As Expected, this team is better than last year

[CentralIAHawk]

No matter how you analyze, this team is better than last year.

It is true, Fran does need to figure out how to replace the rebouding of White, Olaseni and Oglesby (he was a good rebounding guard). However, any fears of being as good defensively are now gone. I love Ahmad Wagner defensively in the post. He dominated Ellenson at the block. With a more mature Woody and a freshmen Ahmad, we are better defensively in the lane than we were with our combo last year. As good a shot-blocker as Gabe was, he was frequently out of position and couldn't move very well laterally.

Also, I don't think we are going to want Jones guarding a mobile 3 or 4, but I believe he will do just fine in the man defense against bangers like Fisher. And Uhl can always step out and guard the more mobile player...even Wagner can. I just really like the way this team will defend. It goes without saying that we will likely have the best perimeter D in the B1G (when Peter isn't in the game.)

The real improvement is offensively. I had commented earlier that we were all underestimating how Aaron White was affecting our offense, and it showed last night. Please don't hear me disparage AW, he was a great Hawkeye...but I believe Fran was never able to move the ball and people offensively last year like he would prefer becuase Aaron would demand such little respect on the 3 point line, and would end up out there with the ball in his hands frequently. Let's see teams try to sag off of Uhl or Jones, Fran would love to see them double down on the block.

I love when Woody is in the game with four shooters, he is such a great passer. And honestly with Wagner in the game in a 4-out set, we are equally dangerous. I believe Ahmad is going to be quicker than any 5 we face. It is just all very, very good...and that assumes we can shoot the three-ball. And I believe we will shoot it every night.

It is not often that a team can play as many shooters as we can. People are going to be really surprised at Mikey's shooting...everyone underestimated how his injury affected him the entire season last year. AC was our best percentage last year. JU & PJ are improved, and should both be over 40%. Jones is going to have a couple really big games. Uhl looks incredibly confident at the arc...and I still haven't mentioned probably our two best shooters in Ellingson and Fleming.

That is 8 really good shooters. Will they have some cold shooting nights? Yes, each of them will. However, the likelihood that all 8 of them will be off is incredibly low. In fact, it isn't likely that even half of them will be cold on the same night...and that leaves four shooters for each game. And it looks to me like they are all unselfish enough to recognize whose night it is.

Sorry, just want to celebrate a little bit. This team has all of the pieces to prove a very difficult out:

1. Experience, healthy, senior PG
2. 7'1" Senior post that loves to mix it up and play smart
3. Shooters: Lots of them!
4. Willing defenders at all spots
5. Athleticism that is going to surprise a lot of teams
6. A great coach who knows what he has and knows how to use them

Go Hawks!

 

[Curt Furence]

No matter how you analyze, this team is better than last year.

It is true, Fran does need to figure out how to replace the rebouding of While, Olasemi and Ogelsby (he was a good rebounding guard). However, any fears of being as good defensively are now gone. I love Ahmad Wagner defensively in the post. He dominated Ellenson at the block. With a more mature Woody and a freshmen Ahmad, we are better defensively in the lane than we were with our combo last year. As good a shot-blocker as Gabe was, he was frequently out of position and couldn't move very well laterally.

Also, I don't think we are going to want Jones guarding a mobile 3 or 4, but I believe he will do just fine in the man defense against bangers like Fisher. And Uhl can always step out and guard the more mobile player...even Wagner can. I just really like the way this team will defend. It goes without saying that we will likely have the best perimeter D in the B1G (when Peter isn't in the game.)

The real improvement is offensively. I had commented earlier that we were all underestimating how Aaron White was affecting our offense, and it showed last night. Please don't hear me disparage AW, he was a great Hawkeye...but I believe Fran was never able to move the ball and people offensively last year like he would prefer becuase Aaron would demand such little respect on the 3 point line, and would end up out there with the ball in his hands frequently. Let's see teams try to sag off of Uhl or Jones, Fran would love to see them double down on the block.

I love when Woody is in the game with four shooters, he is such a great passer. And honestly with Wagner in the game in a 4-out set, we are equally dangerous. I believe Ahmad is going to be quicker than any 5 we face. It is just all very, very good...and that assumes we can shoot the three-ball. And I believe we will shoot it every night.

It is not often that a team can play as many shooters as we can. People are going to be really surprised at Mikey's shooting...everyone underestimated how his injury affected him the entire season last year. AC was our best percentage last year. JU & PJ are improved, and should both be over 40%. Jones is going to have a couple really big games. Uhl looks incredibly confident at the arc...and I still haven't mentioned probably our two best shooters in Ellingson and Fleming.

That is 8 really good shooters. Will they have some cold shooting nights? Yes, each of them will. However, the likelihood that all 8 of them will be off is incredibly low. In fact, it isn't likely that even half of them will be cold on the same night...and that leaves four shooters for each game. And it looks to me like they are all unselfish enough to recognize whose night it is.

Sorry, just want to celebrate a little bit. This team has all of the pieces to prove a very difficult out:

1. Experience, healthy, senior PG
2. 7'1" Senior post that loves to mix it up and play smart
3. Shooters: Lots of them!
4. Willing defenders at all spots
5. Athleticism that is going to surprise a lot of teams
6. A great coach who knows what he has and knows how to use them

Go Hawks!

I don't know whether this was a good post or not. I stopped reading after you misspelled all three names of last years seniors.

I hope that Woodburner guy has a good year. Him Mikey Carousel, Youtoff and Clemmings are going to be big this year.

 

[CentralIAHawk]

Sorry, lol!!! I didn't bother to proofread...just too excited.

KC Royals...Hawk Football...Golden State...and now Hawk Bball...we haven't lost for a few months...crazy!

 

[Mohawkeye]

You make an interesting and valid point on White. He brought a lot of things, but consistent 3 point shooting wasn't one of them, until the end of last season when he hit a few. White also was a little suspect on defense if you ask me, so I think there is room to improve there. Of course, we'll never fully account for his rebounding and energy.

I really like the 3 point shooting on this team. You can win any game with good 3 point shooting. Of course, if you have an off night you can also lose any game if you aren't playing defense and rebounding. If Uhl can keep hitting from the 3 then he is going to be the best 6th man in the Big.

 

[CentralIAHawk]

I am going to assume that, if Uhl keeps playing like this, he is going to end up being that 5th starter. I just think bringing Clemmons off the bench makes a lot more sense.

I think that goes the furthest to solve our rebounding issue...which is the biggest loss from those graduates.

Go Hawks

 

[CanadaHawk]

I am going to assume that, if Uhl keeps playing like this, he is going to end up being that 5th starter. I just think bringing Clemmons off the bench makes a lot more sense.

I think that goes the furthest to solve our rebounding issue...which is the biggest loss from those graduates.

Go Hawks

I see what you're saying about rebounding. But Clemmons gives us better perimeter D and offensive flow. Rebounding can be helped by the bench as it improves. Any change, I think, depends on Jok. If he improves faster in rebounding, it encourages leaving things as they are. If his perimeter D starts getting better, we could move him back to starting 2G. In any case, deficiencies are going to get smaller as the bench gets more experience. Let's go get Dayton!

 

[CentralIAHawk]

Yes, I believe you are correct about that. The way AC and MG just took the ball from those Marquette guards off the dribble looked like 7th grade basketball...with the A-team playing vs. the B-team.

Go Hawks!

 

[unoHawkeye]

I am going to assume that, if Uhl keeps playing like this, he is going to end up being that 5th starter. I just think bringing Clemmons off the bench makes a lot more sense.

I think that goes the furthest to solve our rebounding issue...which is the biggest loss from those graduates.

Go Hawks

I'd point out that it was easier for Gesell to crash down and double team on the drive having another guard/point guard up top who was quick enough to rotate, so at least for last night, I thought it worked well.

There are likely positives and negatives to starting either Uhl or Clemmons, but Uhl's been effective off the bench, and Clemmons, the offense, and defense have all been effective with him starting. That said, I don't really see a change to the starting lineup barring Clemmons going into an offensive slump.

 

[lovedwatchingLester]

Clemmons plays fast and when he is controlled and fast like last night early on and with Gessel alongside and running the offense it looked beautiful. He plays like that he will be starter and IMO should be. I like him off the bench too and also see the benefits of him doing so. So in conclusion I guess I'll just leave these decisions to Fran

 

[goodbyebobby]

As long as either MG or Sapp are on the floor we have a sr. PG running the show. That cannot be underestimated in its importance.

 

[HoustonREDHawk]

I am excited about how the Hawks played last night, but it is too early to tell whether they will be better than last year. They have more shooters, and they have two healthy, experience PGs, but I am not yet convinced that they won't get hurt on the boards by some of the top teams. The next few games will tell us a lot.

 

[kzoohawk80]

I see what you're saying about rebounding. But Clemmons gives us better perimeter D and offensive flow. Rebounding can be helped by the bench as it improves. Any change, I think, depends on Jok. If he improves faster in rebounding, it encourages leaving things as they are. If his perimeter D starts getting better, we could move him back to starting 2G. In any case, deficiencies are going to get smaller as the bench gets more experience. Let's go get Dayton!

I don't know about our perimeter D being better with Clemmons. It pushes Jok to the 3. Uthoff played good perimeter D last year and this year at the 3. Clemmons off the bench also allows Fran to have a quick hook with Jok on defense. Brady definitely doesn't bring that positive off the bench. I hope White Jesus kind of plays his starting lineup based on matchups. For example Indiana seems like a team he should start against and a team like MSU he should come off the bench.

 

[DodgerHawki]

No matter how you analyze, this team is better than last year.

It is true, Fran does need to figure out how to replace the rebouding of White, Olaseni and Oglesby (he was a good rebounding guard). However, any fears of being as good defensively are now gone. I love Ahmad Wagner defensively in the post. He dominated Ellenson at the block. With a more mature Woody and a freshmen Ahmad, we are better defensively in the lane than we were with our combo last year. As good a shot-blocker as Gabe was, he was frequently out of position and couldn't move very well laterally.

Also, I don't think we are going to want Jones guarding a mobile 3 or 4, but I believe he will do just fine in the man defense against bangers like Fisher. And Uhl can always step out and guard the more mobile player...even Wagner can. I just really like the way this team will defend. It goes without saying that we will likely have the best perimeter D in the B1G (when Peter isn't in the game.)

The real improvement is offensively. I had commented earlier that we were all underestimating how Aaron White was affecting our offense, and it showed last night. Please don't hear me disparage AW, he was a great Hawkeye...but I believe Fran was never able to move the ball and people offensively last year like he would prefer becuase Aaron would demand such little respect on the 3 point line, and would end up out there with the ball in his hands frequently. Let's see teams try to sag off of Uhl or Jones, Fran would love to see them double down on the block.

I love when Woody is in the game with four shooters, he is such a great passer. And honestly with Wagner in the game in a 4-out set, we are equally dangerous. I believe Ahmad is going to be quicker than any 5 we face. It is just all very, very good...and that assumes we can shoot the three-ball. And I believe we will shoot it every night.

It is not often that a team can play as many shooters as we can. People are going to be really surprised at Mikey's shooting...everyone underestimated how his injury affected him the entire season last year. AC was our best percentage last year. JU & PJ are improved, and should both be over 40%. Jones is going to have a couple really big games. Uhl looks incredibly confident at the arc...and I still haven't mentioned probably our two best shooters in Ellingson and Fleming.

That is 8 really good shooters. Will they have some cold shooting nights? Yes, each of them will. However, the likelihood that all 8 of them will be off is incredibly low. In fact, it isn't likely that even half of them will be cold on the same night...and that leaves four shooters for each game. And it looks to me like they are all unselfish enough to recognize whose night it is.

Sorry, just want to celebrate a little bit. This team has all of the pieces to prove a very difficult out:

1. Experience, healthy, senior PG
2. 7'1" Senior post that loves to mix it up and play smart
3. Shooters: Lots of them!
4. Willing defenders at all spots
5. Athleticism that is going to surprise a lot of teams
6. A great coach who knows what he has and knows how to use them

Go Hawks!

Way too early to make proclamations that this year's team is better than last year's. We have no idea how good/bad Marquette is at this point. And the comments about White hurting the offense last year are silly. White was the most efficient offensive player in the Big 10 last year (according to Offensive Efficiency ratings from Basketball Reference). His ability to get to the line and shoot a high percentage from the field is/was unique. White holding the ball at the 3-point live was not an issue whatsoever last year.
Iowa's adjusted offensive efficiency last year (according to KenPom) was 111.4 points per 100 possessions (29th in the country). So far this year, Iowa's adjusted offensive efficiency is 109.9 (28th nationally). So basically this year's Iowa team has to maintain its current level of production (and even increase it a bit) to be just as good as it was last year on offense.

Is the 42% shooting by Iowa from 3-point land over 3 games sustainable over the course of the season? That's what we're going to find out. White and Olaseni helped Iowa's efficiency with their ability to get to the line and get extra possessions with offensive rebounds. This year's team doesn't have that, and so far they are doing it differently shooting a high percentage from the field and 3-point line.

I applaud Fran for changing the attack to suit the players on the roster. I just want to caution folks that we need to see if the shots come as free and easy against the Daytons or Michigan States or Iowa States of the world. Can Iowa adapt if the shots aren't falling. Last year we had White and Gabe who could get Iowa in the bonus early or grab rebounds. Doesn't mean one way is better than another, just different.

You can't take it for granted that Uthoff and Jok are going to shoot 40%+ from 3-point range for the whole season. Jok shot 34% last year and Uthoff made 37% of his 3's. Making a jump to 40+ for the whole season would be very difficult (not impossible). They are both volume shooters, so it's not as if they are only shooting twice in a game when they are wide open. Gatens senior year he was on fire it seemed the whole year and he shot 41% from 3-point range for the year. It's hard to shoot that well.

 

[DanL53]

Some great thoughts on this thread and my compliments to both Central and Dodger.

Fran is the first coach we've had since Lute Olson to take the players he has and adjust his system to make the best use of their talents. Just a preview of the future, and people on here know I love what Woody brings, but wait and see. When we have guys in the post that can get up above the rim and score? And again, I'm not picking on Woody, just being honest. Somewhere in his office Fran has a trunk load of stuff to dust off for the Cook's and Kriener's that are coming in.

This year is all about making use of the shooters we have by moving the ball and getting them open. Woody is a big part of that with his passing and unselfish attitude to help us win games. And we will miss him, no doubt. But that trunk I spoke of...I guarantee that just like we made the most of Gatens, then Marble, then White, and now Uthoff...that trunk will be opened and well see some very interesting adjustments to our offense.

 

[yerpHAWK]

I thought this team was better coming into the season as well. 4 seniors and 4 starters back from a 7 seed. I am a bit concerned once we get into big 10 play that our offense will go into dry spells, but that's why you play defense to overcome that. Jok could also be a huge x factor that many of us were concerned he wouldn't perform because he is Yuge.

 

[CentralIAHawk]

Dodger, thanks for your balance. I wish you would wait until we lose to burst my bubble.

Go Hawks

 

[hooper56]

Please don't hear me disparage AW, he was a great Hawkeye...but I believe Fran was never able to move the ball and people offensively last year like he would prefer becuase Aaron would demand such little respect on the 3 point line, and would end up out there with the ball in his hands frequently. Let's see teams try to sag off of Uhl or Jones, Fran would love to see them double down on the block.


Go Hawks!

This is a really good point you are making about White. Aaron occupied the ball a lot on offense and as you say they didn't guard him on the perimeter. Most of his points came from transition and/or driving the baseline and getting fouled. He rarely got an and one because he rarely made the shot as he was too weak. All those free throws were good but it did serve to disrupt flow and slow things down. He was really good at what he did but it was not conducive to good flow. We had great flow last night and Uhl can do a lot of the things Whitey could. Miss Aaron a ton but I am liking this team also.

 

[hooper56]

Some great thoughts on this thread and my compliments to both Central and Dodger.

Fran is the first coach we've had since Lute Olson to take the players he has and adjust his system to make the best use of their talents. Just a preview of the future, and people on here know I love what Woody brings, but wait and see. When we have guys in the post that can get up above the rim and score? And again, I'm not picking on Woody, just being honest. Somewhere in his office Fran has a trunk load of stuff to dust off for the Cook's and Kriener's that are coming in.

This year is all about making use of the shooters we have by moving the ball and getting them open. Woody is a big part of that with his passing and unselfish attitude to help us win games. And we will miss him, no doubt. But that trunk I spoke of...I guarantee that just like we made the most of Gatens, then Marble, then White, and now Uthoff...that trunk will be opened and well see some very interesting adjustments to our offense.

You are right about that trunk, Dan. And we have a coach who is comfortable enough in his own skin to look into Speraw's and Dillard's trunks as well.

 

[4everahawk]

You are right about that trunk, Dan. And we have a coach who is comfortable enough in his own skin to look into Speraw's and Dillard's trunks as well.

Hmmm....that statement could definitely be taken the wrong way.

 

[DodgerHawki]

Dodger, thanks for your balance. I wish you would wait until we lose to burst my bubble.

Go Hawks

No problem. I'm the same way at times. You all know this, but the basketball season is full of peaks and valleys. The good teams make the valleys shorter and not as steep.

Marquette has not looked good against anyone yet in 3 games. Frankly, they've been terrible. That said, what Iowa did last night was impressive. A veteran, skilled team just took the Eagles apart.

Dayton, Notre Dame, Iowa State and Florida State will have good athletes that will get up on Iowa and make things more difficult. But as others have noted, with the top 7 guys in the rotation Iowa has 5 guys on the court who have to be defended. When you have that, and the players are unselfish and know how to play, you will win some games.

 

[EduNeerHawk]

No problem. I'm the same way at times. You all know this, but the basketball season is full of peaks and valleys. The good teams make the valleys shorter and not as steep.

Marquette has not looked good against anyone yet in 3 games. Frankly, they've been terrible. That said, what Iowa did last night was impressive. A veteran, skilled team just took the Eagles apart.

Dayton, Notre Dame, Iowa State and Florida State will have good athletes that will get up on Iowa and make things more difficult. But as others have noted, with the top 7 guys in the rotation Iowa has 5 guys on the court who have to be defended. When you have that, and the players are unselfish and know how to play, you will win some games.

Great thoughts Central and Dodger and others too. I learned something today which is always a good thing. Loved Central's point about White too. This next Dayton game will be a tough one for sure. With other tough games to follow. We are off to a very promising start to our BB season and like our glorious football team, one game at a time and I bet this BB team has learned this as well.

Really looking forward to watching the next Hawkeye BB game after I stuff my belly with Thanksgiving turkey.

 

[SDHawkDoc]

There is a long way to go before declaring them better than last year.
Let's see how overall, conference, and NCAA record turn out before declaring them better.
The destruction of marquette was a very pleasant surprise. I'm going to wait a while, though, before labeling them B1G front runners.

 

[HeRKeYHoPeFuL]

Way too early to make proclamations that this year's team is better than last year's. We have no idea how good/bad Marquette is at this point. And the comments about White hurting the offense last year are silly. White was the most efficient offensive player in the Big 10 last year (according to Offensive Efficiency ratings from Basketball Reference). His ability to get to the line and shoot a high percentage from the field is/was unique. White holding the ball at the 3-point live was not an issue whatsoever last year.
Iowa's adjusted offensive efficiency last year (according to KenPom) was 111.4 points per 100 possessions (29th in the country).

I understand taking the aggregate stats, but the dreaded "eye test" seems to tell me that his numbers were inflated by fast break finishes at the rim. Not to take anything away from that skillset as I actually don't think we have anyone on the roster who can run the floor and finish the way he did, but I think if you could take a subset of the possessions that were played in a half court set, his numbers would be WILDLY different (to be fair, I think his Fould Drawn per 40 Minutes would still keep him fairly efficient).

To say his holding the ball at the perimeter was not an issue is not accurate. I can recall several times last year being frustrated that the ball would stick when it arrived at him as he wasn't "feeling it" to just shoot the open 3 and his guy was far enough off to prevent a post feed. We demolished Marquette due to ball movement (at one point I believe the announcers mentioned we had assisted 75% of our baskets).

I absolutely think that White was a great player, but his skillset was that of tranisition finisher and rebounder. He was not a go-to player on the offensive end of the court.

 

[Phenomenally Frantastic]

I don't know whether this was a good post or not. I stopped reading after you misspelled all three names of last years seniors.

I hope that Woodburner guy has a good year. Him Mikey Carousel, Youtoff and Clemmings are going to be big this year.

Ironic you would complain about this, given your screen name.

 

[Curt Furence]

Ironic you would complain about this, given your screen name.

Yes, because that was not intentional.

OP took it in stride, just having a little fun with him.

 

[TJHawkeye]

I think we are better. Remember this Marquette team is comprised of all 4 and 5 star players. They just need a new coach.

 

[icu81222]

No matter how you analyze, this team is better than last year.

It is true, Fran does need to figure out how to replace the rebouding of White, Olaseni and Oglesby (he was a good rebounding guard). However, any fears of being as good defensively are now gone. I love Ahmad Wagner defensively in the post. He dominated Ellenson at the block. With a more mature Woody and a freshmen Ahmad, we are better defensively in the lane than we were with our combo last year. As good a shot-blocker as Gabe was, he was frequently out of position and couldn't move very well laterally.

Also, I don't think we are going to want Jones guarding a mobile 3 or 4, but I believe he will do just fine in the man defense against bangers like Fisher. And Uhl can always step out and guard the more mobile player...even Wagner can. I just really like the way this team will defend. It goes without saying that we will likely have the best perimeter D in the B1G (when Peter isn't in the game.)

The real improvement is offensively. I had commented earlier that we were all underestimating how Aaron White was affecting our offense, and it showed last night. Please don't hear me disparage AW, he was a great Hawkeye...but I believe Fran was never able to move the ball and people offensively last year like he would prefer becuase Aaron would demand such little respect on the 3 point line, and would end up out there with the ball in his hands frequently. Let's see teams try to sag off of Uhl or Jones, Fran would love to see them double down on the block.

I love when Woody is in the game with four shooters, he is such a great passer. And honestly with Wagner in the game in a 4-out set, we are equally dangerous. I believe Ahmad is going to be quicker than any 5 we face. It is just all very, very good...and that assumes we can shoot the three-ball. And I believe we will shoot it every night.

It is not often that a team can play as many shooters as we can. People are going to be really surprised at Mikey's shooting...everyone underestimated how his injury affected him the entire season last year. AC was our best percentage last year. JU & PJ are improved, and should both be over 40%. Jones is going to have a couple really big games. Uhl looks incredibly confident at the arc...and I still haven't mentioned probably our two best shooters in Ellingson and Fleming.

That is 8 really good shooters. Will they have some cold shooting nights? Yes, each of them will. However, the likelihood that all 8 of them will be off is incredibly low. In fact, it isn't likely that even half of them will be cold on the same night...and that leaves four shooters for each game. And it looks to me like they are all unselfish enough to recognize whose night it is.

Sorry, just want to celebrate a little bit. This team has all of the pieces to prove a very difficult out:

1. Experience, healthy, senior PG
2. 7'1" Senior post that loves to mix it up and play smart
3. Shooters: Lots of them!
4. Willing defenders at all spots
5. Athleticism that is going to surprise a lot of teams
6. A great coach who knows what he has and knows how to use them

Go Hawks!

Slow down sparky. We are 3 games in. You make some good points but I am not ready to say we are better than last year.

Also, let's back off the praise with Fleming. Has he made a 3 yet? I have seen several say he is our best shooter.

No.

He has a long ways to go. All around. His handle is pretty suspect at this point.

Not trying to be overly critical but let's pump the breaks a bit until we get into late December mid January

I will edit to add; let's wait until we play our next 6-10 games. That should be enough

 

[CentralIAHawk]

Great conversation. However, I think many are missing my point. I do not believe it is too early to declare this team better than last year's team. Certainly, it is too early to predict whether they will have a more successful season than last season. The Big Ten is supposed to be very tough, and I'm sure the NCAA field will be difficult. We have no idea if we will even get in, or what are seed might be.

I'm not trying to predict any of that. I am simply saying, after watching three games, that subtracting three graduates, maturing six potential starters, and adding these 4–5 new back ups, equals a better set of options for coach Fran.

I do agree with the poster who said it might not be better, it might only be different. Certainly, we appear to be trading rebounding for shooting at some level. That is a bit too simplistic, but is a decent summary.

In addition though, I believe the maturity of the six returnees in the rotation, appears to be more significant than what we had returning going into last season. I haven't studied that, someone might want to debate that.

Go Hawks!

 

[DanL53]

For a real feel good moment here are the stats from the first three games:

http://espn.go.com/mens-college-basketball/team/stats/_/id/2294/iowa-hawkeyes

All we have to do is keep doing what we're doing.

 

[sloehawk]

I am excited about how the Hawks played last night, but it is too early to tell whether they will be better than last year. They have more shooters, and they have two healthy, experience PGs, but I am not yet convinced that they won't get hurt on the boards by some of the top teams. The next few games will tell us a lot.

There won't be many teams we play that miss their first 11 three's. And I think we rebounded the large majority of those misses. They missed, we didn't. That helps. We know what Iowa looks like when the ball doesn't go in the basket (seen plenty of those nights). Of course we opened the 2nd half with out trademark give up 10 quick points, but at least this time we bounced back and cruised on in.

This game will be far more an aberration than a trend. Nice to see regardless.

 

[gablefan73]

I see what you're saying about rebounding. But Clemmons gives us better perimeter D and offensive flow. Rebounding can be helped by the bench as it improves. Any change, I think, depends on Jok. If he improves faster in rebounding, it encourages leaving things as they are. If his perimeter D starts getting better, we could move him back to starting 2G. In any case, deficiencies are going to get smaller as the bench gets more experience. Let's go get Dayton!

Couldn't disagree more.