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RobHowe
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IOWA CITY, Iowa -- University of Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery announced on Monday that junior forwardNicholas Baer is expected to miss 3-4 weeks after suffering a broken bone in his left pinky finger in a weekend practice. The injury will not require surgery.
“Nicholas has played great in preseason practices and this is an unfortunate setback,” said McCaffery. “We expect Nicholas to make a full recovery and look forward to him rejoining his teammates on the court soon.”
Baer, a team co-captain, is the reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year after averaging team bests in rebounding (5.8), steals (1.4), and blocked shots (1.3). The native of Bettendorf, Iowa, also averaged 7.5 points per game in 2016-17. Baer became one of only four Hawkeyes in school history to lead the team in both blocks (48) and steals (43) in the same season as a sophomore.
Iowa opens the regular season this weekend hosting a pair of home games against Chicago State on Friday (8 p.m.) and Alabama State on Sunday (3 p.m.).
“Nicholas has played great in preseason practices and this is an unfortunate setback,” said McCaffery. “We expect Nicholas to make a full recovery and look forward to him rejoining his teammates on the court soon.”
Baer, a team co-captain, is the reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year after averaging team bests in rebounding (5.8), steals (1.4), and blocked shots (1.3). The native of Bettendorf, Iowa, also averaged 7.5 points per game in 2016-17. Baer became one of only four Hawkeyes in school history to lead the team in both blocks (48) and steals (43) in the same season as a sophomore.
Iowa opens the regular season this weekend hosting a pair of home games against Chicago State on Friday (8 p.m.) and Alabama State on Sunday (3 p.m.).
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RobHowe
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My money is on Wagner to start. I think Fran was leaning that way with Baer coming off the bench before the injury.
mopkins
King Kong
I dont think Baer was going to start anyway based on what I saw during the exhibition games. I say
JBo
Moss
Wagner
Cook
Garza
I think it was going to be that way regardless. However, I think Nunge ends up getting more minutes than Wagner.
NikeHawk21
Well-Known Member
That was my expected lineup prior to the injury. What if logic now became we want Wagner’s energy off the bench and want Nunge to get in the flow of the game right from the opening tip. Just a thought but I would guess at least for the first game Wagner will get the nod.
FirstDownHawkeyes
Well-Known Member
Now your energy guy is Kreiner. I’m not saying he’s necessarily your 6th man. I think that’s Nunge or Pemsl now but Kreiner seriously brings it more like Baer than anyone but the namesake (ask Isaac Haas).
dahlhawk
Well-Known Member
We know what we're getting with Baer, now is a chance for someone to step up and fill his role as chief balls to the wall max effort guy. I agree it's gonna be Kreiner or Pemsl. Wags will continue to be a starter. Conner plays even more as we have to find a 3pt shooter who can hit them at crucial spots in the game as Baer did.
JG10Hawk
Well-Known Member
My guess is this means we'll see more Jack, Dom, & Connor than we otherwise would have. Could be a small blessing in disguise. We'll get to see more of Jack at the 3 to see if he can defend the spot. We'll also probably see more of JBo and Connor on the floor together. Maybe Dom gains some confidence with some extra minutes and can become a more consistent contributor in his final campaign.
NikeHawk21
Well-Known Member
From the subbing patterns in the Exhibition games, I would hope this benefits Dailey more so than Uhl.
I also would doubt that Cmac has passed Dailey as a wing at this point, however your theory about JBo playing more 2 is probably accurate. I kind of cringe at the defense when JBo and Cmac are going to be out there together.
JG10Hawk
Well-Known Member
I didn't mean to leave Maishe out, he simply slipped my mind. I'd agree Maishe is ahead of Connor as a wing. I was referring to Connor running point with Jordan at the 2. IMO it's a must for Fran to give Connor plenty of minutes running point during the early games so he is ready to handle the ball if he's called upon during conference play.
Fran will have plenty of options rotation wise. Excluding Baer, below is how I see current wing/guard versatility at the 1, 2, & 3 spots in no particular order. All will play in the early season. Minutes will figure itself out by their play.
Bohannon - 1/2
McCaffery - 1/2
Moss - 2/3
Ellingson - 2
Dailey - 2/3
Nunge - 3
Wagner - 3
Uhl - 3
