Iowa Has a Ton to Play for

ChosenChildren

ChosenChildren

Well-Known Member
Yes, I'm disappointed that we are 14-9 right now. We let 3 or 4 games slip away against excellent teams.

But we have 8 games left (7 very winnable), and then the Big Ten Tournament. Let's assume Iowa has 10 more games. I could see Iowa winning anywhere from 5 to 8 additional games, if the effort is sustained. Win 5 more and they get a high seed in the NIT. Win 8 more and I think we are in the running for an NCAA bid.

Most of the losses have been good ones, on the road, against great teams. We are #36 in Sagarin right now, and #37 in Pomeroy. We have a lot to play for. Learn from the close losses and move on. This is a young team that is really getting better and playing with great energy right now. They play hard for this coach. You can see the effort that is being given for this coaching staff.

It starts this Saturday. We must beat NW at home and I think we will. Then let's beat Penn State on the road and go from there.....
 
I like to follow Joel Sokol's rankings...one I personally like because it is often far different than the others. We're #40. Most probably don't follow his so here are his top 10 in order. I threw Wisconsin and Michigan State on there as well.

Florida
Indiana
Michigan
Duke
Louisville
Syracuse
Pittsburgh
Gonzaga
Ohio State
Minnesota

Wisconsin (15)
Michigan State (18)
 
The challenge for this team is to stay positive. This team could have folded after the heart breaker to Minnesota and falling behind 11 early, but they came back and gave another great effort. They don't quit. Lets just hope this doesn't change cause they hurt more than any of us I'm sure.
 
I agree, we do have a lot to play for, but I'm kind of a "one game at a time" guy, and Iowa needs to stay strong, get some "W's", and get some big mo going into the BTT. Tough losses will only make you better in the long run, learn from your mistakes, execute better on both ends. The Hawks will be playing in the post season, just not sure it's the one we all want...Up to this point it's been frustrating at times, but have seen a lot of good things, a lot of good signs for us in the future.
 
Six of our losses are to those teams...thought I would check on the other 3. These are updated daily.

Wichita State (26)
Purdue (91)
Virginia Tech (143)

Our best wins are Wisconsin (15), Iowa State (28) and UNI (73)...but we all know we're lacking in that department. We are ahead of Illinois (55) and Purdue (91).
 
Iowa has a ton to play for like the happiness of so many awesome fans that riddle this website with their displeasure and are unwilling to accept anything except an NCAA tourney bid and beating teams with better talent and more experience than Iowa.
 
NON TROLL ALERT************DONT FALL FOR IT BECAUSE THIS IS NOT A TROLL*************

Say what you want that the NIT is dumb or whatevs but I had a lot of fun watching those 2 games last year. So go get em Hawks. Ill be happy with any extra games.

#postseasonfootballainthappeninforawhile
 
clicheusername3 said:
First caller on Murph and Andy, says Iowa "is in".
Click to expand...

For this reasonably young team (all but May return next year), a very high seed in the NIT (#1?) could mean THREE home games in Carver if we keep winning. That could be huge for this team's confidence going into next year.

One of the NIT pundits (Big Apple Buckets) had Iowa as a #1 NIT seed on January 27. That would be huge.

We don't have to achieve an NCAA bid to have a great year. It would be nice, but it isn't absolutely necessary. This is a process and it is about getting better on a yearly basis. We DO need to play well in these next 10 or 11 games and win more than we lose!!!!
 
One of the biggest keys to the rest of the season is sweeping NW, PSU, and Nebraska. The road games at PSU and at Nebraska scare me.
 
Jump over to the CR Gazette and read Mike Hlas column this a.m. He really summarizes well where he sees Iowa at this point. I am biased...I think Mike is really a good analyst when it comes to Iowa basketball and football. As a bonus, the Gazette has a series of detailed articles on Iowa's football recruits...there are three of them so far and they are very interesting.
 
Why all the hate for the NIT. It is run much better than it used to be and they don't just take BCS level schools anymore. They are more discriminatory in selections. An NIT berth with a high seed would be great if the NCAA can't happen. As young as the team is, even CBI would be good just for more games.
 
I'm a big believer in not denying your team a chance to play in the postseason no matter the tourney. The NIT would be excellent for this team, especially with home games. The CBI is not all that great to be in but for the players, especially the young guys on this team, could use the experience. I realize that some feel that CBI or NIT is a dissapointment but we need to think about these players and what's best for the team going forward.
 
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