lightning1
Well-Known Member
I never met a player that could guard 5 positions all by himself. That's for sure.
This team will not be a .500 team
- Thread starter ForeverHawk
- Start date
tksirius
HN's Love Doctor
Is this Iowa? No, it's the land of excuses.
I'm really hoping it's something stupid like this. Its amazing how different you can look just by not giving max effort. 11 o'clock games on an island are hard to get up for at all. Let alone when you're playing a team you've never heard of. Would we have had more energy against Cincinnati? I sure hope so.
The post I made isn't an excuse to make it ok. Its just a small hope that there is a stupid reason for all this that won't apply in later games. Otherwise we are effed?
Fran has a history of starting slow. It wasn't to long ago iowa got beat by a division two school and had a fairly good season. If he didn't use twelve players maybe they would be doing better. A concern is the injuries they have had. Anyway, the next game is on ESPN 2 so they should play better. Hopefully, it doesn't hurt there recruiting.
BigD
Well-Known Member
We can hope.
#1DieHardHawk
Well-Known Member
The team's performance has been perplexing thus far, but let's do away with the "we our out of NCAA consideration" talk. That's just ridiculous. Yes, at the end of the season, those will be listed as "bad losses," but there is still more than enough time to turn this season around.
That said, there are numerous concerns about this team. The lack of perimeter athleticism was a concern last season, and, unfortunately, is even more of a concern this season. With Bohannon, Ellingson and McCaffery, we simply don't have the kind of lateral quickness and agility needed to clamp down on opposing guards and prevent penetration. Moss frequently is described as a good on-ball defender, but he really is just average. He just looks better by comparison, which isn't much of a challenge with our squad.
Help defense can cover up some of the deficiencies, but, unless defensive rotation is perfect, that almost always result in someone being open. It's going to remain an Achilles' heal until Fran brings in a genuine athlete at the one. We are aggressively pursuing a couple in DJ Carton and Tyrell Terry but the competition for both is stiff.
I would propose another issue is lack of toughness and determination. You just don't see anyone on this team getting in the face of ball carriers and applying major pressure. I watched Penn State, and that team gets it. Hopefully, when the staff goes over tape with the players, they will learn something about aggressive lock-down defense. I hope I'm wrong, but I think Penn State will beat us by at least 8.
That said, there are numerous concerns about this team. The lack of perimeter athleticism was a concern last season, and, unfortunately, is even more of a concern this season. With Bohannon, Ellingson and McCaffery, we simply don't have the kind of lateral quickness and agility needed to clamp down on opposing guards and prevent penetration. Moss frequently is described as a good on-ball defender, but he really is just average. He just looks better by comparison, which isn't much of a challenge with our squad.
Help defense can cover up some of the deficiencies, but, unless defensive rotation is perfect, that almost always result in someone being open. It's going to remain an Achilles' heal until Fran brings in a genuine athlete at the one. We are aggressively pursuing a couple in DJ Carton and Tyrell Terry but the competition for both is stiff.
I would propose another issue is lack of toughness and determination. You just don't see anyone on this team getting in the face of ball carriers and applying major pressure. I watched Penn State, and that team gets it. Hopefully, when the staff goes over tape with the players, they will learn something about aggressive lock-down defense. I hope I'm wrong, but I think Penn State will beat us by at least 8.
I see plenty of guys get in the face of ball carriers. They just get blown by like they're standing still.
#1DieHardHawk
Well-Known Member
It's hard to know where effort/technique and athletic ability separate. They are limited athletically, but, at the same time, I don't see a lot of good aggressive on-ball technique either (proper stance, foot placement, snapping the body, etc.). I also don't see that intensity and attitude that is required. Michael Jordan always used to say that you play defense with your legs. As I mentioned, the Penn State players show it, and I recently watched Tennessee, and once again saw that determination and attitude on defense. I guess it's like good art - you know it when you see it but can't necessarily explain it.
Tiptontiger
Well-Known Member
Whoa, whoa, whoa. I was a sophomore at Iowa during that time and never missed a home game. I also attended the Mideast Regional games against Jacksonville and Notre Dame that March. Greatest offensive college basketball team of all time - Fred Brown, Chad Calabria, Glenn Vidnovic, John Johnson and Dick Jensen. Ben Mc Gilmer came off the bench. The team averaged 102.9 points/game in the Big 10 - a record which still hasn't been broken in 47 years.
This current Iowa team would get run off a cliff if they played the 1969-1970 team. That 1969-1970 team would ring up 130 plus points on this team.
Joshbrown
Well-Known Member
The BBall team can still recover.
The pain of Kirkball is here for the rest of our lives. I mean that literally.
lightning1
Well-Known Member
I expect 18 or 19 wins.
