Tuesdays With Torbee: Men’s basketball season post-mortem . . .

[torbee]

March Sadness, again ​

By Tory Brecht

As it has far too often in the Fran McCaffery era, the Iowa men’s basketball team entered and exited March quickly, not with a bang but a whimper.

Other than the Keegan Murray-led run to the 2021 Big 10 Tournament championship, the magical basketball month has been more Ides of March than One Shining Moment for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa was predicted to finish 9th in the media’s preseason Big 10 poll. By conference-only record, they finished tied for 5th at an even 10-10, although the overall win-loss record was a decidedly mediocre 9th best in the 14-team league.

Despite technically overachieving pre-season expectations in what was always going to be a rebuilding year, limping to the finish in unimpressive fashion is frustrating.

There was no signature non-conference win and losses to regional rivals Iowa State and Creighton stung, particularly the blowout by the Cyclones. Starting 0-3 in conference put thoughts of an NCAA tournament bid on life support early and despite a late season turnaround, Iowa never seriously challenged the bubble.

Most disappointing were the home losses to a terrible Michigan team and a very mediocre Maryland squad. Had the Hawkeyes managed to win those, they likely would have been on the right side of the tournament bubble, despite the first-round conference tournament flameout at the hands of Ohio State.

Despite all that, I think Fran did a nice job keeping the team competitive despite the rocky season start. There were times I feared a long losing streak, and that never really materialized. But you can’t laud the turnaround without criticizing the creation of the hole to be dug out of in the first place.

The development of young players like Big 10 Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman, emerging slasher and sharpshooter in sophomore Josh Dix and some flashes of special potential from freshman point guard Brock Harding are all grounds for optimism.

But is anyone buying the stock?

I’ve taken a fair amount of grief for supposedly “insulting” and “blaming” Iowa fans for being a fair weather fan base. I don’t think that criticism is fair. After decades of disappointment and the abject failures of the Todd Lickliter era, it is understandable that Iowa fans operate in “prove it” mode and stay away in droves unless Iowa is winning at a high clip.

However, only showing up for the absolute best teams is the textbook definition of being fair weather. That is not an insult and it is not blaming: it is merely a statement of fact.

The truth is, Iowa has a fan problem and fixing it needs to be a top priority of new athletic director Beth Goetz. It is difficult to imagine McCaffery’s seat is even warm, let alone hot, but it is also obvious he has worn out his welcome with a not insignificant cohort of the Iowa fan base. Barring a voluntary separation, McCaffery and Co. have some work to do to re-engage Iowa fans if Carver is to be full and rocking again.

Of course winning at a higher rate and actually competing at the top of the conference will fix the fan problem. The young core of this year’s Iowa team has potential to do just that, provided recruiting ticks up and the portal is used strategically. If Iowa adds a solid combo guard and a backup big guy to spell Freeman, it should have a team able to post a winning conference record and get back in the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the past six years.

I suspect the lagging support for the men’s team is also partially due to the unprecedented success of the women’s team and the supernova-level stardom of Caitlin Clark. It can be hard to gin up enthusiasm for an inconsistent and streaky men’s team when you know the women are going to be clutch performers nearly every time out. There are also only a limited number of hours people can devote to attending sports in person and watching it on TV and when the women are appointment viewing, something has to give.

The 2024-25 basketball season is shaping up to be an inflection point in the Fran McCaffery era. If next year’s team shows growth and more consistency, earns a tournament bid and manages to win a couple games in the NCAAs, it should boost fan enthusiasm and quiet the critics. Struggle again, drop games to inferior teams and get pushed around by rivals, however, and the road gets even bumpier.

As fans of Iowa – whether you like Fran McCaffery or not – I think we can all agree the former is more appealing than the latter.

March sadness, again

The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team limped to the finish line this season

open.substack.com

 

[Bank of Hawk]

Good info on comparing pre season expectations to results. It’s not so bad.

Hear me out, what if Beth engineered a downtown arena?!?!? She’d be a Legend. Could hold all sorts of events, obviously with Iowa men’s bball. Look what they did in Lincoln, that downtown arena seems to be working out just fine.

 

[Bank of Hawk]

Problem is what to do with Carver.. can it be repurposed for u of i hospital expansion or research facility.

 

[Rifler]

Problem is what to do with Carver.. can it be repurposed for u of i hospital expansion or research facility.

Just use Carver for wrestling and intramural indoor activities...

 

[torbee]

Problem is what to do with Carver.. can it be repurposed for u of i hospital expansion or research facility.

Make it the Wrestling Mecca of the World and leave it at that, IMO.

A 12k capacity, compact basketball (women’s and men’s) only arena on the other side of the river (doesn’t necessarily need to be smack dab downtown) would be a fantastic development.

 

[binsfeldcyhawk2]

March Sadness, again ​

By Tory Brecht

As it has far too often in the Fran McCaffery era, the Iowa men’s basketball team entered and exited March quickly, not with a bang but a whimper.

Other than the Keegan Murray-led run to the 2021 Big 10 Tournament championship, the magical basketball month has been more Ides of March than One Shining Moment for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa was predicted to finish 9th in the media’s preseason Big 10 poll. By conference-only record, they finished tied for 5th at an even 10-10, although the overall win-loss record was a decidedly mediocre 9th best in the 14-team league.

Despite technically overachieving pre-season expectations in what was always going to be a rebuilding year, limping to the finish in unimpressive fashion is frustrating.

There was no signature non-conference win and losses to regional rivals Iowa State and Creighton stung, particularly the blowout by the Cyclones. Starting 0-3 in conference put thoughts of an NCAA tournament bid on life support early and despite a late season turnaround, Iowa never seriously challenged the bubble.

Most disappointing were the home losses to a terrible Michigan team and a very mediocre Maryland squad. Had the Hawkeyes managed to win those, they likely would have been on the right side of the tournament bubble, despite the first-round conference tournament flameout at the hands of Ohio State.

Despite all that, I think Fran did a nice job keeping the team competitive despite the rocky season start. There were times I feared a long losing streak, and that never really materialized. But you can’t laud the turnaround without criticizing the creation of the hole to be dug out of in the first place.

The development of young players like Big 10 Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman, emerging slasher and sharpshooter in sophomore Josh Dix and some flashes of special potential from freshman point guard Brock Harding are all grounds for optimism.

But is anyone buying the stock?

I’ve taken a fair amount of grief for supposedly “insulting” and “blaming” Iowa fans for being a fair weather fan base. I don’t think that criticism is fair. After decades of disappointment and the abject failures of the Todd Lickliter era, it is understandable that Iowa fans operate in “prove it” mode and stay away in droves unless Iowa is winning at a high clip.

However, only showing up for the absolute best teams is the textbook definition of being fair weather. That is not an insult and it is not blaming: it is merely a statement of fact.

The truth is, Iowa has a fan problem and fixing it needs to be a top priority of new athletic director Beth Goetz. It is difficult to imagine McCaffery’s seat is even warm, let alone hot, but it is also obvious he has worn out his welcome with a not insignificant cohort of the Iowa fan base. Barring a voluntary separation, McCaffery and Co. have some work to do to re-engage Iowa fans if Carver is to be full and rocking again.

Of course winning at a higher rate and actually competing at the top of the conference will fix the fan problem. The young core of this year’s Iowa team has potential to do just that, provided recruiting ticks up and the portal is used strategically. If Iowa adds a solid combo guard and a backup big guy to spell Freeman, it should have a team able to post a winning conference record and get back in the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the past six years.

I suspect the lagging support for the men’s team is also partially due to the unprecedented success of the women’s team and the supernova-level stardom of Caitlin Clark. It can be hard to gin up enthusiasm for an inconsistent and streaky men’s team when you know the women are going to be clutch performers nearly every time out. There are also only a limited number of hours people can devote to attending sports in person and watching it on TV and when the women are appointment viewing, something has to give.

The 2024-25 basketball season is shaping up to be an inflection point in the Fran McCaffery era. If next year’s team shows growth and more consistency, earns a tournament bid and manages to win a couple games in the NCAAs, it should boost fan enthusiasm and quiet the critics. Struggle again, drop games to inferior teams and get pushed around by rivals, however, and the road gets even bumpier.

As fans of Iowa – whether you like Fran McCaffery or not – I think we can all agree the former is more appealing than the latter.

March sadness, again

The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team limped to the finish line this season

open.substack.com

Pretty spot on as per usual.

I’ll just add that Fran fatigue was exasperated by Patrick getting 23 minutes this year.

I was a big fan of CMAC. Did all the little things. Fantastic assist to turnover ratio. Great floor general. Got physical with guys like Kofi Cockburn on switches…I could go on about all the things CMAC contributed…he deserved his minutes.

Patrick only brought inconsistent scoring…nothing else. Dembele should have gotten more of those minutes. As raw as he is he provided more defensive effort and rebounding.

Patrick was almost an non entity and it soured me onFran this year.

Sorry for the hijack but I think it’s relevant in regards to Fran fatigue.

 

[torbee]

Pretty spot on as per usual.

I’ll just add that Fran fatigue was exasperated by Patrick getting 23 minutes this year.

I was a big fan of CMAC. Did all the little things. Fantastic assist to turnover ratio. Great floor general. Got physical white guys like Kofi Cockburn on switches…I could go on about all the things CMAC contributed…he deserved his minutes.

Patrick only brought inconsistent scoring…nothing else. Dembele should have gotten more of those minutes. As raw as he is he provided more defensive effort and rebounding.

Patrick was almost an non entity and it soured me onFran this year.

Sorry for the hijack but I think it’s relevant in regards to Fran fatigue.

It was impossible to tell just exactly what Patrick was supposed to bring to the table. Terrible defender and rebounder for a big. Spotty outside shooter. I guess his one strength was being pretty agile as a big man in transition, but that isn’t needed often and other than that, he was more of a black hole on offense than anything.

I do think his health issues - physical and mental - likely curbed his development and are a reason for his inconsistency and occasional disappearance.

I will not be sad to see a roster without him on it, however. Wish him well and he was a loyal Hawkeye but I think he can be replaced with a more effective player next year.

 

[srams21]

The issue is Fran kind of did have a Caitlin Clark ish player in Garza. I think people already forget how dominant he was.

Not making a tournament run at some point with the Garza, Weiskamp, Keegan, and Kris years is very very disappointing. That's what killed the mojo for the fans imo.

 

[torbee]

The issue is Fran kind of did have a Caitlin Clark ish player in Garza. I think people already forget how dominant he was.

Not making a tournament run at some point with the Garza, Weiskamp, Keegan, and Kris years is very very disappointing. That's what killed the mojo for the fans imo.

It is very disappointing.

However, I generally remain skeptical that there is something about how McCaffery coaches that precludes tournament success. Winning basketball is winning basketball. The 2021 B10 tournament run showed that Iowa under Fran can string together wins against very good teams in March. For myriad factors - poor matchups, weird scheduling, untimely injuries, surprising shooting slumps - they’ve failed to do so in the NCAAs, which stinks and hurts fan enthusiasm. I do not however think past performance is 100 % predictive of future performance.

 

[millah_22]

The truth is, Iowa has a fan problem and fixing it needs to be a top priority of new athletic director Beth Goetz.

To a certain extent, winning fixes things. But also no stars to sell. All we heard was this team was young, and the early season didn't exactly give us much to be excited about.

If this team gets hot early next year, the fans will start coming back.

 

[Kelsers]

It was impossible to tell just exactly what Patrick was supposed to bring to the table. Terrible defender and rebounder for a big. Spotty outside shooter. I guess his one strength was being pretty agile as a big man in transition, but that isn’t needed often and other than that, he was more of a black hole on offense than anything.

I do think his health issues - physical and mental - likely curbed his development and are a reason for his inconsistency and occasional disappearance.

I will not be sad to see a roster without him on it, however. Wish him well and he was a loyal Hawkeye but I think he can be replaced with a more effective player next year.

Your first sentence is telling. To the average fan, most knew Patrick couldn't bring much to the table. He should have been relegated to 5-8 minutes a half imo.

 

[Hawk_4shur]

Fans need a reason to go to Carver. It's not an easy place to get to in the winter. The games are on TV and watching from a bar or a family room is hard to beat.

So, what's the reason? The sheer excitement of "being there" is missing from Men's BB. CC brought out the fans, so does football, although football has tailgating and better weather.

Iowa needs a "star" and wins to fill CHA.

As far as a downtown arena dream, it's just that - a dream. They already announced plans to spend $50 million on CHA. They are not going to spend $150 million on a new arena.

 

[Bulldogs1974]

It's not a fan problem it's a fran problem. To state otherwise is the same as believing Brian was good at his job.

Fran refuses to adapt. His "system" is faulty by design. You need guards that can defend to win and win in the tournament, you have to be able to play team defense. We have poor guards and don't defend. Watch the tournament, everybody has guards that can penetrate and defend.
In what world do you get to claim "finished better than expected" after 14 years? It's not like something unforeseen happened in year 13 that lead to 14.
1. A 2 foul hard line produces players that play tentative on defense.
2. His defense is not good. He'd rather play a guy that scores 14 and gives up 20 than play a guy that scores 8 and gives up 2.
3. To fran a turnover is worse than a blow by. for a layup. Handcuffing any pg with skills/creativity. Why would you come to Iowa. You want to know why fran is always the bridesmaid: by all accounts he's fun and friendly. That gets you in a recruits door and gets their ear. When guards think about what is best for them on the court, fran loses out. Likable guy, just doesn't run a system that will get you where you want to go.
4. Fran watched pmac give substandard effort and penalized a person for max effort.
5. Fran can't recruit a PG because he doesn't actually play one. He doesn't like a guard that penetrates and dishes. It almost seems like an insult to "his" offense if there is a deviation.
6. pMac wasn't a spotty shooter, he was a bad one. 30% from three is just bad for a senior (or any age).
7 fran will bs you with the depth of his team, which is meaningless if you don't defend and use the depth.
8. Honestly, how good is fran at determining who is playing well? The board can list many players, that get time their production didn't warrant.
9. How is fran ever going to do better than a team with garza and 2 murrays on it?

He's hit his ceiling. He did what was expected, return Iowa to average. What has he shown that makes anyone think the bar can be raised without guards and defense.
I'd give fran another year if he cleaned out a few assistants and gave control of defense to someone new. That's the only thing fran could do to win me back for one year. That is a problem only fran can fix, not fans.

What odds are better:
1. Fran somehow figures out pg play and how to defend and gets to a sweet 16.
or
2. Devries goes to another school and takes them to the sweet 16. Are you willing to take the chance of not getting him? Is he another alford from the MVC.... I don't know. I do know he's an Iowa boy from a pretty good coaching tree with a pretty good record. I'm willing to go for option 2.

 

[Tom Paris]

The issue is Fran kind of did have a Caitlin Clark ish player in Garza. I think people already forget how dominant he was.

Not making a tournament run at some point with the Garza, Weiskamp, Keegan, and Kris years is very very disappointing. That's what killed the mojo for the fans imo.

I was already losing my level of care when Garza's group got bounced, but after the Richmond game, I basically gave up. I will check the score on my phone tonight but I doubt I watch a minute.

This is from someone who from 1978-1999 believed Iowa had a legit shot at the Final 4 every year. Or winning a regular season title. Now it's really just not a thing.

 

[Jimmy McGill]

You aren't going to get the fans back under Fran. May be unfair. But it is the truth.

 

[joelbc1]

Torbee….an article about Proctor leaving Iowa would have been more “controversial”! How’d your crack team of investigators miss that one?

 

[jasonrann]

My post-mortem:

 

[nelly02]

This is like the 3rd time I've seen it posted somewhere and I keep having to go back and check because I think I'm going crazy but the Keegan Murray led btt run was in 22 not 21.

 

[NI hawk]

This is like the 3rd time I've seen it posted somewhere and I keep having to go back and check because I think I'm going crazy but the Keegan Murray led btt run was in 22 not 21.

The BTT run was 2022.

 

[nu2u]

It's not a fan problem it's a fran problem. To state otherwise is the same as believing Brian was good at his job.

Fran refuses to adapt. His "system" is faulty by design. You need guards that can defend to win and win in the tournament, you have to be able to play team defense. We have poor guards and don't defend. Watch the tournament, everybody has guards that can penetrate and defend.
In what world do you get to claim "finished better than expected" after 14 years? It's not like something unforeseen happened in year 13 that lead to 14.
1. A 2 foul hard line produces players that play tentative on defense.
2. His defense is not good. He'd rather play a guy that scores 14 and gives up 20 than play a guy that scores 8 and gives up 2.
3. To fran a turnover is worse than a blow by. for a layup. Handcuffing any pg with skills/creativity. Why would you come to Iowa. You want to know why fran is always the bridesmaid: by all accounts he's fun and friendly. That gets you in a recruits door and gets their ear. When guards think about what is best for them on the court, fran loses out. Likable guy, just doesn't run a system that will get you where you want to go.
4. Fran watched pmac give substandard effort and penalized a person for max effort.
5. Fran can't recruit a PG because he doesn't actually play one. He doesn't like a guard that penetrates and dishes. It almost seems like an insult to "his" offense if there is a deviation.
6. pMac wasn't a spotty shooter, he was a bad one. 30% from three is just bad for a senior (or any age).
7 fran will bs you with the depth of his team, which is meaningless if you don't defend and use the depth.
8. Honestly, how good is fran at determining who is playing well? The board can list many players, that get time their production didn't warrant.
9. How is fran ever going to do better than a team with garza and 2 murrays on it?

He's hit his ceiling. He did what was expected, return Iowa to average. What has he shown that makes anyone think the bar can be raised without guards and defense.
I'd give fran another year if he cleaned out a few assistants and gave control of defense to someone new. That's the only thing fran could do to win me back for one year. That is a problem only fran can fix, not fans.

What odds are better:
1. Fran somehow figures out pg play and how to defend and gets to a sweet 16.
or
2. Devries goes to another school and takes them to the sweet 16. Are you willing to take the chance of not getting him? Is he another alford from the MVC.... I don't know. I do know he's an Iowa boy from a pretty good coaching tree with a pretty good record. I'm willing to go for option 2.

I don’t 100% agree with your analysis but the lack of defense and failure at PG is almost impossible to refute. A true PG, Harding, barely got off the bench last night…. I just don’t understand it. Toussaint got the same treatment at times and eventually left.

 

[Dr. Phil Seuss]

March Sadness, again ​

By Tory Brecht

As it has far too often in the Fran McCaffery era, the Iowa men’s basketball team entered and exited March quickly, not with a bang but a whimper.

Other than the Keegan Murray-led run to the 2021 Big 10 Tournament championship, the magical basketball month has been more Ides of March than One Shining Moment for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa was predicted to finish 9th in the media’s preseason Big 10 poll. By conference-only record, they finished tied for 5th at an even 10-10, although the overall win-loss record was a decidedly mediocre 9th best in the 14-team league.

Despite technically overachieving pre-season expectations in what was always going to be a rebuilding year, limping to the finish in unimpressive fashion is frustrating.

There was no signature non-conference win and losses to regional rivals Iowa State and Creighton stung, particularly the blowout by the Cyclones. Starting 0-3 in conference put thoughts of an NCAA tournament bid on life support early and despite a late season turnaround, Iowa never seriously challenged the bubble.

Most disappointing were the home losses to a terrible Michigan team and a very mediocre Maryland squad. Had the Hawkeyes managed to win those, they likely would have been on the right side of the tournament bubble, despite the first-round conference tournament flameout at the hands of Ohio State.

Despite all that, I think Fran did a nice job keeping the team competitive despite the rocky season start. There were times I feared a long losing streak, and that never really materialized. But you can’t laud the turnaround without criticizing the creation of the hole to be dug out of in the first place.

The development of young players like Big 10 Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman, emerging slasher and sharpshooter in sophomore Josh Dix and some flashes of special potential from freshman point guard Brock Harding are all grounds for optimism.

But is anyone buying the stock?

I’ve taken a fair amount of grief for supposedly “insulting” and “blaming” Iowa fans for being a fair weather fan base. I don’t think that criticism is fair. After decades of disappointment and the abject failures of the Todd Lickliter era, it is understandable that Iowa fans operate in “prove it” mode and stay away in droves unless Iowa is winning at a high clip.

However, only showing up for the absolute best teams is the textbook definition of being fair weather. That is not an insult and it is not blaming: it is merely a statement of fact.

The truth is, Iowa has a fan problem and fixing it needs to be a top priority of new athletic director Beth Goetz. It is difficult to imagine McCaffery’s seat is even warm, let alone hot, but it is also obvious he has worn out his welcome with a not insignificant cohort of the Iowa fan base. Barring a voluntary separation, McCaffery and Co. have some work to do to re-engage Iowa fans if Carver is to be full and rocking again.

Of course winning at a higher rate and actually competing at the top of the conference will fix the fan problem. The young core of this year’s Iowa team has potential to do just that, provided recruiting ticks up and the portal is used strategically. If Iowa adds a solid combo guard and a backup big guy to spell Freeman, it should have a team able to post a winning conference record and get back in the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the past six years.

I suspect the lagging support for the men’s team is also partially due to the unprecedented success of the women’s team and the supernova-level stardom of Caitlin Clark. It can be hard to gin up enthusiasm for an inconsistent and streaky men’s team when you know the women are going to be clutch performers nearly every time out. There are also only a limited number of hours people can devote to attending sports in person and watching it on TV and when the women are appointment viewing, something has to give.

The 2024-25 basketball season is shaping up to be an inflection point in the Fran McCaffery era. If next year’s team shows growth and more consistency, earns a tournament bid and manages to win a couple games in the NCAAs, it should boost fan enthusiasm and quiet the critics. Struggle again, drop games to inferior teams and get pushed around by rivals, however, and the road gets even bumpier.

As fans of Iowa – whether you like Fran McCaffery or not – I think we can all agree the former is more appealing than the latter.

March sadness, again

The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team limped to the finish line this season

open.substack.com

Fran doesn’t deserve to have the fans in his corner. Guy played his sons over NBA first rounders.

 

[ICWestfan]

March Sadness, again ​

By Tory Brecht

As it has far too often in the Fran McCaffery era, the Iowa men’s basketball team entered and exited March quickly, not with a bang but a whimper.

Other than the Keegan Murray-led run to the 2021 Big 10 Tournament championship, the magical basketball month has been more Ides of March than One Shining Moment for the Hawkeyes.

Iowa was predicted to finish 9th in the media’s preseason Big 10 poll. By conference-only record, they finished tied for 5th at an even 10-10, although the overall win-loss record was a decidedly mediocre 9th best in the 14-team league.

Despite technically overachieving pre-season expectations in what was always going to be a rebuilding year, limping to the finish in unimpressive fashion is frustrating.

There was no signature non-conference win and losses to regional rivals Iowa State and Creighton stung, particularly the blowout by the Cyclones. Starting 0-3 in conference put thoughts of an NCAA tournament bid on life support early and despite a late season turnaround, Iowa never seriously challenged the bubble.

Most disappointing were the home losses to a terrible Michigan team and a very mediocre Maryland squad. Had the Hawkeyes managed to win those, they likely would have been on the right side of the tournament bubble, despite the first-round conference tournament flameout at the hands of Ohio State.

Despite all that, I think Fran did a nice job keeping the team competitive despite the rocky season start. There were times I feared a long losing streak, and that never really materialized. But you can’t laud the turnaround without criticizing the creation of the hole to be dug out of in the first place.

The development of young players like Big 10 Freshman of the Year Owen Freeman, emerging slasher and sharpshooter in sophomore Josh Dix and some flashes of special potential from freshman point guard Brock Harding are all grounds for optimism.

But is anyone buying the stock?

I’ve taken a fair amount of grief for supposedly “insulting” and “blaming” Iowa fans for being a fair weather fan base. I don’t think that criticism is fair. After decades of disappointment and the abject failures of the Todd Lickliter era, it is understandable that Iowa fans operate in “prove it” mode and stay away in droves unless Iowa is winning at a high clip.

However, only showing up for the absolute best teams is the textbook definition of being fair weather. That is not an insult and it is not blaming: it is merely a statement of fact.

The truth is, Iowa has a fan problem and fixing it needs to be a top priority of new athletic director Beth Goetz. It is difficult to imagine McCaffery’s seat is even warm, let alone hot, but it is also obvious he has worn out his welcome with a not insignificant cohort of the Iowa fan base. Barring a voluntary separation, McCaffery and Co. have some work to do to re-engage Iowa fans if Carver is to be full and rocking again.

Of course winning at a higher rate and actually competing at the top of the conference will fix the fan problem. The young core of this year’s Iowa team has potential to do just that, provided recruiting ticks up and the portal is used strategically. If Iowa adds a solid combo guard and a backup big guy to spell Freeman, it should have a team able to post a winning conference record and get back in the NCAA tournament for the fifth time in the past six years.

I suspect the lagging support for the men’s team is also partially due to the unprecedented success of the women’s team and the supernova-level stardom of Caitlin Clark. It can be hard to gin up enthusiasm for an inconsistent and streaky men’s team when you know the women are going to be clutch performers nearly every time out. There are also only a limited number of hours people can devote to attending sports in person and watching it on TV and when the women are appointment viewing, something has to give.

The 2024-25 basketball season is shaping up to be an inflection point in the Fran McCaffery era. If next year’s team shows growth and more consistency, earns a tournament bid and manages to win a couple games in the NCAAs, it should boost fan enthusiasm and quiet the critics. Struggle again, drop games to inferior teams and get pushed around by rivals, however, and the road gets even bumpier.

As fans of Iowa – whether you like Fran McCaffery or not – I think we can all agree the former is more appealing than the latter.

March sadness, again

The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team limped to the finish line this season

open.substack.com

I have nothing to add other than when you construct a roster full of plodder's you shouldn't expect great results.

I don't see it getting any better next year and I would expect the same preseason predictions next year; middle of the pack.

 

[hawkeyez]

Payton Sandfort is quickly becoming one of my favorite Hawkeye hoopers of all time. Gritty, always hustles, high basketball IQ, and a great shooter. I saw an NBA mock draft that had him going in the 2nd round this year. I assume he'll test the waters and get evaluated, but come back for another year?

 

[EasyHawk]

Payton Sandfort is quickly becoming one of my favorite Hawkeye hoopers of all time. Gritty, always hustles, high basketball IQ, and a great shooter. I saw an NBA mock draft that had him going in the 2nd round this year. I assume he'll test the waters and get evaluated, but come back for another year?

I think he owes it to himself to get evaluated and collect the feedback, go through the process. But I expect him to come back too. 2nd round is pretty rough, unless you really want to leave school. Last I looked, Weezy was around 150th in scoring in the G League, has only started 3 games this season. Also would be cool to play with your brother one more year.

 

[Fan In Black]

hahaha Sadness. that's great.

 

[ConvenientParking]

Just use Carver for wrestling and intramural indoor activities...

Iowa Wrestling having its own arena is intriguing. Dan Gable's Carver Hawkeye Arena?

 

[ConvenientParking]

I don't understand the expectations of anyone who has pre Alford memories of Iowa basketball. I think Tom Davis's final year was my first year paying attention to Iowa hoops because there was no more MJ. Iowa fans have been mediocre since Pierre Pierce saga. We turned out only in the years under Alford and McCaffery where we had obvious top 25 squads. ISU did not have this same attendance problem under McDermott. Only way we're ever recruiting like the 80s again is when begging fans for NIL money stops and the players get cut in on the TV money.

 

[tumorboy]

Headline should be Post boredom.

 

[torbee]

Headline should be Post boredom.

Iowa basketball is inconsistent and often maddening.

It is not, however, boring.

 

[tumorboy]

Iowa basketball is inconsistent and often maddening.

It is not, however, boring.

Idk, the NIT is awfully boring. I had the game on in the background, but never got sucked in. Until Iowa changes its recruiting philosophy and acquire guards that can guard and spread the floor. It doesn’t really matter. They’ll never go beyond the first week of the Tournament.
Fran has only had a handful of physical hard nose guards in his tenure. And he’s been here 15 yrs or so. Jok, Gessel, Marble, Cartwright, Toussaint, Perkins, that isn’t good

 

[srams21]

Iowa basketball is inconsistent and often maddening.

It is not, however, boring.

Correct. That was a fun game to watch last night. Now, granted I do think Iowa at times, plays some awful defense. Luckily, a couple of those most responsible are graduating. Assuming Peyton returns, this could be a pretty good team next year. I think Freeman takes another step forward and so too will Pryce.

 

[EagleHawk]

I was already losing my level of care when Garza's group got bounced, but after the Richmond game, I basically gave up. I will check the score on my phone tonight but I doubt I watch a minute.

This is from someone who from 1978-1999 believed Iowa had a legit shot at the Final 4 every year. Or winning a regular season title. Now it's really just not a thing.

You had a lot more confidence in the mid-90s Hawks then I did, I guess. Davis taking his pressure style of play that worked with inherited recruits and trying to run it with even slower, whiter guys than this year's team was fun. Get down 20, cut it to 5 with a big run, and lose. Davis created the 'which deep bench player is going to torch us for a career high game' on open threes.

 

[EasyHawk]

We need a great guard so bad.

 

[tumorboy]

We need a great guard so bad.

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A couple actually. Look at ISU they have 3 almost every year. That would start at Iowa no problem.

 

[torbee]

Correct. That was a fun game to watch last night. Now, granted I do think Iowa at times, plays some awful defense. Luckily, a couple of those most responsible are graduating. Assuming Peyton returns, this could be a pretty good team next year. I think Freeman takes another step forward and so too will Pryce.

Don’t sleep on Brock Harding.

He is a much better shooter than he showed and I’m certain he’ll be working on that a ton this offseason.

 

[BrunoMars420]

The issue is Fran kind of did have a Caitlin Clark ish player in Garza. I think people already forget how dominant he was.

Not making a tournament run at some point with the Garza, Weiskamp, Keegan, and Kris years is very very disappointing. That's what killed the mojo for the fans imo.

Bingo

 

[BrunoMars420]

Don’t sleep on Brock Harding.

He is a much better shooter than he showed and I’m certain he’ll be working on that a ton this offseason.

His touch was lacking around the bucket as well. Not to mention his defense. Kid can hoop tho but he isn’t someone that I think the majority of Iowa fans want in a PG.

 

[tumorboy]

His touch was lacking around the bucket as well. Not to mention his defense. Kid can hoop tho but he isn’t someone that I think the majority of Iowa fans want in a PG.

This, he’s Brody Boyd without the shot making skills or strength actually. Boyd was small but still physical enough not to be eaten alive in the Big Ten.

 

[torbee]

I am going to enjoy bumping these last two takes over the next 2-3 season.

Brody Boyd, lol 😂

There’s a reason Harding beat out every Chicago-area player as Mr. Basketball in Illinois, playing in the largest school division.

 

[BrunoMars420]

I am going to enjoy bumping these last two takes over the next 2-3 season.

Brody Boyd, lol 😂

There’s a reason Harding beat out every Chicago-area player as Mr. Basketball in Illinois, playing in the largest school division.

Where in my post was I wrong? I said the kid could hoop