Luftgekuehlt67
Well-Known Member
Ah, yes, the 1950's - an era when your starting five in basketball might be named Sharm, Carl, Bill, Bill, and Bill.
Iowa Basketball Checks in at No. 5 in Latest AP Poll
- Thread starter RobHowe
- Start date
thedukeofearl
Well-Known Member
WindsorHawk
Well-Known Member
Before I read the post I assumed you were about to reference the Fab 5 and possibly Howard suddenly showing up and instantly landing the top ranked recruiting class. Not sure why my mind went there...And, of course, the Bills
I saw a stat that showed since the first OSU game we were ranked 10th on offensive efficiency nationally and 10th in defensive efficiency.I know Fry is a big AP poll fan, but I will offer some KenPom numbers as a supplement...
Iowa is up to a shocking 59th in defensive efficiency. I say "shocking" because, not only is 59th starting to look very much "OK" in absolute terms, but remember that number was something like 136th just ~6 or so games ago. So, in reality, over this stretch we've actually been playing *exceptional* defense.
We held OSU - the 3rd best offensive efficiency team and a projected 1 seed by some sources - to 57 points in their own building in the game after losing one of our best defensive players (Nunge) for the season.
It's time to give credit where credit is more than due. This staff has made some serious adjustments in both scheme and technique that are paying off in dramatic fashion.
Some interesting KenPom comps:
Iowa (#5 AP)
Offense 2nd
Defense 59th
WVU (#6 AP)
Offense 11th
Defense 55th
OSU (#7 AP)
Offense 3rd
Defense 81st
Villanova (#10 AP)
Offense 6th
Defense 78th
FSU (#11 AP)
Offense 8th
Defense 53rd
Obviously, there are a handful of teams (Michigan is one) who have offenses that are in the ballpark of Iowa's AND have top 10 defenses, but they are few and far between. Playing the way we are - even sans Nunge, apparently - we are going to make for a really tough out.
A few weeks back, due to our defensive efficiency rating, we stuck out like a sore thumb among the KenPom top 50 or so. All of a sudden, it looks like we're right at home. I'm excited to see how this plays out!
I was hoping they would end up with a couple less losses (I think if CJ stayed healthy we would have) but I was optimistic we could stay somewhere between 5th and 10th. The rest of the top teams underachieving helped me reach that goal without having quite as good individual results. That's ok by me. Especially since Michigan ran away with the crown anyway.
vork22
Well-Known Member
Same here, I had them around #12 come tournament time. I still don’t think we are the fifth best team but the OSU game certainly made me think that it’s at least not as far fetched as it once was.
Northside Hawk
Well-Known Member
Watch out for Arkansas (33rd and 12th) They are humming under Musselman and playing their best ball of the season. Dude k ows how to coach and recruit and is a terrific judge of talent.I know Fry is a big AP poll fan, but I will offer some KenPom numbers as a supplement...
Iowa is up to a shocking 59th in defensive efficiency. I say "shocking" because, not only is 59th starting to look very much "OK" in absolute terms, but remember that number was something like 136th just ~6 or so games ago. So, in reality, over this stretch we've actually been playing *exceptional* defense.
We held OSU - the 3rd best offensive efficiency team and a projected 1 seed by some sources - to 57 points in their own building in the game after losing one of our best defensive players (Nunge) for the season.
It's time to give credit where credit is more than due. This staff has made some serious adjustments in both scheme and technique that are paying off in dramatic fashion.
Some interesting KenPom comps:
Iowa (#5 AP)
Offense 2nd
Defense 59th
WVU (#6 AP)
Offense 11th
Defense 55th
OSU (#7 AP)
Offense 3rd
Defense 81st
Villanova (#10 AP)
Offense 6th
Defense 78th
FSU (#11 AP)
Offense 8th
Defense 53rd
Obviously, there are a handful of teams (Michigan is one) who have offenses that are in the ballpark of Iowa's AND have top 10 defenses, but they are few and far between. Playing the way we are - even sans Nunge, apparently - we are going to make for a really tough out.
A few weeks back, due to our defensive efficiency rating, we stuck out like a sore thumb among the KenPom top 50 or so. All of a sudden, it looks like we're right at home. I'm excited to see how this plays out!
Northside Hawk
Well-Known Member
Not exactly Jimmy, Buddy, Merle, Strap, and Ollie but does have a nice ring to it.
BrueCrew3
Well-Known Member
My thoughts exactly! If we can get to the championship game, it would be hard to not have us at least a 2, which i would be happy with.
Simply my $.02 .. ..
ssckelley
Well-Known Member
But here is he rub, had I told you Iowa would be 18-7 overall and 12-6 in the Big Ten in March you would have thought you had nailed your prediction. Iowa is 5th in the country not so much because of what they've accomplished but because of the parity between the teams ranked 4-10. You've got 3 teams that are head and tails above the rest of the field (Michigan, Gonzaga, and Baylor) and then a bunch of junk in that next tier. So I don't feel that Iowa is "beating expectations", had they took care of business against Minnesota and Indiana I would feel differently. I think it took everything going right for Iowa to be 5th, and most of what went right was out of Iowa's control.
I would say everything out of Iowa's control went right, regarding what other teams did. But some things inside the program went wrong. Some in their control like the Minnesota free throws, and some outside their control like the CJ injury.
InGoodCo
Well-Known Member
You are right, but I don't give a shit, I didn't expect Iowa to start out at 5 and remain at 5. I don't care how they got here. We're here. They are in position for a 2 or 3 seed with a real long shot at a 1. What more could I have asked? A conference title. Yes, I am disappointed in that but March is all that matters to me. When you start out at 5, there isn't a lot of room to move up. I didn't assume they would play up to that level. I am Iowa fan and have been kicked in the nuts enough to know that more times then not, hype has lead to heart break. It's hard to play to expectations. It's hard with a target on your back all year. Iowa has not played well in this position over the years. Iowa dropped some games I didn't expect, but despite that fact, still have positioned themselves better than I imagined this late in the season. It's room for me to be optimistic.
