Iowa Basketball: Hawkeyes season review

2015-16 saw Iowa basketball soar through the middle of winter, but crashed for a third consecutive season.

Iowa went 22-11 this past year and 12-6 in Big Ten play to finish fifth overall, but once again they struggled in the biggest of games.

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The Hawkeyes lost to Illinois in the Big Ten tournament and rebounded to win a nail-biter against Temple in the NCAA tournament before eventually getting hammered by Villanova in the second round.

The team’s best wins were a sweep of both Michigan schools and a double-digit comeback at Purdue. Iowa was ranked as high as fourth in the AP top 25 and was a lock for the Des Moines region, but dropped four of five after beating Minnesota on Valentines Day. The skid marked the second time in three years that a multi-game losing streak has punctuated the end of the regular season.

For awards, forward Jarrod Uthoff was a First Team All-Big Ten selection and a finalist for the Karl Malone Award as the nation’s best power forward. He also was placed on the All-Defensive Team. Guard Peter Jok was named to the Second Team.

There is no doubt that coach Fran McCaffery has returned Iowa to the conversation of Big Ten contender, but one could start to question if the team has plateaued in the 5-8 range in the conference.

Final Season Grade: B+

So, what’s next in Iowa City?

Players Gone:

G  – Anthony Clemmons (8.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.7 apg, 1.0 spg)

G  – Mike Gesell (8.1 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 6.2 apg, 1.3 spg)

G – Andrew Fleming (2.0 ppg)

F – Jarrod Uthoff (18.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.1 apg, 2.6 bpg)

C – Adam Woodbury (7.6 ppg, 8.3 rpg)

Clemmons, Gesell, Uthoff, and Woodbury comprised of the winningest classes in Iowa basketball history and replacing them is a monumental task for Coach McCaffery. Each of these guys showed tremendous grit throughout the season and did a lot of the little things to push Iowa to such high highs in the regular season.

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Uthoff was an absolute star for 3/4 of the year, Woodbury had multiple double-doubles, and the backcourt duo of Gesell and Clemmons was among the toughest defensive pairs in the Big Ten.

Fleming had some good talent, but never cracked the perimeter rotation and transferred to Chattanooga. Redshirt freshman Brandon Hutton also left the team without seeing a minute of playtime.

Even when the shots weren’t falling in the middle of February, the four seniors fought hard and kept the Hawkeyes within striking distance each and every night.

This class’ graduation marks the end of an era in Iowa City.

Who’s Returning:

G – Peter Jok (16.1 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.3 spg)

G – Brady Ellingson (2.8 ppg)

G – Christian Williams (1.4 ppg)

F – Dom Uhl (6.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg)

F – Nicholas Baer (4.8 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

F – Ahmad Wagner (2.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg)

F – Dale Jones (5.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg)

Coming back is Peter Jok and the question marks.

Jok is likely to return for his senior season after testing the NBA combine process and should easily be Iowa’s best player every night.  Some combination of Ellingson and Williams will run the point and back him up.

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The forwards are a collection of high-energy, low exposure guys in Baer, Wagner, Uhl, and the recovering Jones. Nobody beyond Jok averaged more than 17 minutes a contest, so they are close to being unknowns if they become the new primary rotation.

For now, Wagner, Williams, and Uhl should be penciled in as fellow starters with Baer, Jones, and Ellingson filling in around the edges.

At minimum, Baer is an athletic forward that could be the team’s newest emotional centerpiece next year. Uhl is a decent stretch-forward along with Jones, who comes off knee trouble. and Wagner is extremely good at making the types of plays that aren’t sexy and don’t show up in the box score.

There is a lot of potential that could develop from this group with another summer together and more playing time.

Who’s new: 

G – Jordan Bohannon (6’1″, 170 lbs)

F – Cordell Pemsl (6’7″, 230 lbs)

F – Tyler Cook (6’9″, 240 lbs, ESPN 100 #38)

C – Ryan Kriener (6’10”, 240 lbs)

The 30th ranked class on ESPN brings a ton of frontcourt help to ease the loss of Uthoff and Woodbury. Cook is the star here as the highest rated recruit in the class. He has a terrific frame and will be one of Iowa’s starting forwards immediately. The trick with Cook is that he is a freshman post, and those don’t always have the smoothest transition, just ask NBA prospect Cheick Diallo.

Bohannon is small, but is talented enough to push Ellingson and Williams as the starting point guard, pushing one of those two to Jok’s backup or out of the main rotation.

Pemsl and Kriener both project as reserve forwards for now, but they have the size to play if needed.

Jok and Cook will play and play a lot, but rotation spots three through 10 are wide open.

Final Numbers to know:

20% – the percentage of Iowa’s points scored by Jok last year. He is the Hawkeyes’ biggest star and will be every opponent’s defensive focus. Given the questions surrounding some of the other players’ potential, expect pretty much all of Jok’s numbers to rise if the team is to even sniff the level of success from ’15-16.

44 – the combined block numbers between Uhl, Baer, and Wagner. Of the 156 team blocked shots, these three accounted for nearly 30% of them. As three of the most visibly athletic players for next year’s team, their ability to defend the perimeter and protect the rim is paramount to Iowa’s continued reputation as a stingy defensive squad.

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25% – This represents the percentage of the team’s assists from players that will return next season. With the loss of ballhandlers Clemmons and Gesell, Iowa loses the only guys with real experience at the point. Someone will step in to run the offense, but we might not know who the favorite is until October.