Iowa Basketball: 2019-20 keys to success against Cincinnati Bearcats

By TJ Miller | Dec 20, 2019

COLUMBUS, OHIO - MARCH 22: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes handles the ball during the second half against the Cincinnati Bearcats in the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Nationwide Arena on March 22, 2019 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – NOVEMBER 28: TJ Holyfield #22 of the Texas Tech Red Raiders is fouled by Connor McCaffery #30 of the Iowa Hawkeyes (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) /

2) Keep Cincinnati out of the lane

Cincinnati has not been great from beyond the arc to this point of the season. What the Bearcats have been effective at is getting inside the lane and finishing at the rim. Cincy shot 26-40 (65%) on two-point field goals vs. Tennessee as the frontcourt of Tre Scott and Chris Vogt combined for 26 points on 13 of 19 from the field.

While Iowa has been excellent offensively, Fran McCaffery teams have a tendency to struggle at times defensively and this team has been no exception. The Hawkeyes have given up 50+ points in a half four different times this season. There’s simply no excuse for that.

To be fair, San Diego State couldn’t miss in the second half when Iowa lost to the Aztecs 83-73, although there’s less of an excuse for sending Michigan to the charity stripe 34 times in a 103-91 defeat.

The bottom line is Iowa needs to force Cincinnati into becoming a three-point shooting team. Only 31.4% of the Bearcats’ three-point attempts have found the bottom of the net. I’m not sure Iowa will ever be fantastic defensively under Fran McCaffery, but they just have to be good enough. “Good enough” against Cincinnati means being okay living with the Bearcats taking contested three-point shots.

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