JonDMiller
Publisher/Founder
Thank goodness Iowa's opponent was Penn State. That's what I kept thinking as I watched the Iowa-Penn State game play out on Thursday night.
Has Iowa played more poorly at times this year? Yes. This week? Yes. Yet after the offensive grind that was Iowa at Purdue from Sunday, I was hoping for something a little more fluid from Iowa as it returned home after two games on the road.
Iowa led 34-26 at the break on Thursday which is light years better than the 19-16 halftime score from Sunday, but it still felt like the Hawkeyes were sleepwalking throughout much of the first stanza. Aaron White scored 14 points, many of them in transition. He added 13 in the second half for a career-best 27 points.
Penn State had nine turnovers in the first half and 18 for the game and really didn't look good at any point in time. The reason for that is because they are not good and Iowa played down to their level a bit too much for my liking. One thing Penn State has been good at is offensive rebounding, which may be why Iowa chose to start Melsahn Basabe and sit Anthony Clemmons, to provide a bigger lineup. The Nits have been boarding well on the offensive glass but Iowa won that battle 36-26, including 13-7 on the offensive glass.
Basabe scored 10 points and pulled down a game high 10 rebounds and could have done more damage had Penn State not been committed to fouling hard on every dunk or layup attempt.
Iowa's shooting struggles continued from beyond the arc as the Hawks were just 5-21 from long range. Iowa made up for those shortcomings by hitting 31 of 39 from the line, including 10-11 by Aaron White and 8-1o by Melsahn Basabe.
Iowa was 20 of 50 from the field but did have 18 assists on those 20 shots, which is very good and hard to do. The Hawkeyes also had 11 steals in the contest, one of their best totals of the year.
In the end, Iowa had too much for the shorthanded Nittany Lions, who fell to 0-9 on the Big Ten campaign. The Hawkeyes improved to 3-5 in the league and 14-7 overall. This was the 'most winnable' game on Iowa's schedule the rest of the way and they put it in the bank.
There are more winnable games the rest of the way, or rather, more games where Iowa will be favored than they will be the underdog but the next two contests will see Iowa getting points in Vegas. It starts Sunday at Minnesota and then Iowa will be at Wisconsin on Wednesday. The Hawks beat the Badgers and Gophers back to back on the road last year but a split would be a good pull.
*Iowa improves to 11-2 at home this season, and has won 16 of its last 19 home games dating back to last season.
*Iowa improves to 12-2 when leading at halftime this season.
*Sophomore Aaron White scored a career-high 27 points. It was the fourth time he has scored at least 20 points this season, and sixth in his career.
*Junior Melsahn Basabe recorded his first double-double of the season and the 10th of his career. He scored 10 points and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
*Iowa tied for season-highs in free throws made (31) and attempted (39). Iowa also went 31-of-39 at the free throw line against Wichita State on Nov. 21, 2012.
*Penn State had 18 turnovers, which is the most turnovers Iowa has forced against a Big Ten team this season.
Q. Melsahn had a doubledouble for you.
COACH McCAFFERY: He had a couple really good days of practice and he'd been playing really well.
Like I said, I don't always like to make changes when a guy's playing really well where he is in the role that he's in. But I felt like he had earned the right to start, so I put him in the starting lineup.
Q. What upset you the most towards the end of the game?
COACH McCAFFERY: We didn't execute. It's not easy. You're trying to protect the lead. You don't want to quick shoot the ball.
We missed a couple guys under the basket against the press. Aaron's three out of the corner when Melsahn is wide open, we can't shoot those types of shots. Those are the kinds of things that upset me.
Our execution when we were trying to run clock, run a set late in the clock, that wasn't very good. Then we turned the ball over in the backcourt against the press with four timeouts. Can't do that. You find yourself in that position, you got to call timeout.
So those are the things that hopefully we learned tonight.
Q. What was a little different having Basabe in the starting lineup?
COACH McCAFFERY: It gave us a bigger lineup. This is a team that rebounds, a very physical team. I think a bigger lineup was effective for us tonight.
Q. (No microphone.)
COACH McCAFFERY: He was great. I thought he was spectacular both halves. Hit a huge three. Got to the freethrow line. Engineered the offense, played pretty good defense.
Q. How did he take it when you pulled him?
COACH McCAFFERY: He's fine. He's a pro that way.
Q. Aaron had a pretty good night. Career high in points. What do you think he brought?
COACH McCAFFERY: You know, he played tonight with great energy. I wouldn't have said that we'd be able to play him 34 minutes. He seems to have been tiring a little bit to where I need to play him 28.
But we just felt like he was affecting the game at both ends and we needed to leave him out there. When we took him out, time to put him back in. He was terrific.
Q. Your defense keyed your transition game. 140 run.
COACH McCAFFERY: It changed everything. It was important to get back in it after you fall behind 81. I think it was a 162 run there. You're right, it was defense in transition.
Q. Did you stick with your starting lineup a little bit longer right out of the gate?
COACH McCAFFERY: I thought Woody was playing really well. They were playing well together. It was kind of a slow game in that period of time, so it wasn't like I felt like anybody was really tired. I'm looking to see if anybody was winded. I didn't think anybody was winded.
Q. Woodbury, do you feel he's progressed more?
COACH McCAFFERY: I felt he was terrific tonight. I thought about putting him back in when we were struggling rebounding the ball. They were going off the dribble so much that I went with the smaller lineup there.
Q. Do you feel like coming in alongside Melsahn took a little bit of pressure off him?
COACH McCAFFERY: I think they play well together. What you're seeing Woodbury do, he affected the game in a lot of different ways. Defensively, a couple buckets. He was passing the ball really well. When they were in the zone, he was really effective as a feeder. He was moving the ball.
In ball screens, not many 7'1" guys are out there showing them ball screens, hustling back to the front. His post defense was phenomenal. He was outstanding tonight.
Q. You hit the road for two games in four days. What are you looking for your team to do? What do you need to improve on?
COACH McCAFFERY: What we need to do is play a little bit better, again, offensively. That's been a little bit of a struggle for us. We hit some more jumpers tonight, that's good to see. But our execution is still a little bit off. It's closer. They're working at it. They're trying, but it's got to be better.
Q. Is that basically screening?
COACH McCAFFERY: It's a combination of everything. When you're running offense, it's five guys working in unison, looking for certain things depending on how they're playing it, making the right reads, drive it, don't drive it, whatever.
Q. (No microphone.)
COACH McCAFFERY: I think so, yeah. That's my plan right now.
Q. Did Josh's shot look more comfortable?
COACH McCAFFERY: I thought every one of those was going in. He made eight yesterday in practice, eight. I feel so bad because the first one looked good. When he drilled the second one, I thought he was on his way. Then I feel bad because I feel like every time I take him out, it puts pressure on him. I want to just leave him in there.
But, you know, I'm rotating fresh personnel. They don't play as many guys. We wanted to keep fresh bodies out there to keep pressure on them.
Q. It helps to have the freethrow shooting tonight.
COACH McCAFFERY: Especially in a game like this where they were fouling so much.
Q. That should be good for the road then.
COACH McCAFFERY: Yeah, no question. You know, we're a good freethrow shooting team. The last couple games were not typical of who we are.
Q. You mention you don't like to normally switch up the starting lineup. When you decided to go with Basabe, were you confident with it?
COACH McCAFFERY: No, I was good with it. I'd been considering it for a game or two. I thought he was tremendous at Purdue. He really was. Again, he comes right back with the doubledouble, so... Proud of him.
Q. At least this way he was able to stay in the game.
COACH McCAFFERY: He made his free throws. Around the basket, they're going to foul you. You have to be able to be strong, get fouled, make 'em.
Q. You just ended this game. But Sunday against Minnesota, you have a physical, bestrebounding team in the Big Ten. Going to have to play well.
COACH McCAFFERY: He and Woody, but everybody. Zach and Gabe. I thought Gabe was really good in the first half. I put him in probably a difficult time for him. I probably should have put him in earlier. But I left Woody in because he was playing so well.
Q. Do you feel this will help you learn how to close out games in the future?
COACH McCAFFERY: Well, you know, for the most part we handled the press. We had the one turnover. We made our free throws, all right? Those are two good things.
We didn't rebound as well as we should have and we didn't execute as well as we should have. Those are two bad things.
So if you do three bad things, you lose. We did enough to get home, that's good. But let's be realistic about how good we have to be in those situations because at the time we were up 14, I think. What if you're up 5? Different story.
Q. What has Basabe done in the last six games or so? He's been so consistent.
COACH McCAFFERY: He's been very efficient. He makes his free throws. He sticks his nose in the glass. He gives you a lowpost presence. And defensively he's just so far ahead of where he used to be.
He used to hurt us defensively. So Rick points out he was fouling. Well, he was in the wrong place a lot. That's why he was fouling.
Now he's in the right place. He's seeing the game and affecting the game at both ends. What you're seeing is a guy as a result of that has more confidence in himself, which is great.
Q. A lot more improvement than his freshman or sophomore year.
COACH McCAFFERY: Yeah, you've seen a lot more consistency without question. Even his freshman year when he was putting up big numbers, a lot of those were because I couldn't take him out. He's not making the mistakes he was making the last two years.
Q. Did you get the sense your team was maybe looking ahead?
COACH McCAFFERY: No, not at all.
Has Iowa played more poorly at times this year? Yes. This week? Yes. Yet after the offensive grind that was Iowa at Purdue from Sunday, I was hoping for something a little more fluid from Iowa as it returned home after two games on the road.
Iowa led 34-26 at the break on Thursday which is light years better than the 19-16 halftime score from Sunday, but it still felt like the Hawkeyes were sleepwalking throughout much of the first stanza. Aaron White scored 14 points, many of them in transition. He added 13 in the second half for a career-best 27 points.
Penn State had nine turnovers in the first half and 18 for the game and really didn't look good at any point in time. The reason for that is because they are not good and Iowa played down to their level a bit too much for my liking. One thing Penn State has been good at is offensive rebounding, which may be why Iowa chose to start Melsahn Basabe and sit Anthony Clemmons, to provide a bigger lineup. The Nits have been boarding well on the offensive glass but Iowa won that battle 36-26, including 13-7 on the offensive glass.
Basabe scored 10 points and pulled down a game high 10 rebounds and could have done more damage had Penn State not been committed to fouling hard on every dunk or layup attempt.
Iowa's shooting struggles continued from beyond the arc as the Hawks were just 5-21 from long range. Iowa made up for those shortcomings by hitting 31 of 39 from the line, including 10-11 by Aaron White and 8-1o by Melsahn Basabe.
Iowa was 20 of 50 from the field but did have 18 assists on those 20 shots, which is very good and hard to do. The Hawkeyes also had 11 steals in the contest, one of their best totals of the year.
In the end, Iowa had too much for the shorthanded Nittany Lions, who fell to 0-9 on the Big Ten campaign. The Hawkeyes improved to 3-5 in the league and 14-7 overall. This was the 'most winnable' game on Iowa's schedule the rest of the way and they put it in the bank.
There are more winnable games the rest of the way, or rather, more games where Iowa will be favored than they will be the underdog but the next two contests will see Iowa getting points in Vegas. It starts Sunday at Minnesota and then Iowa will be at Wisconsin on Wednesday. The Hawks beat the Badgers and Gophers back to back on the road last year but a split would be a good pull.
*Iowa improves to 11-2 at home this season, and has won 16 of its last 19 home games dating back to last season.
*Iowa improves to 12-2 when leading at halftime this season.
*Sophomore Aaron White scored a career-high 27 points. It was the fourth time he has scored at least 20 points this season, and sixth in his career.
*Junior Melsahn Basabe recorded his first double-double of the season and the 10th of his career. He scored 10 points and pulled down a game-high 10 rebounds.
*Iowa tied for season-highs in free throws made (31) and attempted (39). Iowa also went 31-of-39 at the free throw line against Wichita State on Nov. 21, 2012.
*Penn State had 18 turnovers, which is the most turnovers Iowa has forced against a Big Ten team this season.
Q. Melsahn had a doubledouble for you.
COACH McCAFFERY: He had a couple really good days of practice and he'd been playing really well.
Like I said, I don't always like to make changes when a guy's playing really well where he is in the role that he's in. But I felt like he had earned the right to start, so I put him in the starting lineup.
Q. What upset you the most towards the end of the game?
COACH McCAFFERY: We didn't execute. It's not easy. You're trying to protect the lead. You don't want to quick shoot the ball.
We missed a couple guys under the basket against the press. Aaron's three out of the corner when Melsahn is wide open, we can't shoot those types of shots. Those are the kinds of things that upset me.
Our execution when we were trying to run clock, run a set late in the clock, that wasn't very good. Then we turned the ball over in the backcourt against the press with four timeouts. Can't do that. You find yourself in that position, you got to call timeout.
So those are the things that hopefully we learned tonight.
Q. What was a little different having Basabe in the starting lineup?
COACH McCAFFERY: It gave us a bigger lineup. This is a team that rebounds, a very physical team. I think a bigger lineup was effective for us tonight.
Q. (No microphone.)
COACH McCAFFERY: He was great. I thought he was spectacular both halves. Hit a huge three. Got to the freethrow line. Engineered the offense, played pretty good defense.
Q. How did he take it when you pulled him?
COACH McCAFFERY: He's fine. He's a pro that way.
Q. Aaron had a pretty good night. Career high in points. What do you think he brought?
COACH McCAFFERY: You know, he played tonight with great energy. I wouldn't have said that we'd be able to play him 34 minutes. He seems to have been tiring a little bit to where I need to play him 28.
But we just felt like he was affecting the game at both ends and we needed to leave him out there. When we took him out, time to put him back in. He was terrific.
Q. Your defense keyed your transition game. 140 run.
COACH McCAFFERY: It changed everything. It was important to get back in it after you fall behind 81. I think it was a 162 run there. You're right, it was defense in transition.
Q. Did you stick with your starting lineup a little bit longer right out of the gate?
COACH McCAFFERY: I thought Woody was playing really well. They were playing well together. It was kind of a slow game in that period of time, so it wasn't like I felt like anybody was really tired. I'm looking to see if anybody was winded. I didn't think anybody was winded.
Q. Woodbury, do you feel he's progressed more?
COACH McCAFFERY: I felt he was terrific tonight. I thought about putting him back in when we were struggling rebounding the ball. They were going off the dribble so much that I went with the smaller lineup there.
Q. Do you feel like coming in alongside Melsahn took a little bit of pressure off him?
COACH McCAFFERY: I think they play well together. What you're seeing Woodbury do, he affected the game in a lot of different ways. Defensively, a couple buckets. He was passing the ball really well. When they were in the zone, he was really effective as a feeder. He was moving the ball.
In ball screens, not many 7'1" guys are out there showing them ball screens, hustling back to the front. His post defense was phenomenal. He was outstanding tonight.
Q. You hit the road for two games in four days. What are you looking for your team to do? What do you need to improve on?
COACH McCAFFERY: What we need to do is play a little bit better, again, offensively. That's been a little bit of a struggle for us. We hit some more jumpers tonight, that's good to see. But our execution is still a little bit off. It's closer. They're working at it. They're trying, but it's got to be better.
Q. Is that basically screening?
COACH McCAFFERY: It's a combination of everything. When you're running offense, it's five guys working in unison, looking for certain things depending on how they're playing it, making the right reads, drive it, don't drive it, whatever.
Q. (No microphone.)
COACH McCAFFERY: I think so, yeah. That's my plan right now.
Q. Did Josh's shot look more comfortable?
COACH McCAFFERY: I thought every one of those was going in. He made eight yesterday in practice, eight. I feel so bad because the first one looked good. When he drilled the second one, I thought he was on his way. Then I feel bad because I feel like every time I take him out, it puts pressure on him. I want to just leave him in there.
But, you know, I'm rotating fresh personnel. They don't play as many guys. We wanted to keep fresh bodies out there to keep pressure on them.
Q. It helps to have the freethrow shooting tonight.
COACH McCAFFERY: Especially in a game like this where they were fouling so much.
Q. That should be good for the road then.
COACH McCAFFERY: Yeah, no question. You know, we're a good freethrow shooting team. The last couple games were not typical of who we are.
Q. You mention you don't like to normally switch up the starting lineup. When you decided to go with Basabe, were you confident with it?
COACH McCAFFERY: No, I was good with it. I'd been considering it for a game or two. I thought he was tremendous at Purdue. He really was. Again, he comes right back with the doubledouble, so... Proud of him.
Q. At least this way he was able to stay in the game.
COACH McCAFFERY: He made his free throws. Around the basket, they're going to foul you. You have to be able to be strong, get fouled, make 'em.
Q. You just ended this game. But Sunday against Minnesota, you have a physical, bestrebounding team in the Big Ten. Going to have to play well.
COACH McCAFFERY: He and Woody, but everybody. Zach and Gabe. I thought Gabe was really good in the first half. I put him in probably a difficult time for him. I probably should have put him in earlier. But I left Woody in because he was playing so well.
Q. Do you feel this will help you learn how to close out games in the future?
COACH McCAFFERY: Well, you know, for the most part we handled the press. We had the one turnover. We made our free throws, all right? Those are two good things.
We didn't rebound as well as we should have and we didn't execute as well as we should have. Those are two bad things.
So if you do three bad things, you lose. We did enough to get home, that's good. But let's be realistic about how good we have to be in those situations because at the time we were up 14, I think. What if you're up 5? Different story.
Q. What has Basabe done in the last six games or so? He's been so consistent.
COACH McCAFFERY: He's been very efficient. He makes his free throws. He sticks his nose in the glass. He gives you a lowpost presence. And defensively he's just so far ahead of where he used to be.
He used to hurt us defensively. So Rick points out he was fouling. Well, he was in the wrong place a lot. That's why he was fouling.
Now he's in the right place. He's seeing the game and affecting the game at both ends. What you're seeing is a guy as a result of that has more confidence in himself, which is great.
Q. A lot more improvement than his freshman or sophomore year.
COACH McCAFFERY: Yeah, you've seen a lot more consistency without question. Even his freshman year when he was putting up big numbers, a lot of those were because I couldn't take him out. He's not making the mistakes he was making the last two years.
Q. Did you get the sense your team was maybe looking ahead?
COACH McCAFFERY: No, not at all.
