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Big Ten Basketball Preview: #7 Iowa Hawkeyes

By Alex Miller

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In Mid-February last year, The Iowa Hawkeyes were 19-6, 8-4 in conference play, and a lock to make the NCAA tournament. Then, the wheels fell off. The Hawkeyes dropped 5 of their last 6 regular season games, and lost to a bad Northwestern team in the Big Ten tournament – a slide that nearly cost them a birth in the NCAA tournament. Despite the collapse, Iowa still found themselves in the tournament, albeit in Dayton as one of the last four teams in the dance. In what felt like a microcosm of their season, Iowa collapsed down the stretch vs Tennessee as they were outscored 14-1 in overtime, ending their season.

It’s a new year, but will Iowa be able to put the collapse behind them and finish strong under 5th year head coach Fran McCaffery?

Key Losses

Gone is Iowa’s leading scorer Roy Devyn Marble, who was selected 56th overall by the Denver Nuggets in this past June’s NBA draft. Marble wasn’t the most athletic or physically gifted player, but at 6’6″ he could play multiple positions and did a lot of things well. Marble was just the 2nd player in the Big Ten since 1986 to tally 1,675 points, 375 assists, 450 rebounds, and 175 steals in his career. However, Marble did have a tendency to shoot Iowa out of some games with poor shooting especially down the stretch last year. Both McCabe and Basabe, who was Iowa’s best rebounder last season in terms of rebounding percentage, were solid contributors for the Hawkeyes.

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Key Newcomers

  • G Trey Dickerson
  • G Brady Ellingson
  • G Charlie Rose
  • F Dom Uhl
  • F Nicolas Baer

Iowa’s most important newcomer this year is unquestionably Trey Dickerson. He was rated the number 1 PG and number 10 overall prospect in junior college. Dickerson was named 3rd team All-American at Williston State (ND) where he averaged 19.8 ppg, 5.7 apg, and 3.5 rpg. Dom Uhl is the only other player who might contribute this year strictly because of his rebounding ability.

Starting Lineup

Despite losing two starters in Basabe and Marble, Iowa returns plenty of experience to the starting lineup – all 5 players averaged at least 10 minutes per game last season. The Hawkeyes were incredibly deep – almost too deep of a team last season, featuring an 11 man rotation. When you have so many different players getting minutes, it constantly changes the lineup on the court and can hurt team chemistry.

This year Iowa should feature a 9 man rotation. At the point, Clemmons has the experience so he’ll be the starter on day one, but don’t be surprised if Dickerson wins the job over the course of the season.

Mike Gessell is a two year starter, but was a horrendous shooter last season, hitting only 37.5% of his shots. Peter Jok could eventually replace Gessell in the starting lineup if he continues to struggle with his shot. Josh Oglesby will see some time at the 2 as well, and will be valuable as instant offense off the bench. A lineup of Dickerson at the point, Oglesby at the 2, and Jok at the 3, is Iowa’s best offensive unit at those positions, so expect to see those guys on the court a lot together.

The Hawkeyes will boast a solid frontcourt with Uthoff, White, and Woodbury. White, who was named 3rd team All Big Ten last season is Iowa’s top returning player – he has good size, can shoot, and is exceptional at getting to the line where he shot 80.7 % last season. Woodbury was a former 4 star prospect who hasn’t developed as fast as some would hope, but I think he’ll take a big leap forward this season on both ends of the court. Uthoff showed a lot of promise on the offensive side of the ball in his first season in Iowa City after transferring from Wisconsin. He only averaged around 4 shot attempts per game last year in conference play, so expect him to be more involved in the offense this year.

Ultimately, the fate of Iowa’s season rests upon how they defend. According to Kenpom, The Hawkeyes ranked 120th in defensive efficiency last year. With 8 rotation guys returning, I see no reason why they won’t improve in that category. This team is more experienced than last year’s squad and should have better chemistry. This will be a tremendous offensive team so if the defense does improve, no doubt this team will be headed to the NCAA Tournament.

Take a look at our other Big Ten previews!

8. Minnesota

9. Indiana

10. Maryland

11. Purdue

12. Northwestern

13. Penn State

14. Rutgers

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