Ponder this

[sportstalent]

Isn't it nice to see Iowa with viable options on the bench? We have had injuries, but with the real depth Iowa has we still have a rotation.
For me, it is exciting to see Brommer/Archie playing the way they have and see Marble picking up PG duties as I have been saying he played that position in high school last year for a reason and had an outstanding season.

 

[PhotoHawk]

Isn't it nice to see Iowa with viable options on the bench? We have had injuries, but with the real depth Iowa has we still have a rotation.
For me, it is exciting to see Brommer/Archie playing the way they have and see Marble picking up PG duties as I have been saying he played that position in high school last year for a reason and had an outstanding season.

I realize the competition is going to ramp up very soon, however, I was also encouraged by the effort and the simple fact that the coaching staff has worked with every one of these guys and expects them to run the same press, zone, motion offense, etc. as the folks starting in front of them.

 

[Gohawks123]

I wonder if Fran feels comfortable putting all those guys out on the court against better teams. Will be interesting to see.

 

[BlackGold57]

Unfortunately, there is a big difference between SIUE and Purdue, who looked very good on TV. They should should get better as the season goes along, but look for ISU and UNI to walk away with comfortable wins from Iowa City. The confidence level will be a problem when defenses ramp up and they fall behind in the score. I hope I am wrong.

 

[clicheusername3]

Isn't it nice to see Iowa with viable options on the bench? We have had injuries, but with the real depth Iowa has we still have a rotation.
For me, it is exciting to see Brommer/Archie playing the way they have and see Marble picking up PG duties as I have been saying he played that position in high school last year for a reason and had an outstanding season.

It's great now. But I know for a fact that I will say, "Brommer is in the game?", or "Who's injured? WHy is Archie playing?" too many times this season.

 

[sportstalent]

Yes the schedule will get more difficult and I expect Iowa to get it handed to them in the Big Ten. My point is this Iowa has depth and struggled to win any game last year and blew how many leads because they simply wore out. Without that this year they lose two more games then they have.

 

[IATrainMaster101]

Iowa would have beaten this team by a score of 66 -45 last year. The results of this season may be similar to last season but things feel a lot better.

 

[CAARHawk]

Iowa would have beaten this team by a score of 66 -45 last year. The results of this season may be similar to last season but things feel a lot better.

Yep. But I also feel Iowa's bench is better than last year. They had nothing last year. At least the guys they brought in like Stoermer and Stubbs to fill time have specific abilities. I keep going back to Stoermer's play at West. His team got ravaged when the Derbys left to go form that superteam at City. But that kid gave them all they could take as a one man team. Kind of like an Ali Faroukmanesh situation. Stubbs can also play. To have these guys step in when needed isn't going to win any Big Ten games per se, but it is better than what it had been the last couple of years.

 

[JonDMiller]

I think a lot of people understand that this season is going to be a real grind once we get to Big Ten play The wins will be few and far between, as there are no easy outs for Iowa this year and the league might be as good as it's been in two decades.

Yet, this year is about putting a foundation in place for the future..next year will be more foundation work, with the hope in year three that Iowa is playing in the post season again.

 

[JHHawk]

What was encouraging to me was how well the entire team played. The floor had five walkons near the end and they moved the ball very well, played unselfishly,and it did not look like garbage time out there...crisp cuts,passes and shooting...nice. We have a coaching staff that can teach bb.

 

[H8IAST8]

Unfortunately, there is a big difference between SIUE and Purdue, who looked very good on TV. They should should get better as the season goes along, but look for ISU and UNI to walk away with comfortable wins from Iowa City. The confidence level will be a problem when defenses ramp up and they fall behind in the score. I hope I am wrong.

I'll have to disagree here. ISU has looked alot better than i expected, but they left home once and traveled 30 miles down I35 to face Creighton in Wells Fargo arena. They won on a prayer that was later proved to be after the buzzer. I think Iowa will have a shot to beat all 3 instate schools.

 

[MisterLucky]

I'm with you H8IAST8. I am certainly not going to concede home losses to either ISU or UNI.

 

[sportstalent]

I think a lot of people understand that this season is going to be a real grind once we get to Big Ten play The wins will be few and far between, as there are no easy outs for Iowa this year and the league might be as good as it's been in two decades.

Yet, this year is about putting a foundation in place for the future..next year will be more foundation work, with the hope in year three that Iowa is playing in the post season again.

100 percent agree Jon and at least two more pieces will be added for next season. Maybe Coach Dillard's son and Eric Katenda will add a couple options to Iowa in the Spring.

 

[1977Hawkeye]

I'm with you H8IAST8. I am certainly not going to concede home losses to either ISU or UNI.

Im with H8IAST8 too. We may not necessarily WIN these games, but I won't be surprised if they are tight games.

I don't expect many wins this year, but we'll have a chance to shock a few people, and I like the way things seem to be coming together given what Fran inherited from Lickliter.

A couple years from now, just as long as Fran can grab a few solid recruits, I think we'll be fine. At a minimum, I believe we'll start having a better shot at signing the in-state talent given the more up-tempo style of play.

As mentioned above, even the scrubs that were in the last few minutes yesterday seemed to have their stuff together, which I think is a good sign as it relates to our coaching staff.