With two games in the books against weak competition, there’s not a lot to glean from the opening week of the Iowa basketball season. Hawkeye fans can certainly tell that Fran McCaffery’s offense will be far more electric than Kirk Ferentz’s football offense has been this fall, but that’s been a given considering the respective styles that both teams play.
Iowa’s first real test will come Wednesday when the Hawkeyes match up with Seton Hall. Following that matchup with the Pirates, the Hawkeyes will find out a lot about themselves in rather short order.
They get one more warmup game with Omaha, and then they’ll play five straight games against teams from power conferences, going up against Clemson, Georgia Tech, Duke, Iowa State, and Wisconsin.
In all, 25 of Iowa’s games this season will come against Power 6 opposition, so the Hawkeyes had better be ready to raise their game if they hope to make another NCAA tournament appearance. Keegan
Murray is now in the NBA with the Sacramento Kings, which means the Hawkeyes will have to rely on some new talent to make a run in the Big Ten this season. These are the players Iowa will have to count on this season to get the most out of their talent!
Tony Perkins, Guard, Junior
In Iowa’s style of basketball, players have to get up and down the floor quickly and create some baskets in transition.
That was how Iowa scored 201 points in its first two games against Bethune-Cookman and North Carolina A&T, and Perkins will have to be a large part of that. So far, Perkins has three steals to his name, and the Hawkeyes are averaging 8.5 steals per game as a team, a full theft better than they did a season ago.
Obviously, the Hawkeyes are going to run into teams that handle the ball better than the Wildcats and the Aggies do, so those numbers will eventually drop. But Perkins will likely play a key role in keeping those numbers as high as possible.
He has quick hands and guards well, which led to him averaging nearly a steal per game last season in just 18.3 minutes of action. Against Northwestern last season, he managed five steals in one evening, showing just how good he can be on defense in the right situation.
Strengths
He came on strong in the Big Ten tournament last season, and he’s likely to see his minutes go up as Iowa starts to face teams who can actually hang with them for 35 or even 40 minutes. He’s been the main distributor for Iowa in the early going, and he’s shown himself to be a strong shooter in the second half of last season.
That means the Hawkeyes are likely to look for him to run the offense as well as take shots when they come as he starts to assert himself on both ends of the floor.
There are no bad shots in Iowa’s offense, so expect Perkins to create offensive opportunities for others and finish them off on a regular basis this season. If he can limit his turnovers, he’ll make a big difference for Iowa’s attack.
Tony Perkins with the massive throw-down today at the Iowa Hawkeyes open run! @Saucy___T pic.twitter.com/eQeyrrWs9V
— Courtside Films (@CourtsideFilms) August 25, 2022
Payton Sandfort, Forward, Sophomore
When the games get closer, expect to see Sandfort on the court if Iowa needs to protect a lead in the final minutes. That’s because Sandfort simply does not miss free throws.
The sophomore was an 88% free throw shooter at Waukee High School, and he’s even better from the stripe in his limited college action, shooting 93.8% last year from the stripe. Having a player who is virtually automatic from the line is going to be a big help in Big Ten games, especially given how fast Iowa likes to play.
The bigger key for Sandfort will be how well he can shoot the ball. To make its style work, Iowa has to put up some big numbers from behind the arc, and that requires some top shooters. This is the role that Sandfort came to Iowa to fill, and so far, he’s off to a good start in 2022-23. In his first two games of the season, he’s shot 57.1% from the floor and connected on 40% of his 3-point opportunities.
Yes, he’s played against a pair of pushover opponents who don’t defend well and aren’t representative of the challenge Iowa will face against Big Ten defenses. But for the time being, he’s off to a good star.
Strengths
Sandfort will eventually have to make adjustments as teams learn how to defend him, but Iowa does pretty well at getting its shooters open on most nights.
With Keegan Murray and Jordan Bohannon now gone, someone has to step into those roles and make sure the Hawkeyes can put up enough points to offset their defensive issues. Sandfort is in a prime position to do exactly that.
.@payton_20_ + @FRebraca = 🪣#Hawkeyes
— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) November 22, 2022
Kris Murray, Forward, Junior
Don’t expect the same things that his older brother did in Iowa City, even though Kris Murray is on track to make it to the NBA as well once his time in an Iowa uniform is up.
He’s not quite the same player as his brother, but he’s likely to become an effective contributor this year now that he’s in a starter’s role. Last season, he came off the bench and proved to be an excellent shooter from anywhere on the floor, hitting 39% of his 3-pointers and shooting 58.2% from inside the arc.
Both kinds of shots are important in Iowa’s offense, as is Murray’s ability to go inside and get rebounds. In order to play as fast as Iowa wants to play, you have to be able to do one of two things well on a consistent basis: grab rebounds or force turnovers.
Strengths
So far, Iowa has opted for the latter in its first two games, but eventually, the Hawkeyes will face teams who take care of the ball and don’t allow opponents to get easy transition baskets.
That’s where Murray comes in. Iowa isn’t blessed with a ton of size or a true center, so the Hawkeyes will need their forwards to play bigger than they are and keep themselves from getting bludgeoned in the paint. Murray can handle that job well, as he’s already at seven rebounds a game in this young season.
He does, however, need to avoid losing the ball in the paint moving forward. Of Iowa’s 15 turnovers in its first two games, five of them belonged to Murray.
That can’t happen against better teams. The Big Ten is loaded with teams that play tough, physical defense, such as Indiana, Rutgers, Michigan State, and Penn State. If Murray can’t hold on to the ball in the paint, those defenses won’t hesitate to knock the ball away and pick up the easy turnover. The Hawks must eliminate those kinds of mistakes from Murray and others.
https://twitter.com/KrisMurray24/status/1514657607901929474?s=20&t=4LjyNau0GwKZiOM0_Fmzfg
Patrick McCaffery, Forward, Junior
If you’ve been paying close attention throughout this piece, you’ve noticed one thing: every player named has been either a junior or younger. Iowa only has two seniors on the roster Connor McCaffery and Filip Rebraca, and neither is critical to the Hawkeyes’ success.
In short, if Iowa has a successful season, doesn’t get hit hard by the transfer portal or early NBA declarations and recruits well to replace the few open spots, the Hawkeyes could be in for a truly special season in 2023-24.
But before we get to that point, we have to get through this season, and Patrick McCaffery is likely to be another critical part of Iowa’s success this season. Like Murray and Rebraca, McCaffery is a solid rebounder. His game is quite versatile, though, and he’s able to contribute in several ways to Iowa’s success.
Strengths
One of his best qualities is his ability to score in transition. Last season, McCaffery developed into one of Iowa’s main scoring threats on transition baskets, which fits nicely with the role he played in high school. Since making the short move over from Iowa City West High School to the Hawkeyes, he’s found a balance between trying to take the ball to the basket himself and setting up a teammate.
His best asset, however, is his experience. It’s common for a talented player to be a coach’s son, as he’s been around basketball for his entire life and has grown up watching his father’s system. Now he’s spent four seasons playing in it and knows it better than anyone else on the court. When he’s on the floor, expect the Hawkeyes to play with more poise as they benefit from his years of experience listening to his father.
Patrick McCaffery highlights from Iowa Hawkeyes open run! Will be one of the top players in the Big 10 this season! @patrickmccaff22 pic.twitter.com/kvKM9VU7LF
— Courtside Films (@CourtsideFilms) August 25, 2022
Final Thoughts
On most teams, the fact that McCaffery’s natural position matches that of Sandfort might be a negative, as there are only so many minutes to go around. But with how fast Iowa plays, that’s not really an issue. The Hawkeyes will use a lot of bodies as they attempt to wear teams out with how fast they like to move.
That means both McCaffery and Sandfort will see plenty of time on the floor, as Fran McCaffery will likely be liberal with his substitutes whenever he can to keep his players as fresh as possible.
State.
Credits on Featured Image: Nkedan, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
