Can we win in the Big Ten with Drakes team

I hate to say this and it pains me but Drake's roster and team as a whole was a F ton better than Iowa's last year.

I don't think Iowa could have beaten Missouri on a neutral court.

If you think differently, please point to the team that Iowa beat this year that was equal to a # 6 seed? Iowa didn't beat a team with a pulse this year with a "B1G" roster right?

So, again, I usher some patience here before getting too caught up in the stars next to their names or the schools they came from. I would think things that will likely be as important as any to Iowa moving forward is age (the older you are in CBB now, the better) and fit. BM is all about efficiency and defense.
 
Just my opinion, but every Drake player we add gets us that much closer to landing bigger fish. And I wouldn't write those guys off either. Can they win a bigten title, doubtful, but that's not to say they couldn't end up being role players in the new system. Got to start somewhere.
 
Yep, love this narrative of "just Drake players." The Hawks are getting the top half of a roster that went 31-4 and were some tough minded SOBs. More importantly, they know how to play McCollum's defense, which is all about the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. Those guys will set the tone from a toughness standpoint. I saw zero backing down from them when they went up against Missouri and Texas Tech. Zero.
 
SwirlinLingerie said:
Yep, love this narrative of "just Drake players." The Hawks are getting the top half of a roster that went 31-4 and were some tough minded SOBs. More importantly, they know how to play McCollum's defense, which is all about the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. Those guys will set the tone from a toughness standpoint. I saw zero backing down from them when they went up against Missouri and Texas Tech. Zero.
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Yep, I’ll take all of them. Also, consider this, Iowa is behind right now, unless BM somehow knew he was going to be at this level months ago, they are way behind on scouts and the recruiting trail. He’s not going to panic because he’s got his guys. But the staff is behind from the jump, they’ll catch up. Also, he’s likely going to be shopping for guys at mid majors making their way up vs getting the top guys in the portal. I’m ok with that too.
 
InGoodCo said:
Yep, I’ll take all of them. Also, consider this, Iowa is behind right now, unless BM somehow knew he was going to be at this level months ago, they are way behind on scouts and the recruiting trail. He’s not going to panic because he’s got his guys. But the staff is behind from the jump, they’ll catch up. Also, he’s likely going to be shopping for guys at mid majors making their way up vs getting the top guys in the portal. I’m ok with that too.
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A team from scratch that was in the game most of the way until Texas Tech started to inch away over halfway through the second half. Well, we kind of got used to losing in the first or second game of the tournament under Fran in March. The difference being a 15-year coach who has had all those years to get recruiting channels built up and associations with high school coaches to give advantage in recruiting.

Too me what Ben did was simple outstanding coaching and using each players strengths and then building a team around their strengths. Reminded me of Lute and Tom.

Now you can't knock a coach that has the most Iowa wins in Iowa basketball coaching history. However most of that was before the NIL came along.

The NIL is insane and is going to make it very difficult for most teams to build continuity. Every new season is going to be a crap shoot for most college teams with the exception of programs that have a semi-truck load of money.

With that thought in mind we may never see another Iowa men's basketball coach that wins as many wins as Fran has as the head Iowa men's basketball coach. I would be thrilled if Ben McCollum proves me wrong.

I do however think Ben will get us a sweet 16 or even better during his tenure at Iowa. When that happens Beth better have a suitcase full of money to give him.
 
InGoodCo said:
Iowa's current roster is
Bennett Stirtz
Cooper Koch
Cam Manwayu
Kael Combs
Isaia Howard

10 more spots to go
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not sure if anyone posted any stats or storyline on Howard but hawk central did. The thing with hawk
central is they want people to subscribe but sometimes they let people read some of their articles to get interest in new subscribers.

Here is a link to a story on Howard. I can't promise it will be available as it is hit or miss over there.

www.hawkcentral.com

Iowa basketball: Drake transfer Isaia Howard commits to Hawkeyes, follows Ben McCollum

Drake transfer Isaia Howard is following head coach Ben McCollum to the Iowa men's basketball program.
www.hawkcentral.com

Howard highlights................

youtu.be

Isaia Howard - Drake - 2024-25 Transfer Portal Highlights

2024-25 Transfer Portal Highlights ID GKLJUPTM30WHPB4T
youtu.be youtu.be
 
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