Random comments/observations

[revkev73]

Great win! Sweep Purdue and MSU...!!!

The Slash Brothers tired out the bigger Purdue players...and the Iowa depth contributed.

Uthoff is a tough cover. Jok gets his shots, a pure shooter. Those two are a "difficult duo."

Lots of other nice contributions. Great to see Ellingson do well and clutch contributions. No turnovers.

Woodie played a nice game...and makes his free throws!!!

Baer...again...a spark...smart...unafraid.

Can the person who taught Woodie how to be a 100% better free throw shooter please, please, please teach Sapp and MG how to shoot free throws. Gosh...after four years...just have to figure that out...it will be a death blow at some point.

Bad MG has resurfaced way too much...crazy, crazy, crazy drives out of control into multiple coverage. Gosh if the clock is running down and if you think you have no other option...shoot it from the outside...and hope for a rebound. Why? Why? You let the other team back into the game with those decisions.

Purdue had only two blocks!

Double point margin again against a ranked team...well, that's very good.

Uthoff is "Cool Hand Luke" on the court....

And that left handed jam...ouch..."Get out of my way Swanigan or you will get hurt, bro."

I jumped out of my seat on that one!!!!!

Congrats...to all the players and coaches...hard work pays off. Keep running and gunning... Who wouldn't want to play this style of BB?

Officiating? Did the "real crew" get stranded out east in the snowstorm...these can't be the assigned crew members, can they?

 

[HawkLogic]

1-7 from field, 3-7 from FT line, 5 assist, 5 TO.....may not elite pg play.

Seems like he is pushing the ball on his outside shots like he did last year with bad elbow. Really needs to concentrated on running the team and calling his own number less. He does need the threat of being able to finish to be able to pass on dribble drive...but hunted his own shot too much in the last two games. If he's injure, more Clemmons.

 

[DanL53]

TL/DR

 

[SDHawkDoc]

Hawks only need to go 1 game over .500 the rest of the way to get 13 conference wins this year. NO WAY would I have ever thought that looking at their schedule before the start of the season.

 

[DanL53]

Hawks only need to go 1 game over .500 the rest of the way to get 13 conference wins this year. NO WAY would I have ever thought that looking at their schedule before the start of the season.

The only thing I can say in my defense is that when I guessed a 10-8 record I added that the way we had played for extended periods of some nonconference games, we could do far better if we grasped what was working. But in honesty, by far better I thought maybe 12-6 again.

This? 7-0? Freagin' amazing and we often look like we've been playing together for a decade! Love it!!!!!

 

[revkev73]

Are we really, going to have a huge drop off at PG next year?...

I just don't see it...Uthoff...yes...

 

[HoustonREDHawk]

I am curious how many Hawk fans watch the defensive end, or what is going on off the ball. It seems like a lot of fans look at the statistics, but don't see much else.

 

[DanL53]

I am curious how many Hawk fans watch the defensive end, or what is going on off the ball. It seems like a lot of fans look at the statistics, but don't see much else.

Outstanding point.

 

[revkev73]

I do watch the defensive end...like to watch to see who helps out on defense, who boxes out, who is beaten off the dribble, who can stop someone off the dribble, who plays without reaching...all those are important...was there a point to be made?

 

[Suterman]

We are going to lose A TON defensively next year. Woody is a GREAT defensive center. Sapp is a lock down defender. Uthoff is long and relentless and Mike Gesell is a fine defender. We are going to miss all 4 of these guys tremendously next year.

 

[SDHawkDoc]

We saw what happens when they play poor defense just 3 days ago in new jersey.
They got away with it that night because rutgers is just a terrible, terrible team.
Defense clearly has a lot to do with their success in the B1G.

 

[revkev73]

I think Iowa's ability to play various defensive sets, with a variety of players is the biggest, most pleasant surprise this year. It is very confusing and tiring for the opponents who also tire out trying to cover all of Iowa's shooters...it ends up being a game of attrition. Fun to see what happens at Maryland...can't wait...and I'll bet the team can't wait either. Playing with confidence does that.

How many announcers and pundits have said this year..."I saw tape on Iowa, but wow, watching them in person is very, very impressive."

 

[milehighhawkeye24]

I do watch the defensive end...like to watch to see who helps out on defense, who boxes out, who is beaten off the dribble, who can stop someone off the dribble, who plays without reaching...all those are important...was there a point to be made?

yeah, i think the point is that MG and Sapp are very very good at those things

 

[revkev73]

I agree they can play good defense...and they should...seniors...lots of games played. Point also is...you can be a very good defensive player AND still make free throws...they are gift points. Woodie has become excellent at it!

 

[SDHawkDoc]

Any other power 5 schools so lightly regarded that have come through the way the Hawks have? And in BOTH the big time sports no less.

 

[revkev73]

I don't know about having "come through"...My hope is that the BB team continues its very impressive winning ways and finishes strong...unlike the FB team which finished with an egg.

Point is...the BB team is blowing the doors off the league so far with an extremely difficult schedule...and winning by double digit margins...away and at home... This is good and makes me happy.

 

[SDHawkDoc]

Sure, the Hawks had that big turd in the Rose Bowl.
I'm talking about league play. Unbeaten in the B1G and lost on a squeaker in the title game.
Now b-ball is also unbeaten to this point with 5 tough games already in the bank.
I don't know of any other power 5 schools this year that can claim they had no pre-seaon recognition in either sport that has done what the Hawks have.

 

[HoustonREDHawk]

I don't know about having "come through"...My hope is that the BB team continues its very impressive winning ways and finishes strong...unlike the FB team which finished with an egg.

Point is...the BB team is blowing the doors off the league so far with an extremely difficult schedule...and winning by double digit margins...away and at home... This is good and makes me happy.

Why do you and several other posters need to criticize Gesell every time he doesn't play a near perfect game? Hawks have won 13 straight B1G games, against some of the better teams. During that stretch, Mike has been running the offense and playing about as well on the defensive end as anyone in the league. We shouldn't need to debate whether he is a good PG every week. Be happy with another great win against a very good team.

 

[crHawkeye92]

Fran mentioned that Gesell tweaked his hamstring before the Rutgers game.

 

[revkev73]

I think critical looks at the coaching, team play, individual contributions is what a site like this is for?

MG has done well this year...I made a comment that he needs to avoid reverting back to "wild...I can drive to hoop for a bucket" MG... This hurts the team. Plus...MG and Sapp both need to get better at the FT line...this will come back to bite the team also.

I think I did begin my OP comments with what you suggest..."Another great win!" Read it all...not just your selective intake...

 

[revkev73]

Yes...hamstring is tweaked...shoot less, drive less, make free throws...

We need MG to be healthy...

 

[twindman]

1-7 from field, 3-7 from FT line, 5 assist, 5 TO.....may not elite pg play.

Seems like he is pushing the ball on his outside shots like he did last year with bad elbow. Really needs to concentrated on running the team and calling his own number less. He does need the threat of being able to finish to be able to pass on dribble drive...but hunted his own shot too much in the last two games. If he's injure, more Clemmons.

I have always been a Woody and MG fan, but Mike seems to be shot-putting his free throws. Watch them. He seems to have NO wrist flip and follow thru.

 

[revkev73]

He is stiff arming...short arming his shots...a habit he got into during the 2014 collapse... It is a sign of nervousness and a lack of confidence...

Pass it...dribble it...don't drive into double and triple teams!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[e720718998]

Rev we should thank our stars we have MG and AC in our back court it's why the offense runs as smooth as it does. I'd still take a banged up MG then a not quite ready freshman.

 

[revkev73]

Concur on MG...he is the best we have right now...he is just better when he is "less" in some ways.

AC is having a nice year...good to see that for him.

 

[kzoohawk80]

We are going to lose A TON defensively next year. Woody is a GREAT defensive center. Sapp is a lock down defender. Uthoff is long and relentless and Mike Gesell is a fine defender. We are going to miss all 4 of these guys tremendously next year.

I'm not to sure about this. It may be a different defensive team. We could improve length and foot speed next year. Too much unknown to predict but I will throw out a couple of things. Williams at the 1 adds a ton of length. Jok possibly playing the 2 increases the length compared to Clemmons. Baer at the 3 again increases the length compared to Jok. Definitely losing length with Uthoff and Woodbury but increasing foot speed with Uhl and Wagner. A lineup of Williams, Jok, Baer, Uhl and Wagner is a much taller and longer lineup then our current starting lineup. Could possibly be a better rebounding unit. As a unit I'm saying. Gesell and Clemmons don't bring a whole lot of rebounding. Also that lineup defensively has a lot of interchangable parts. Guys that can guard different positions. Seems like it would be a better trapping team and a zone team.

 

[seer_hawk]

Are we really, going to have a huge drop off at PG next year?...

I just don't see it...Uthoff...yes...

I could save this one to make you look foolish next year, but it's not worth it. I'm enjoying the season too much.

I said it when Gesell and Clemmons were freshmen, and I'll say it again. Experience means a lot at the PG/2G, and this team has continued to improve as our backcourt has gained experience. Gesell has his faults, but he does a lot of things very well, including getting us into our offense quickly. Experience has made him a better player, and next year we'll miss both Gesell and Clemmons a lot. The drop off might not be as visible as replacing a potential AA, but there will be a big drop off unless we have a freshman in the wings like Trimble.

 

[hansenhawk]

As for PG drop off, i guess it depends on Williams and if someone else can step up.

If not, then YES, it's going to be a HUGE dropoff and we are going to struggle.

Just imagine is Fran gets a top tier PG, really the one piece he has continued striking out for.

Imagine Ulis with this team.... Oh man, I think we definitely are national champion favorites at this point.

 

[RocknRollface]

I think Mike was still bothered by whatever it was that happened before Rutgers.

Shot still looks flat.

A couple of the turnovers were just dumb decisions again, trying to thread the needle inside from way to far away. The one turnover attempting to pass to Ellingson was a good decision, BE was wide open, pass just got away from him which happens.

 

[revkev73]

I would look foolish for making a prediction...based on facts at the current time?

How would that affect my life...and why would you think of doing such a thing? Trying to make a point? Showing me up? What a sad life.

Points above are relevant...as my observations...lots will be missed but lots will be better or different or both.

Point is...we don't know how this season will play out and we don't know how next year's team will be at this point in the season and later...a year or more to get better and more time to adjust to the players that are gone.

It should be interesting and exciting...that's how I see it.

 

[unIowa]

1. I think Mike is still bothered by his hammy tweak.

2. Purdue played some smart D that kept Iowa from running off makes. They picked MG up full court after makes and kept the team from getting out in transition. That disrupts what MG is good at IMO.

 

[orod741]

As the saying goes... Mike controlled what he could. He gave it all he had on the defensive end and you can't fault him for that. He may have struggled shooting but no one controls if the ball goes in or rims out. We are having a great year and those criticizing PG play need to step back and realize the good that we get from defensive end. The O won't always be there but defense can be as long as the effort is.

 

[seer_hawk]

I would look foolish for making a prediction...based on facts at the current time?

How would that affect my life...and why would you think of doing such a thing? Trying to make a point? Showing me up? What a sad life.

Points above are relevant...as my observations...lots will be missed but lots will be better or different or both.

Point is...we don't know how this season will play out and we don't know how next year's team will be at this point in the season and later...a year or more to get better and more time to adjust to the players that are gone.

It should be interesting and exciting...that's how I see it.

Are we really, going to have a huge drop off at PG next year?...

I just don't see it...Uthoff...yes...

I like you Rev, but I think your own words will show (make a point) how much you have underestimated Mike's contribution to our success over the last 3.5 seasons. IMO your slant towards him is unnecessarily negative in tone, and the repetitive nature makes it worse.

Like you I look forward to next season, as I have most of the seasons since Lute was our coach. IMO Fran does an outstanding job at game planning around our personnel, so he will be able mitigate our inexperience at PG somewhat. Still he's losing a 4 year starter at PG, and Clemmons who's also played a lot of PG over that time period. With Mike we'll lose around 9 PPG, 7 Asst, and 1.3 steals. Between Gesell and Clemmons we lose 17.2 PPG, 10.8 Asst, and 58 combined minutes per game. Unless Fran goes with someone other than Williams or Bohannon he's replacing that PG experience with a freshman or sophomore, and Williams is averaging 2.9 minutes per game. How will we not see a huge drop off in productivity?

I think Fran is crafty enough to keep us competitive, but I'll be really surprised if we can plug in an inexperienced PG and pick up where we left off this year. Even though all the seniors will be missed, I'm still old school enough to believe an experienced backcourt makes all the difference when competing in the conference, and making a statement in the NCAA Tourney.

 

[mazda1]

A tweeked hammy doesn't go away all that quickly. (Depends how bad I suppose), but I can see how getting your legs into your shot would be a crap shoot if it wasn't right. These guys are all bumps and bruises at this point and they all are likely impacted to some degree by how they feel day to day. They tough it out and they go.

Let's give 'em some slack when they're all beat to heck and playing their guts out for us.

 

[DanL53]

Let's talk about what an experienced guard compared to an inexperienced guard can bring:

Freshman: 25.1 mpg, 8.7 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.6 apg, 1.7 tpg, .403 fg, .794 ft., .317 3pt
Senior (so far): 29.6 mpg, 8.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 7.0 apg, 2.0 tpg, .450 fg., .729 ft., .417 3pt

Of course that is Mike Gesell. The thing that really stands out to me is his shooting and assists. I would remind however that both of those had something to do with 2012/13 being the year we couldn't shoot straight.

Obviously we can't expect Christian Williams or Jordan Bohannon to have their best seasons as freshmen. And I think it is fair to expect some drop off just due to inexperience. But, for about the tenth time I will remind that Williams will be a sophomore, and he will be among as many as ten returning players..so the inexperience might not be as bad as 2012/13, a year we won 25 games...even when we couldn't shoot worth a darn! .419 from 2 and .305 from 3.

 

[kzoohawk80]

IMO Fran does an outstanding job at game planning around our personnel, so he will be able mitigate our inexperience at PG somewhat. Still he's losing a 4 year starter at PG, and Clemmons who's also played a lot of PG over that time period. With Mike we'll lose around 9 PPG, 7 Asst, and 1.3 steals. Between Gesell and Clemmons we lose 17.2 PPG, 10.8 Asst, and 58 combined minutes per game. Unless Fran goes with someone other than Williams or Bohannon he's replacing that PG experience with a freshman or sophomore, and Williams is averaging 2.9 minutes per game. How will we not see a huge drop off in productivity?

No one knows what we'll be losing. This happens every year. It was Gatens, then Marble and then White. Did people on here predict this team to be a top 10 team? Did people predict the emergence of Uhl? Predict that Baer has earned a scholarship? Uthoff playing at an all american level? Jok playing at an all Big Ten level? This is a team game but your talking about replacing individuals which is where a lot of people get lost on here. It's kind of like the whole Money Ball movie. You don't replace the players, you replace the production. Asking me if they can replace the production of Uthoff, Gesell, Clemmons and Woodbury and I will keep saying that at this point there is no possible way to answer that. Mainly because of the lack of evidence. One reason is because no one on here honestly knows how Williams will play. He hasn't played enough this year. If Fran's proven one thing this year it's that his players get better. Uhl's emerging and will his production increase playing more minutes? Will Jok's production increase? Will Baer's production increase with more minutes? Can Ellingson and Wagner take the next step next year and maybe see improvement even this year? I actually think that it's quite possible that we have a better offensive team next year. Honestly we lose 2 of our worst shooters on the team in Gesell and Clemmons. Jok, Baer, Uhl and Jones can all knock down 3's. Will that make the transition for Williams easier? Will that allow him to showcase his skills better? Will that create better spacing next year?

 

[lovedwatchingLester]

Love all the questions you asked and the answers are, wait til next year but I'm smiling. This will be so much fun to watch develop. The more thus years team excells then the more likely there may be a drop off next year. I wrote a few weeks ago that next year there would most likely be a drop off next year as repeating as National Champ is really hard to do, . I was just kidding then as that was and most likely still is a pipe dream, but this team has "nuts" as well as talent and may just go far this year. I'm still smiling though and really enjoying thus team. I'll reflect back on this year when it's over, now I can't wait til Maryland.

 

[revkev73]

Every game that Iowa wins this year...and what an impressive run in the Big Ten...makes it more difficult for the team next year to be equal to or better than this year's production. That is a reality that is out of this world good...if Iowa runs the table game after game this year...and pushes on to a great things...well...how could next year's team repeat one of the historic Iowa teams of all time? The odds would be against it...

Obviously...when I stated a few games ago, that Iowa could be equal to or better than this year...it was in that moment of time...not now...after seeing a sweep of MSU, Purdue, etc.

All that said...as another poster alluded to above...when you lose a player in a team sport...it isn't like you are losing all of that player's production. The replacement also has contributions...the difference between the two is the window of change. And in team sports, and especially for a team like Iowa, which needs to develop talent rather than having "one and done" players...team chemistry and player development are primary. Williams, for example, might bring a ton of other talents to the Franatic way of play.

And also stated above...MG and Sapp are not born shooters...they get by. And...both are playing very well, for the most part, given their weaknesses. (every player has them)

And perhaps I have and am underestimating what Sapp and MG bring, along with Woodie...that is very possible...but I mostly look to a good year next year because of what I see now: Jok, Baer, Uhl (whose game doesn't surprise me at all), and now Ellingson, et. al. And I also am optimistic because of the coaching...Fran has been here long enough to have the players he wants, with players who are being groomed for 1-2 years to play in the Franetic system that he loves. His system of defense, especially, is complicated...and is not for the inexperienced.

As noted a billion times...the PG position will be the key next year. We will just have to wait and see...hopefully Williams will get more minutes as the Big Ten schedule "eases" a bit. He is so much different in his skill set than MG that it is difficult to see what his contributions to the team will be. He looks tentative now...but his bigger contributions are a year away...that's a lot of learning time. I think the key will be how hard he is willing to work...until then. This team really seems to like each other, and cheer for each other, and work hard for the team goals...this is a good thing...a sign of great coaching and experienced team leaders. Which, unfortunately is lost each year in college BB.

Should be fun...can't wait to see how Iowa does at Maryland, against some athletic talent. Iowa's deep bench, and Franetic, style of play can confuse them and wear them down... Fun ride...for sure.

 

[gablefan73]

My only beef is that our 2 pg's need to ge the ball to Ute for the clinching free throws. Ute would be averaging over 20 points a game and we would ice the game sooner. Please get that done Fran! If Ute is doubled get it to Jok or Woody. No more MG or AC ft's at the end.

 

[DanHawkPella]

MG is definitely pushing the ball a bit - I noticed his shot form seems to be more forward than upward. Rewatch the game and check out Jok's form and the arc of his ball compared to Gesell's. My daughter has the same issue