Game Info/How to Watch Who? Indiana Hoosiers (13-13, 4-11, #49 KenPom) at Iowa Hawkeyes (20-6, 9-6, #29 KenPom) When? Friday 9:00 p.m., Carver-Hawkeye Arena Channel? FS1 Vegas? O/U 143, Iowa -7.5 KenPom? Iowa by 7, 77-70, 26% chance of Hoosier victory Preview The Hoosiers head to Iowa City hoping to break a four-game losing streak. They’ve lost 11 of their last 12 and this season appears to be over despite a win earlier this month against one of the best teams in the country. After Indiana’s most recent loss, a heartbreaker against a ranked Purdue team in Assembly Hall, people are pretty pessimistic and for good reason. There’s very little to be excited about with regard to this Indiana team. There isn’t much reason to hope that they’ll win this game or any other game this season. They still struggle to score the ball and their effort level is still inconsistent at best, and both of those things are important if you want to win basketball games. The Opponent Iowa, unlike Indiana, has had a pretty good season. This could be one of the better Hawkeye teams that Fran McCaffery has had in his tenure in Iowa City. Iowa holds good wins over Iowa State, Nebraska, and Michigan, but lost their most recent game against Maryland. They also came into Assembly Hall a couple of weeks ago and edged out the Hoosiers to pick up a 77-72 win. Tyler Cook and Luka Garza could give the Hoosiers issues down low and if Jordan Bohannon and Joe Wieskamp combine to shoot 9-14 from downtown as they did in the last meeting between these two teams this could get ugly. Four Factors The four factors look pretty good for Iowa offensively. They rank sixth in the country in FTA/FGA with 44.7. They’re also top 50 in effective FG% and top 100 in TO% and also hit the offensive glass better than the average team. Defensively the Hawkeyes are just okay in three of the four factors, but they’re 40th nationally in FTA/FGA on that side of the ball. Indiana’s four factors on the offensive end aren’t great. They only break the top 150 nationally in one and it’s FTA/FGA in which they rank 130th. On the defensive side of the ball the Hoosiers have been able to hold their opposition to a relatively low effective FG% of 48.0, which is good for 56th nationally. Indiana also ranks 32nd nationally in FTA/FGA. What to Watch 1. Devonte Green/De’Ron Davis This Indiana team is truly at its best when these two guys are playing well. If you look at some of IU’s biggest wins this season Green and Davis were providing solid minutes off the bench, giving the starting lineup the boost it desperately needs at times. If Green can hit a few treys and Davis can provide a strong interior presence it would be huge. 2. Three-Point Shooting This could very well be the difference in the game. Indiana has struggled with this all season, hitting their threes at one of the worst rates in the country. Just two Hoosiers—Green and Al Durham—have hit more than 34 percent of their shots from downtown this season. Iowa, on the other hand, doesn’t have such a problem. They’re shooting nearly 38 percent from beyond the arc as a team and only one player that has taken at least 40 threes has hit less than 35 percent of them. Bohannon, Wieskamp, and Isaiah Moss are all hitting over 40 percent from downtown and that could very well be an issue for IU on Friday night. 3. Juwan Morgan The best game that Morgan has had recently was against these Hawkeyes on February 7. Since then he’s had a bit of a rough time, shooting poorly from the field in each of IU’s last three games. Against Purdue the Hoosier star scored just nine points on 3-14 shooting but did manage to grab 11 rebounds. If Indiana is going to win this game they’re going to need better offensive production from the senior.<doc-sep>After off-the-court drama ruined the preamble to what should have been another exciting Friday night showdown at Carver, the #21/19 Iowa Hawkeyes (21-6, 10-6) found away to beat the Indiana Hoosiers (13-14, 4-12), 76-70. Jordan Bohannon took the lid off of the basket and Carver-Hawkeye Arena with a three-pointer to tie the game at 63-63 after never leading in the prior 21 minutes and 49 seconds. Luka Garza force a Romeo Langford miss on a stepback three on Indiana’s final possession. After winning the tip in overtime, Iowa couldn’t take the lead on their first two possessions. Langford missed the front end of a one-and-one on IU’s second possession and Iowa went straight to Tyler Cook who gave Iowa a lead. Juwan Morgan answered with a pair of free throws before Bohannon hit another three off a rebound from a three he missed in the previous seconds. After a De’Ron Davis and-one, it looked like Morgan broke up a pass to Bohannon pass to Cook. But sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good, as Bohannon corralled it for a wide open three on the wing for a 71-68 lead. The Hawkeyes were able to keep a lead but needed a big play after a set stagnated and forced a timeout up 72-70 with seven seconds on the shot clock. Bohannon quickly retrieved his inbound to Cook, dribbled to the top of the key, and hit a fadeaway three-pointer which sealed the game. He finished with 17 points, all in the second half or overtime. While everyone will remember Jordan Bohannon’s four clutch threes in the last six minutes of gameplay, the game was once another slog for the Hawkeyes as they didn’t have a basket outside of the paint throughout all of the first half. In that vein, it felt like a game for Iowa’s interior to take over. While they never really dominated, Iowa’s first three baskets came off of offensive rebounds. Luka Garza had nine of Iowa’s first 15 points but went to the bench with 9:44 remaining in the first half. Additionally, Iowa got Indiana’s starting bigs in foul trouble, as Juwann Morgan and De’Ron Davis spent the last 8 minutes of the first half on the bench. Tyler Cook and Ryan Kriener found success throughout the first half and combined for 11 points in the frame. Unfortunately, Indiana found life off the bench from Evan Fitzner for six points. He kept the Hoosiers afloat while their starters sat with foul trouble through his activity as he received praise from Andy Katz throughout the game. The teams finished the half tied at 28-28 as the Hawkeyes could only manage 40% shooting in the frame. After allowing Indiana to sprint to an 8-0 lead in the first half, Iowa allowed six unanswered points to start the second half. Cook and Garza continued to pace the Hawkeyes as they had 17 combined points in the second half and finished the with 18 and 16 respectively. It was another game of grit and digging deep and all the intangible things you hear this time of year when the shots don’t fall. The finished with a split of .419 FG/.280 3P/.680 FT but found enough on the margins - just 12 turnovers and 15 (!!!) offensive rebounds - to keep contact with an IU squad allegedly battling for their NCAA Tournament life. Seriously, it felt like Iowa was playing that game 5 on 10 with the way some of the calls were going and the way-too-superfluous coverage of Fox Sports 1 trying to convince the casual viewer that no really, this IU team can make the tournament. In the end, the win is what matter. Iowa got it, bullshit aside, and likely sealed their fate as a Tournament team after taking the last two seasons on hiatus. Notes Nicholas Baer is going to be missed next year. 10 rebounds, 3 blocks, a couple assists. Total floor game from him with just 5 points on 1/5 shooting. He also closed the game for Iowa as Joe Wieskamp sat after a tough game. Don’t worry, though, it wasn’t injury-related for Joe. Wieskamp did have a couple huge first half to help Iowa’s offense keep moving forward. Iowa held Indiana to .98 points per possession, the first time they held a team under 1 PPP since the Michigan game three weeks ago. It was Iowa’s best back-to-back defensive performances (1.02 PPP vs. Maryland) since the Northwestern and Ohio State games. Indiana had five guys reach double-digits: Juwan Morgan (15), Romeo Langford (14), Rob Phinisee (13), Evan Fitzner (11), and De’Ron Davis (10). Overall they shot .413 FG/.222 3P/.545 FT. It would appear as if Fran has shifted Iowa’s strategy with offensive rebounding. Prior to the Rutgers game, Iowa’s ORB% peaked at 35.3% but they’ve corralled 37.5%, 42.9%, 37.5% of their rebounds each of the last three games. Iowa’s next game is at Ohio State on Tuesday, February 26th.<doc-sep>IOWA CITY, Ia. — Joe Wieskamp is coming off the worst shooting night of his young basketball career. Is the Hawkeye freshman eager to atone for an 0-for-5 showing? “I wish the game was tonight. I wish it was last night, honestly,” Wieskamp said Thursday. “Just being that competitive, you want to get back out there and compete right now.” Alas, Wieskamp and the No. 19 Hawkeyes (20-6, 9-6 Big Ten Conference) will have to wait until 8:15 p.m. Friday to play their penultimate home game of the season. Indiana (13-13, 4-11) is the opponent. Tickets were nearly sold out as of Thursday afternoon. The telecast will be on FS1. Two weeks ago, Iowa hung a 77-72 loss on the Hoosiers in Bloomington. It’s part of a stretch of play that has seen the once-ranked team lose 11 of 12 games. Wieskamp had 13 points in that one, 12 coming in the first half. He was often matched up with Hoosiers star freshman Romeo Langford, who scored 15 of his 22 points in the second half. “Romeo’s a very good defender, especially on me the second half,” Wieskamp said. “I’ve just got to watch film and see ways I can exploit their defense.” Wieskamp’s back soreness has subsided considerably, he said. He was calm and confident when talking with reporters, showing no signs that his two-point outing in Tuesday’s 66-65 loss to Maryland was still bothering him. That may be a bad sign for the beleaguered Hoosiers. Wieskamp averages 11.4 points per game on 50.5 percent shooting. He’s been held without a field goal only two times previously this season. Each time, he made six in his next outing. On Tuesday, Wieskamp’s problems started with two early fouls that found him saddled to the bench for the final 14 minutes of the first half. Fouls have not been an issue for him often this season. He’s never been whistled for more than three in a game. He admitted he did not respond well against Maryland. “I think when I got back in there, I didn’t necessarily force things, but I didn’t let the game come to me like I usually try to. I tried to make some things happen,” Wieskamp said. “It’s just something I’ve got to learn from.” Wieskamp’s presence on the wing has been one of the most positive differences between last year’s 14-19 Iowa team and this year’s NCAA Tournament-bound outfit. Another has been Connor McCaffery at backup point guard. McCaffery’s pinpoint inbounds passes to Jordan Bohannon helped seal the Feb. 7 victory at Indiana. Bohannon kept getting fouled. He scored the Hawkeyes’ final 11 points. McCaffery had three points and three steals against the Hoosiers. He had five assists in the next game, a win over Northwestern. Against Maryland, McCaffery contributed six points and four assists, but also a season-high four turnovers. The redshirt freshman said he’s learning something every game in his first go-around in the Big Ten. McCaffery is often in the lineup late in close games. “The physicality is different in the league. You can’t see it from watching it. There’s nothing that you can adjust to until you go through it,” McCaffery said. “The guys that you’re in with at the end of the game, they’ve been through it, too. It’s never like you’re on your own. I like to think of myself as … pretty steady in late-game situations. I feel confident.” The Hawkeyes are coming off their worst shooting game of the season, 19-for-58 (32.8 percent). Wieskamp certainly wasn’t the only culprit. “I think it was good shooters missing shots,” McCaffery said, dismissing the notion that there was a lingering problem. The Hawkeyes have been resilient this season, with the same cast of characters from a year ago, plus the two additions. Now, the challenge is to protect their home court against a team with little to play for at this stage of the season. “Joe has been tremendous. Connor has been great. So that gave us the depth in the backcourt we didn't have,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery explained of his team’s ability to bounce back from losses. “So there's a lot of factors involved, and it's been fun to watch.”<doc-sep>
Just three nights after a loss likely kicked them out of the race for the four seed in the Big Ten Tournament, the #21/19 Iowa Hawkeyes (20-6, 9-6) look to bounce back against the Indiana Hoosiers (13-13, 4-11). In their first tussle, the Hawks beat IU, 77-72 at Assembly Hall. Since that game, the Hoosiers have lost three straight: two tight home losses to Ohio State and Purdue sandwiching a blowout at The Barn against Minnesota. Their win over Michigan State was only the second since the calendar flipped to 2019, the first of which was a home win against Illinois on January 3rd. As detailed in yesterday’s power rankings, their 2-11 record would be the worst in the conference if the December games did not count. Yet, KenPom still rates them as the 48th best team in the country and has projected the game as a relatively tight Hawkeye win, 77-70. There’s reason to believe this game will be similarly tight despite their apparent downward spiral. Romeo Langford had cool 22 points last time out on 7/12 shooting. He’s scored in double digits in all but two conference games and his 17.1 points per game ranks 6th in the conference. Senior Juwann Morgan has also had a fair amount of success in his career against Iowa. He’s averaged 12.2 points and 5.4 boards on 66.7% shooting in 5 games he’s seen significant time. The flipside of that is he’s tallied 3.8 fouls per game. Since those two are Indiana’s only double digit scorers, Archie Miller will be looking for an x-factor or two to supplement Langford and Morgan. Devonte Green has had a largely mediocre career at Indiana and is averaging 7.8 points on just 35.3% shooting (37.5% from deep). You might remember (or not, Iowa was 12-16) he torched Iowa for 18 points on 7/10 shooting the last year when they last came to Carver-Hawkeye Arena. He also added 6 assists. (Thankfully Robert Johnson is not around to shoot 9/12 from deep again). De’Ron Davis was also a bit of a magician in the high post a couple weeks ago with an Ethan Happ-like 7 assists. He’s since taken over a starting role and could play an even larger factor against the Hawkeyes’ zone. Ultimately, for Indiana to make it a game, it’s going to come down to whether they’re able to make some shots. In conference play, they’re a league-worst 26.7% from deep. In fact, they’ve only had 4 Hoosiers make 4 or more threes in a game all season. Iowa, for reference, has 15 such instances. Naturally, someone will pop off to make 4 this evening. My money is on Aljami Durham. So where does that leave Iowa? Mitigate the star power This comes about a couple different ways, but Iowa was very successful last time out turning Romeo Langford into a three point shooter. Seven of his 12 attempts were from deep and as a 26.7% shooter from deep, you live with those odds. Additionally, the Hawkeyes were effective in mitigating Indiana’s transition game, where NBA prospects flourish. After yielding seven fast break points within the first couple minutes, Iowa was much more patient on offense, had just nine turnovers, and rarely allowed the floor to get out of balance. They limited them to just 14 on the game. Juwann Morgan is someone who can largely get his against Iowa. Thankfully, the Hawkeyes have been fairly successful in keeping him on the bench through foul trouble. I think I speak for all Hawkeye fans when I say a return from Luka Garza would be much appreciated. Let’s hope he can help affect Morgan’s game by drawing a couple first half fouls and really opening up the game for Iowa. Start quick After racking up 42 and 46 first half points against Michigan and Indiana, Iowa has gone the wrong direction in first half scoring with 35, 32, and 23 points each of the last three games. Of course, part of this is the nature of the game and competition. Some shots go in, some don’t. Northwestern, Maryland, and Rutgers all allow 68 points or less a game, well below Iowa’s scoring average at 80.5. Some regression was bound to happen, especially in the 75% of the way through the Big Ten schedule. Still, it would be great to see Iowa get going early, especially Iowa’s own freshman, Joe Wieskamp.