depth at both forward and guard positions, Iowa Basketball will be successful if McCaffery can find a large player to play in tandem with Cook.

This large X-factor for Iowa will be the freshman center for the Hawks, Luka Garza. The 4-star recruit out of Washington DC will play the role which could put Iowa over the top. The 6-11 has already grabbed 18 boards through two games with 27 points in addition. In recent memory, Iowa loses the rebounding affair on a strikingly consistent basis. In addition to the young Garza and Cook, the returning Big Ten Conference 6th man of the year award winner, Nicholas Bear, will jump start the young Hawkeyes whenever needed. With a deep set of young big men behind Garza, Baer, and Cook, the rebounding deficit will improve moving forward.

Another reason for the jump into March Madness will be the schedule for the young Iowa team. With the only notable non-conference opponents coming on the road against both Virginia Tech and the rivaling Cyclones, wins will be racked up quickly prior to conference play. Iowa also draws one of the weakest schedules in the Big Ten Conference. The Hawkeyes will not travel to ranked opponents in #2 Michigan State, #20 Purdue, and #19 Northwestern.

Iowa will also not travel to rival Wisconsin and will only play Michigan State, Maryland and Indiana once. The Hawkeyes will reach 20 wins before the final stretch of the season. Three of the final five games will

play on the road with the last two facing ranked opponents. With an easier schedule than most, even if the young players do not improve in the expected ways, Iowa will rack up at least 22 wins before the Big Ten Tournament in the Madison Square Garden.

The graduation of Peter Jok will also allow the Hawkeye basketball squad to acquire a bid to the NCAA Basketball Tournament. Jok made up the core of last year’s team, leading the Big Ten in scoring. However, Jok also lead the team in shots taken. Despite leading in points, Jok shot a 7^th team best shooting percentage to return for it, behind the likes of Tyler Cook, Nicholas Baer, Ahmad Wagner, and others.

Contrary to popular belief from mainstream sports analysts, Iowa will benefit from the absence of Peter Jok for multiple reasons. Iowa will not be reliant on a one-man effort with multiple people getting involved. A team is much easier to stop with one man scoring instead of a team. The spacing of the floor will also be nicer for shooters with the best player in Cook playing in the post instead of Jok playing around the 3-point arc. All in all, Peter Jok is an absolutely great player; however, Jok’s presence hurt the team more at times than not.

Due to the young raw talent of the Hawkeyes in addition to lucky breaks in scheduling and an ability to involve more players than in years past, the 2017 Iowa Hawkeye basketball team will not only return to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in five years, but will chance running at Sweet Sixteen for the first time since the 1998-99 season. The next game for the 2-0 Hawkeyes will come against Grambling State on Wednesday, November 16^th at 7:05 pm CST at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

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After halftime the Hawkeyes came out and attacked the hoop early. Unfortunately while turnovers were the story of the first half, missed free throws were the headline in the second. Iowa shot a measly 41.2% on 7-17 shooting in the second half and 8-19 for the game. Add those 11 missed points to the 21 from turnovers in the first half and this game never goes to overtime, but, as the old saying goes, “that’s why they play the game.” While Iowa had its area of struggles, they were firing on all cylinders when it came to shooting the ball. “When you make 16 three’s and out rebound the opposing team, you’re supposed to win” Iowa Head Coach Fran McCraffery said after the game. The Hawkeyes shot 16-30 from three and 34-63 from the field.  Freshman Guard Jordan Bohannon led the attack notching another double-double to his young career with a game-high 25 points and 13 assists, after the game Coach McCraffery added that Bohannon is starting to “figure out the game.” While the season may be done for this year, figuring out how to be a big ten point guard is something that this team is going to need in the future.

Unfortunately, while Iowa was supposed to win this one, in the end, TCU came out on top 94-92. It was a heartbreaking overtime loss, but the loss the Hawkeyes might feel more moving forward is the loss of Peter Jok. No matter how much he, or his teammates, wanted Peter to walk off the court inside Carver Hawkeye Arena a winner after his last home game, Peter is a player that won’t soon be forgotten.  Over the course of his career at Iowa Peter hit on 216 three point shots, but what’s going to be missed the most isn’t his scoring, but the mentality he brought to the team. Redshirt-sophomore Nicholas Baer admitted that Jok, “is a bit of a goofball” after the game, but no one was short on compliments of Jok’s work ethic and how that correlated to his success. “He’s just a guy that’s always in the gym and our young guys have followed that lead” Coach McCraffery remarked after the game. No matter what ones thoughts on Peter might be, he deserved the round of applause from the fans that stayed after the game to give him his well-deserved send off.

For anyone that was worried that while this Iowa team is playing at a high level right now this break may lead to a setback, fear not. Coach McCraffery says they won’t take much time until they get ready for next season. For those of you that followed this season from beginning to end, know there were peaks and valleys, but there was always potential. If this team continues to grow and develop like they did this season, who knows how high the ceiling is.

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A four-point loss at home to Illinois on Feb. 18 was the team’s third straight loss, and the remaining schedule was not exactly favorable.

The schedule didn’t get easier, but the Hawkeyes did get better.

After beating Indiana 96-90 in overtime, Iowa had to hit the road for two games in a row, both versus ranked opponents. First, the Hawkeyes blew then-24th-ranked Maryland out of their own gym. Next, they took down #22 Wisconsin thanks to a three-pointer by Jordan Bohannon with less than 10 seconds to play.

Just like that, the Hawkeyes were starting to work their way back into the conversation for an at-large big. Beating Penn State 90-79 on Sunday to close the regular season on a four-game winning streak has them fully immersed in the bubble talk.

“There’s no better time to click than in March,” said senior Peter Jok following his 21-point performance in his (could-be) final game inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

As of Monday morning, the Hawkeyes’ rating percentage index (RPI) has jumped to 72 and the team’s record versus teams in the RPI top 50 is 5-7. ESPN Bracketologist Joe Lunardi has Iowa listed as one of the “First Four Out,” along with Rhode Island, Kansas State, and Illinois. Thanks to the late-season push, the Hawkeyes have put themselves in contention for an-large bid.

“I think we deserve to be in,” said Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery after the Penn State game. “What you have to do is not focus on thinking about it and talking about it.”

For a young Hawkeyes team, it may be tough to block out all of the noise and bubble talk that will undoubtedly swirl around them as they prepare for the Big Ten Tournament. Iowa’s leaders know they have to help keep the team focused on what they can control and nothing else.

“Young guys probably think about (the bubble) but I try not to let them think about it,” Jok said. “You just have to keep winning and whatever happens happens.”

While there has been some doubt from those outside the locker room, the team thought of themselves as a tournament team all season. They just needed to play like it every time they took the floor.

“We thought that we were (a tournament team) the whole season, we’ve just been playing inconsistently,” said freshman Cordell Pemsl. “I think we finally got that rhythm and that swagger back as a team.”

The team is certainly playing some of their best basketball right now. The four-game winning-streak is the longest of the conference season for Hawkeyes, and they’ve done it as a unit. Six different players have scored in double figures in the last four games, three of them have come off the bench to do so.

“If you look at how we’ve played these last four games, we’re a top team in the country,” said sophomore Nicholas Baer who has scored in double figures each of the last four games, including a career-high 20 points versus Penn State. “You want teams that are hot in in NCAA Tournament, teams that are playing their best basketball. If you look at the Iowa Hawkeyes, we’re playing our best basketball right now.”

Still on the outside looking in, the team knows there is still work to be done. The late push has been great, but they can’t let up yet.

“We do have a sense of urgency,” Baer said. “Every game is our biggest game.”

It is the general consensus that Iowa will have to win two games in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament if they want to move in to the field of 68. Iowa, the seven-seed, will face off with the 10-seed Indiana on Thursday at the Verizon Center in Washington D.C. If they survive that, they will meet Wisconsin, the two-seed, in the quarterfinals.

“We’ve got our hot streak going at the right time,” Pemsl said. “We’re hoping to carry that over into next week.”

There’s no way to predict exactly what the Selection Committee will do with Iowa until Selection Sunday arrives. The Hawkeyes know they have to keep winning, and if they win enough games, there won’t be anything left to chance.

“We just tell ourselves ‘we might as well just go win the Big Ten Tournament,’” Pemsl said. “They have to put us in then.”

Iowa plays Indiana Thursday at 5:30 PM CST on ESPN2.

The post Strong Finish to Regular Season Has Hawkeyes Eyeing Tournament Bid appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The Hawkeyes had other plans.

After falling behind by as many as 13 in the first half, the Hawkeyes rallied to force overtime and held on to beat Indiana 96-90.

It was a total team effort for the Hawkeyes in this one. After falling behind 9-0 in the opening two minutes, Iowa coach Fran McCaffery called a timeout and subbed in a whole new group of five players.

By the time the game reached the first media timeout, McCaffery had already used twelve different Hawkeyes.

“We needed some energy,” McCaffery said of the substitutions. “That next group came in and played with good energy and cohesion.”

The second wave of guys knew they had a specific job once McCaffery sent out their platoon.

“Better play well,” said forward Nicholas Baer. “Just try to weather the storm a little bit. I thought we did that. We were able to fight back and the end of the first half it was a one-point game.”

Without trying to do too much, the defense finally picked up for the Hawkeyes. After Indiana’s Josh Newkirk and James Blackmon, Jr. scored nine and six points respectively in the game’s first six minutes, the two didn’t score again the rest of the half.

Indiana was called for their first foul of the game with 8:47 to play in the half when De’Ron Davis bumped Tyler Cook. That sparked a 12-0 run for the Hawkeyes that was capped off by a three ball from Baer to tie the game at 26.

The teams traded baskets before the half and Indiana took a 33-32 lead into the locker room.

In the second half, the Hawkeyes took their first lead on a dunk and free throw from Cook with 2:13 to play. The teams traded free throws and layups in the final minute before heading to overtime.

Then Peter Jok happened.

After scoring 12 points in the first half and eight in the second half, Jok put up 15 points in the five minute overtime period. For the first time since his back and shoulder issues began, Jok was able to impose his will on a game at the offensive end.

After making 11 of his 12 free throw attempts in the overtime, he finished the day shooting 22-of-23 from the free throw line, good enough to set a new single-game record at Iowa, a record previously held by Don Nelson for 55 years (1962).

“I was surprised he missed the one,” McCaffery said of his senior’s performance at the line. “Not only does he make them, but he usually doesn’t hit anything but the net.”

After the game, Jok wasn’t exactly exhilarated over the news of being a new record holder.

“I don’t really care about all of that,” Jok said. “I just care about winning right now.”

Jok doesn’t put too much thought into his free throws. He works on them everyday, or as often as he can without upsetting his lingering shoulder issue, but he doesn’t stress over his form and mechanics.

“I don’t think about it, I just shoot with a free mind,” he said.

Jok finished with a game-high 35 points on 6-of-12 shooting from the field, 1-of-6 from three, and of course, his record-breaking 22-of-23 from the free throw line.

Aside from Jok, a number of different Hawkeyes stepped up when their number was called.

After picking up two early fouls, Cordell Pemsl played just two minutes in the first half. In the second half, he played 14 minutes and played with a lot of energy, finishing the game with nine points on 3-of-3 field goals and 3-of-4 free throws.

Ryan Kriener played alongside Pemsl a lot in the second half. He made both of his field goal attempts while also grabbing three rebounds and recording three blocks, including one on Indiana’s Curtis Jones with thirty seconds left in overtime that was the exclamation point on the victory.

Nicholas Baer continued to stuff the stat sheet as well. The sophomore finished with 10 points, seven rebounds, three assists, and two blocks. He was the only Iowa player to make more than one three pointer in the game (2-of-4). He also completed a put-back, and-1 dunk midway through the second half that pulled Iowa to within one. It turned Carver-Hawkeye Arena into a mad house.

If not for a new free throw record from Jok, the story of the game would most likely be Christian Williams’ performance. The back up point guard has seen his minutes fade and go to freshman Jordan Bohannon, but he has emerged recently as a defensive threat for the Hawkeyes, recording five steals in the team’s last three games.

It was his offense that shined for him on Tuesday. Williams scored in double figures for the first time in his career, finishing with 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. He also added three rebounds and one assist, and more importantly, committed zero turnovers in his 21 minutes on the court.

“After I saw the first two (shots) go in, I got a roll a little bit,” Williams said.

After struggling out of the gate, Williams’ commitment to defense has allowed him to climb back into the mix as the season hits the final stretch.

“I struggled little bit at the beginning of the season, then I kind of picked things up defensively and that helped me transform my whole game.”

The deep rotation for the Hawkeyes proved to be the difference in this one. Twelve Hawkeyes played, nine of them playing double figure minutes.  While they stayed fresh, Indiana looked gassed at the end of the game. Four Hoosiers fouled out, and Thomas Bryant had four fouls, too.

The Hawkeyes next play at Maryland on Saturday at 5:00 P.M. CST on ESPN2. This will be the first of two road games against two of the top three teams in the conference (at Wisconsin on March 2). The team knows the next two games are important so that they can enter the Big Ten Tournament on a good note.

“We’re going to take it one game at a time,” Baer said. “We’re going to have two opportunities (to play good teams on the road) and we’re going to be ready for it.”

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The Hawkeyes had plenty of chances to keep the game close late against Illinois, but the ball just wouldn’t find the bottom of the net. As a result, Iowa dropped just their second home conference game of the season 70-66.

With less than one minute to play in the game, Brady Ellingson and Nicholas Baer each had open shots from the three-point line. Baer’s with 18 seconds left would have tied the game.

“I thought we had a couple of good looks at the end that didn’t go in,” said Iowa senior Peter Jok, “but that’s the game of basketball.”

At the end of the game, Iowa Head Coach Fran McCaffery was happy with the shots his team put up, but it was the inability to convert off of Illini turnovers that had he and his players frustrated.

The Hawkeyes forced 17 Illini turnovers throughout the game, but they only came away with 12 points on the possessions that followed.

“I think we quick-shotted a couple of times,” said McCaffery. “We maybe should have moved the ball a little better.”

In a game of runs, neither team led by more than eight points. When the Illini went of a 6-0 run, the Hawkeyes would answer with an 7-0 run of their own, and vice versa. That was the flow of the game for nearly the whole 40 minutes.

One such run started with 10 minutes remaining in the game when the Hawkeyes went on an 8-0 to take the lead 54-50. Tyler Cook picked up his fourth foul of the game with 7:16 remaining, and that prompted a 10-2 Illini run as they regained the lead.

After the teams traded a pair of buckets, the Illini took a lead with just under three minutes to play and never relinquished it again.

Cook’s absence after his fourth foul sent him to the bench changed the momentum of the game in favor of the Illini. The Illini was no match for Cook throughout most of the game as Cook emerged as a “safety valve” of sorts for the Hawkeyes. The freshman was 5-of-7 from the field and 4-of-5 from the free throw line in the game, but he did not attempt another shot after he earned his fourth foul.

Cook finished the game with 14 points, which would had led the team had Peter Jok not hit a three-pointer with just over one second remaining in the game. Having to sit out a lot as the game neared its close was not easy for the freshman to do after having a good shooting day.

“It’s tough. I felt like I was getting the shots I wanted to get,” Cook said. “I was obviously trying to get the ball more down the stretch, but when you’re out you just have to encourage the rest of the guys.”

Aside from Cook, no one else for the Hawkeyes was ever able to get into a consistent scoring rhythm. The team shot just 38.9% from the field and 33.3% from three. Jordan Bohannon was 3-for-4 from behind the arc, whereas the rest of the team was just 4-for-17.

Sometimes the shots just don’t fall, but the team isn’t going to let this game effect the rest of their season. Even while the team is in the midst of three-game losing streak, McCaffery is optimistic that the difficulties of the last few games will be good for the team.

“Sometimes you’ve got to go through it and experience it, the good and the bad.”

Iowa plays next on Tuesday at home against Indiana at 8 P.M. CST on ESPN.

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After struggling to hit threes in the first half, Illinois was given some open looks in the second half that contributed to their nine made three point shots on the day. Malcom Hill led all scorers for Illinois with 21.

The Hawkeyes were left in a scoring drought late in the second half as Illinois went on an 8-0 run to put the game nearly out of reach for Iowa. It was only by two made free throws by Peter Jok that kept Iowa scoring.

After a steal by Nicholas Baer that led to a dunk at the other end, the Hawkeyes looked to have run out of energy. Baer scored 8 points, shooting 2-7 from three-point range.

“[Baer] goes until exhaustion,” Coach Fran McCaffery said. “We need him on the floor late in those games, but he was done.”

Iowa played in the full court press for the majority of game, forcing 17 turnovers including the steal by Baer and another by freshman Cordell Pemsl.

“Obviously when you’re pressing the whole game you’re going to get tired,” Baer said. “That’s no excuse not to execute, they were tired too and executed better down the stretch.”

Illinois scored 32 points in the paint, many of which came by an opening left in the full court press defense by Iowa. The press did allow for a spark inside Carver, after the two big steals the crowd regained some of its energy.

“Anytime you press you are going to be susceptible to things down the floor, but overall I think the press was effective,” Baer said.

Iowa was led by senior Peter Jok with 16 points and 10 rebounds, marking his fourth double-double of the season.

Jok took a lot of the blame for the loss to Illinois, he shot four points below his season average of over 20 points per game.

The game was dominated by one team making quick scoring runs. Both team had 8-0 runs late in the game. Momentum shifts throughout the game characterized how both Illinois and Iowa played.

“Basketball is a game of runs,” Jok said. “We thought Cordell got fouled and would shoot free throws but that was overturned, that was where the momentum shifted.”

Illinois closed out the game on the line but gave Iowa a glimmer of hope with four missed free throws in the final minute. They only show 7-14 from the free throw line, none of which came in the first half.

Iowa on the other hand shot 17-22 from the line. Peter Jok missed a free throw for the second in a row after making 28 straight shots from the line.

Ten players played for more than ten minutes during the game, only freshman Ryan Kriener played less. The deep rotation is attributed to the young roster Iowa has, sometimes that youth can lead to mistakes.

“Could somebody have recovered and covered up for a mistake?” McCaffery said. “That’s the journey and that’s where you have to get to when you’re a young team.”

Iowa will play next against Indiana at home on Tuesday. That game is scheduled to begin at 8 p.m. CT.

The post Iowa Picks Up Third Straight Loss appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The first half ended on a high note as Senior Guard, Peter Jok, hit a baseline jumper with less than a second left to give the Hawkeyes a 38-36 lead as they went into the locker room. Jok, who started after missing the last two games, had a relatively quiet night putting up a season low seven shot attempts making just two of them. He finished with 12 points after making some key free throws down the stretch. When asked after the game, Jok said that “needed a game or two to come back” from his back injury. With the way this young team has been playing recently, a game or two shouldn’t be a problem allowing the Big Ten’s leading scorer to get healthy.
Early in the second half Jordan Bohannon stepped back, as we are becoming more and more accustomed to, and he drained a three. Not only was the three significant because it helped the Hawkeyes out of a slow start, but it set a new record for made three pointers by a freshman in a Hawkeye uniform (56). “He plays at his pace, you can’t rush him, and he knows exactly what we want done” McCraffery said after the game about Bohannon, and knowing exactly what needs to be done is something that is going to be important if this team wants to have any chance of making into the “big dance” come March Madness time.
Four of the Hawkeyes remaining games will be played on the road. After winning on Sunday the Hawkeyes move into fifth place where they are tied with Michigan State (who is one of the remaining games) in the Big Ten and with the way this college basketball season has played out, the Hawkeyes should have a chance to finish in the top half of what is considered the toughest conference in basketball this season. To make the NCAA tournament they will definitely need to know how to finish. Iowa plays again on Wednesday as they take to the road to face a very tough Minnesota team.

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Once it was announced that Jok would be absent for Saturday’s game, the question became who would step up to fill Jok’s 21 points per game. Many thought it would be Isaiah Moss or Jok’s replacement Nicholas Bear, both of whom have had solid seasons so far. But the scoring role was instead filled by redshirt Sophomore Brady Ellingson who finished with 17 points on 6-9 shooting from the floor, including an impressive 5-7 from deep. He was the Hawkeyes’ leading scorer in Iowa’s 85-72 victory over the Buckeyes Saturday night.

Coach Fran McCaffrey had a lot of praise for his sophomore shooting guard saying, “(Brady) really made a concerted effort tonight (to be more aggressive) tonight.” McCaffrey added, “I would like to see him be like that on a regular basis.”

Ellingson’s 17 was his second highest on the season and highest point total in conference play. Ellingson also added 4 rebounds and 1 assist without turning the ball over.

Ellingson credited Jok as being a big motivator for this game, saying Jok, “Texted us all last night saying he’d be there no matter what.” Ellingson also said, “Peter told me to be more aggressive with my shots.”

That aggressiveness clearly showed, as he attempted and made more threes than he had all season. If the Hawkeyes are going to continue to have to play without Jok, they need Ellingson’s aggressiveness to continue.

While Ellingson was the highlight off the bench, the other bench players were able to contribute some serious scoring as well. The Hawkeyes had 44 total bench points accounting for more half of the Hawkeyes’ points. It was the kind of performance they needed in the absence of their star.

With the win, the Hawkeyes move to half a game out of 5th place in the Big Ten, while the Buckeyes fall into a tie for 11th place. The Hawkeyes’ next game will be in Piscataway, New Jersey to take on the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (12-10, 1-8) at 6pm this upcoming Tuesday. The game will be broadcasted on BTN.

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IOWA CITY, IA- The Iowa Hawkeyes were without their star player Peter Jok as he was sidelined with a back injury.

Other players needed to step up and boy did they ever.

Brady Ellingson led the way off the bench for the hawkeyes with a team high 17 points. Forward Ryan Kriener had 14 points to go along with seven rebounds. Freshman Tyler Cook went 5-9 form the field to finish with 13 points in the contest.

Buckeyes head coach Thad Matta was not too keen on his team’s defense.

“I tried everything I had in my arsenal tonight. It just wasn’t clicking,” Matta said.

Coach Fran McCaffery was impressed with the defensive effort that his team put on the floor.

Iowa had 41 rebounds, five steals, and five blocks in the defeat of the buckeyes.

“For us to defend the way we did… for us to execute the way we did, I think it is a big step for our program,” McCaffery said.

Additionally, the hawkeyes held the buckeyes to 29 points in the first half and 7-22 from three-point range the entirety of the game.

Brady Ellingson, as mentioned, went 6-9 from the field to score his team high 17 points. The hoop truly felt like an ocean to him.

“We ran a play and went off a ball screen and had a good look and let it fly,” Ellingson said.

Those kinds of opportunities were plentiful as the hawkeyes made exactly 50 percent of their shots from the field Saturday night.

The hawkeyes will travel to Piscataway, New Jersey as they will face off against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. central Tuesday night.

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Thanks in-part to a 10-0 run in the middle of the second half, the Hawkeyes were able to erase a nine-point halftime deficit and take a three-point lead with just over five minutes to play.

The comeback attempt came up a little short, however, as the #25 Maryland Terrapins held on for an 84-76 victory on the road at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The game looked like it could turn into a blowout in the first half, but the Hawkeyes came out of halftime with a sense of urgency that simply was not there at the start of the game. The 10-0 run seemed to shift the momentum in favor of the Hawkeyes, but Maryland fought back and was able to outlast the Iowa push.

A pair of Melo Trimble three-pointers turned a three-point Iowa lead into a three-point Maryland lead, and the Hawkeyes were never able to get over the hill again.

“You’ve got to give them credit for the shots they made,” said Iowa’s Head Coach Fran McCaffery. “They did a good job of answering our runs with timely baskets.”

A lot of points were left on the floor for the Hawkeyes, as the team was just 27-of-70 from the field (35.7%) and 7-28 from three-point range (25.0%). However, the team did go 19-of-25 from the free-throw line (76.0%), highlighted by a 6-of-8 showing from forward Tyler Cook, who had been struggling to find his stroke from the line.

The Hawkeyes also won the turnover battle, forcing 21 Terrapin turnovers and turning them into 30 points. They also outrebounded the Terps by three and allowed only seven second-chance points on just six offensive rebounds. Still, a slow start for a second straight game ultimately led to a second straight Big Ten loss for the Hawkeyes.

“I’m not entirely sure. I think that’s something we’re still working on,” said Iowa forward Nicholas Baer when asked if he could point to what has been causing the slow starts. “That’s been problematic for us the last couple of games, but we’ll figure that out internally.”

For the third time in the last four games, the team has turned to some unlikely players to lead them through their toughest battles. In the middle of the second half when the Hawkeyes made their big push, the lineup consisted of point guard Jordan Bohannon and four reserves in Baer, Ahmad Wagner, Brady Ellingson, and Ryan Kriener.

Forward Ahmad Wagner highlighted the group’s success with four offensive rebounds in the second half and 12 points on 3-of-5 shooting from the field and 6-of-8 shooting at the free throw line.

“He was the difference in the game,” McCaffery said. “He sort of imposed his will on that game, which is not easy to do against a team that’s that athletic.”

The sophomore brings a lot of hustle and energy to the floor, and he was able to really settle down and get into a rhythm for the first time this season. While it gives him confidence in himself moving forward, he knows the team getting a win is more important than his success.

“I was trying to come in and bring energy,” Wagner said. “For me to go in and play like I did today feels good, but it will feel better to get the win.”

Even though the score did not finish in the Hawkeyes’ favor, depth proved to be a strong point on this Iowa team. On any given night, it appears to be anyone’s guess as to who will step up and play impactful minutes down the stretch.

Now, the Hawkeyes move into a “bye week” as they will have six days between now and their next game when they travel to play at Illinois. The team is looking forward to the break so that they can work to improve their own game for a couple of days without focusing on an opponent. It will also give Peter Jok a chance to rest after nursing a back issue for the last couple of games.

“We’ll utilize this time to work on ourselves internally and work on the things we need to fix up,” Baer said.

The Hawkeyes (11-9, 3-4 Big Ten) travel to Champaign, Illinois to take on the Fighting Illini (12-7, 2-4 Big Ten) on Wednesday January 25^th at 8 p.m. CST on Big Ten Network.

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