The CURSE that is Iowa basketball

koralakers

koralakers

Well-Known Member
Bullet point summary. Can only speak for the last 35 years I have been watching. Let me know if I am missing anything....
  • Seemingly lose EVERY close game, in gut-wrenching fashion, if possible
  • Our last second shot NEVER goes in
  • opponents last second shot ALWAYS goes in (no matter how crazy or impossible that shot is)
  • Our best players seem to leave the program before the graduate or worse (RIP Chris Street)
  • Our only 'great' coach left just when things were getting good.
  • Always seem to 'finish second' on any big-time recruits
  • If actually make the post season, make sure to be eliminated in the last second (NCAA=3 1-point losses, 3 2-point losses, 2 3-pt losses, a 4-point loss, and and overtime and double-overtime loss) (NIT= 2 1-pt losses, a 2-point loss, and 3-point loss, in 7 total appearances)

Bottom-line, it just hurts to be a Hawk hoops fan. Literally every year you can bank on getting your heart ripped out a half-dozen times.
All that being said, I love Fran as a coach/recruiter, even motivator. Only beef with him, is at end of games, seems to sit on timeouts, and watch Gesell or Marble dribble the shot clock away, 30-feet from basket, and then try to run offense in 6-8 seconds, which makes its easy for the defense, and usually doesn't end well.
 
That's one reason I don't get on Fran for losing close games. Iowa basketball was cursed long before Fran got there.
 
koralakers said:
Bullet point summary. Can only speak for the last 35 years I have been watching. Let me know if I am missing anything....
  • Seemingly lose EVERY close game, in gut-wrenching fashion, if possible
  • Our last second shot NEVER goes in
  • opponents last second shot ALWAYS goes in (no matter how crazy or impossible that shot is)
  • Our best players seem to leave the program before the graduate or worse (RIP Chris Street)
  • Our only 'great' coach left just when things were getting good.
  • Always seem to 'finish second' on any big-time recruits
  • If actually make the post season, make sure to be eliminated in the last second (NCAA=3 1-point losses, 3 2-point losses, 2 3-pt losses, a 4-point loss, and and overtime and double-overtime loss) (NIT= 2 1-pt losses, a 2-point loss, and 3-point loss, in 7 total appearances)

Bottom-line, it just hurts to be a Hawk hoops fan. Literally every year you can bank on getting your heart ripped out a half-dozen times.
All that being said, I love Fran as a coach/recruiter, even motivator. Only beef with him, is at end of games, seems to sit on timeouts, and watch Gesell or Marble dribble the shot clock away, 30-feet from basket, and then try to run offense in 6-8 seconds, which makes its easy for the defense, and usually doesn't end well.
Click to expand...

Nailed it. I can't remember the last time, if ever, that we hit a game-winning shot. And I'm not that young (30). Anyone?

For the life of me, I can not understand why Fran doesn't use this timeouts at the end of games. He's actually pretty good at drawing up set plays (or someone on the staff is), and it never works when he lets them just play it out. Just dumbfounding.
 
I do remember a last second NIT win in the early 2000's and a win or two over Indiana, and I'm sure there were a few others, but on the whole, you are correct.
 
Uthoff hit a game winner against Minnesota at the Barn last year. It was with 4 seconds left. We let them drive the length of the court for an easy layup but thankfully he didn't get it off by about .2 seconds or that would be another choke job.

Recker hit 2 in a row in the Big10 Tourney. Those are the last 2 I remember in my life. Woolridge hit one too from the baseline against someone
 
[video]https://youtu.be/Rpp6Be7tfS8[/video]


Here's about the only one I can remember.
 
Great post OP.

I can think off the top of my head a few game-losing moments where Iowa fans had their guts torn out...

70 vs Jacksonville
82 vs Minnesota for the Big-10 title
87 vs UNLV
04/05 @ Northwestern where literally their last shot went in, two years running
05 lost consecutive tight games @ ISU and UNI
06 Northwestern State
2013 @ Iowa State
2015 @ Iowa State
 
Marble hit one against Tennessee in the tourney to tie the game. That was the first time iowa made a last second shot since '08 i believe. Uthoff also made one to tie against Northwestern last year. Anyone want to make a list of opponents shots going in? It might take awhile.
 
Seth53 said:
Great post OP.

I can think off the top of my head a few game-losing moments where Iowa fans had their guts torn out...

70 vs Jacksonville
82 vs Minnesota for the Big-10 title
87 vs UNLV
04/05 @ Northwestern where literally their last shot went in, two years running
05 lost consecutive tight games @ ISU and UNI
06 Northwestern State
2013 @ Iowa State
2015 @ Iowa State
Click to expand...

Did you have to mention 87? That win would have put us in the final four. Had over a twenty point lead in the second half. That was probably the most talented group of Hawkeyes to wear the uniform in the last thirty five years. Ronnie Lester and gang were a scrappy bunch also but not as talented.

I believe five or six players from the 87 team played in, or were recruited to the NBA. It set a record for the most to be recruited in one year in college basketball that stood for years. It may still be the record for players I don't know. I didn't even know that until a former hawk player told me that. IOWA???? Not North Carolina??? Not Duke??? Iowa??? Amazing. That was our National Championship team that got derailed by a towel sucking UNLV coach and his bunch that couldn't miss from three point land in the second half.
 
I remember one back in the 1990s, Andy Kaufman from Illinois hit a half court shot to beat Iowa. Also in the early 90s there were a few last second losses at MSU. I think its like poker, you always remember the bad beats and Iowa has had more than its share.

AW hit a game winner in Carver against MSU once. But he also missed one against Minnesota his SR year.
 
83Hawk said:
I do remember a last second NIT win in the early 2000's and a win or two over Indiana, and I'm sure there were a few others, but on the whole, you are correct.
Click to expand...

I can remember some last second wins (2002 BTT - Luke Recker two days in a row, and a few others) but yeah, seems these types of things go against us far more often.

D@mn you Andy Kaufman.

Oh, and I would add Luke Recker's knee to that list of curses, too. Right when the Hawks were tied for 1st mid-way through the conference season. Hawks lost 7 of 8 or something after that.
 
Did you have to bring up 70 and 87? Could have gone all the way! I was a freshman at Iowa in 70 and when Pembroop tipped in that half court shot at the buzzer you could hear chairs thrown against the wall In the dorm. 87 we just blew but that was the nature of that team and UNLV was maybe the only team that could have caught us

still fun years 69-70 14-0 in the big ten scoring 100 Points per game BEFORE the 3 point shot
 
longtimer said:
Did you have to bring up 70 and 87? Could have gone all the way! I was a freshman at Iowa in 70 and when Pembroop tipped in that half court shot at the buzzer you could hear chairs thrown against the wall In the dorm. 87 we just blew but that was the nature of that team and UNLV was maybe the only team that could have caught us

still fun years 69-70 14-0 in the big ten scoring 100 Points per game BEFORE the 3 point shot
Click to expand...

There should be a lot of good times coming this year. The future looks bright.
 
BigD said:
Did you have to mention 87? That win would have put us in the final four. Had over a twenty point lead in the second half. That was probably the most talented group of Hawkeyes to wear the uniform in the last thirty five years. Ronnie Lester and gang were a scrappy bunch also but not as talented.

I believe five or six players from the 87 team played in, or were recruited to the NBA. It set a record for the most to be recruited in one year in college basketball that stood for years. It may still be the record for players I don't know. I didn't even know that until a former hawk player told me that. IOWA???? Not North Carolina??? Not Duke??? Iowa??? Amazing. That was our National Championship team that got derailed by a towel sucking UNLV coach and his bunch that couldn't miss from three point land in the second half.
Click to expand...
Artis Gilmore was on Jacksonville University team
 
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Seth53 said:
Great post OP.

I can think off the top of my head a few game-losing moments where Iowa fans had their guts torn out...

70 vs Jacksonville
82 vs Minnesota for the Big-10 title
87 vs UNLV
04/05 @ Northwestern where literally their last shot went in, two years running
05 lost consecutive tight games @ ISU and UNI
06 Northwestern State
2013 @ Iowa State
2015 @ Iowa State
Click to expand...
2006 was heartbreaking !
 
GoHawks24 said:
Nailed it. I can't remember the last time, if ever, that we hit a game-winning shot. And I'm not that young (30). Anyone?

For the life of me, I can not understand why Fran doesn't use this timeouts at the end of games. He's actually pretty good at drawing up set plays (or someone on the staff is), and it never works when he lets them just play it out. Just dumbfounding.
Click to expand...

You can't remember all the way back to December 2, 2015? Jok hit a game winning 3 in overtime.
 
I disgustingly remember 1994-5 when we lost FOUR games by ONE POINT in 3-weeks...
13Sat, Jan 7, 1995REG@Michigan StateBig TenL6869103L 1Breslin Events Center
14Wed, Jan 11, 1995REG@MichiganBig TenL8283104L 2Crisler Arena
15Sat, Jan 14, 1995REGPurdueBig TenL8384105L 3Carver-Hawkeye Arena
16Sat, Jan 21, 1995REGWisconsinBig TenW9684115W 1Carver-Hawkeye Arena
17Wed, Jan 25, 1995REG@Ohio StateBig TenW8166125W 2St. John Arena
18Sat, Jan 28, 1995REGMinnesotaBig TenL5455126L 1Carver-Hawkeye Arena
 
Knight78 said:
You can't remember all the way back to December 2, 2015? Jok hit a game winning 3 in overtime.
Click to expand...
True it was a rare close victory. But wasn't last-second. FSU still had a chance to tie/win. One of our rare last-second 'stops' did win the game. :eek:
 
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