NCAA Basketball top 25 power rankings: Illinois rises, Baylor and UCLA fall
By Joey Loose
24. Iowa (12-4)
When Iowa lost Luka Garza, it was certainly expected that the Hawkeyes would take a step back this season. With the strength of the Big Ten, this was no surprise, though Iowa’s 7-0 start seemed to indicate that they could compete for this conference crown. Now while the Hawkeyes have already lost to three of the best teams in the Big Ten, things might just be looking up for them.
Their only game this week was a nice win, an 83-74 victory at home against a surging Indiana team. Keegan Murray was brilliant as usually is, tallying 29 points in the win. With all the upsets and wild events of this past week, this was the kind of win where Iowa likely stole Indiana’s spot among these rankings, especially with how that Iowa offense has played in recent weeks.
Yes, the Hawkeyes have already lost to Purdue, Illinois, and Wisconsin and sit just 2-3 in Big Ten play. However, they have a winnable stretch of games in the near future and are playing better basketball on the offensive side in recent weeks.
If they can get that defense figured out, they should be able to fare well against Minnesota, Rutgers, and Penn State these next seven days. However, it may still be too early to jump back on the Iowa bandwagon until they can beat a top-level Big Ten team.