Brandon Kakert

Recap: Iowa

Once again, the Iowa men’s basketball team has been looking great of late. The Hawkeyes are coming off three straight wins.

First, an upset of Michigan at home in which they outpaced the Wolverines from the start, winning 74-59. Next, a closely-contested road win against Indiana. Jordan Bohannon closed the game out with almost all of his 25 points coming within the last 10 minutes. And most recently, an improbable come-from-behind victory at home against Northwestern. A game in which they were down by 15 with just over four minutes left in the game. The Hawks had a .8% win probability at that point. Jordan Bohannon once again closed this game out with his cold-blooded heroics. He would sink a game-winning three with 0.6 seconds left in the game.

These last three games have been a real turning point for this Iowa basketball team. This run has come right after an ugly road loss against Minnesota in which they allowed 92 points. Iowa has looked great so far. However, they still seem to be flying under-the-radar, as they have not moved up in the rankings whatsoever. This may be a blessing in disguise. Ask Tyler Cook what he thinks about this team feeding off being slept on.

Game Preview

The Hawkeyes go into their next game @ Rutgers on Saturday currently sitting sitting in the Big Ten at 19-5 (8-5 conference). Rutgers sits 10th at 12-12 (5-9 conference). On paper, this looks like an easily winnable game for the Hawkeyes if everything goes as planned. With that being said, this will be Iowa’s first game in six days. No conference win is an easy one, especially on the road.

Although they put up a good fight on the mat when their wrestling team visited Iowa City last month, Rutgers does not pose a serious threat on the basketball court. The Knights do have a few solid wins this season. They have a win over once-ranked #16 Ohio State back at the beginning of January. That is the same Ohio State team that Iowa beat fairly easily at home. This does not guarantee the Hawkeyes a win over Rutgers, but they are clearly the better team. Look for Iowa to come away victorious and move their focus towards their big Tuesday night game at home against Maryland.