Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Hawkeyes' Brock Harding Shines Despite Illinois Loss, Women Face Michigan tonight

Starting point is 00:00:00 Iowa gets beat up again this time at Illinois. The Hawkeyes fall by 20 as we count down to the end of an era and a different era. The women's basketball team, they continue tonight. We break it all down today. Locked on Hawkeyes. You are locked on Hawkeyes, your daily podcast on the Iowa Hawkeyes. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. Hey, welcome in.

Starting point is 00:00:32 I'm Trent Condon and this is the Locked On Hawkeyes podcast. Thanks for making Locked On Hawkeyes your first listen every day. We're available wherever you find podcasts. You can also watch us on YouTube. While you're there there hit the subscribe button Just take some minute and helps us get in front of more Hawkeye fans Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel right now new FanDuel customers can get $150 in bonus bets if your first $5 bet wins simple as that with FanDuel

Starting point is 00:01:00 Let's get into it a rapid reaction after Iowa falls to Illinois ugly game of times where Iowa outside of a stretch there towards the end of the first half, middle of the first half into about the six minute mark, got back into the game. Looked like maybe this was going to be competitive for a little bit. Brock Harding was a big part of that knocking down some shots, getting to the rim, playing in a place where he's had a lot of history and not just history of what he did at the state basketball tournament and winning a state championship as a senior but also his family connections to the University of Illinois. He played well. Kind of stopped there. Brock Harding is the guy that playing at the highest level. I think we don't. You're in for probably a rough night against Illinois. Now this Illinois team has been as inconsistent as maybe anybody in college basketball and on the heels of three consecutive losses, including blot losses

Starting point is 00:01:54 to Wisconsin and then against Duke at Madison Square Garden over the weekend, you wondered where they were going to be. As we mentioned in the preview for the game yesterday, there was talk that there was some illness and they appeared to be right. Legs definitely appeared to be there as they knocked down nine three-pointers, nine to 29 from behind the arc. But, you know, Iowa is what they are. You know, this is a depleted team.

Starting point is 00:02:15 And with Owen Freeman out for the season when he made the decision to shut it down, when you see just a group of guys that it hasn't clicked No, we went out to the trip and I think really where the tide completely turned is what we saw out in Los Angeles When I will went out there for that double header of games against USC and UCLA Got blitzed by USC tried to come back as we've seen so many times and I think it was after the Washington game I think of the game notes They had it that I would this year in their 16 wins, six of them, they've come back trailing in the second half to win a game. When the talent gap that Iowa faces many times is there,

Starting point is 00:02:57 you can't afford that, that you're just going to be able to rely to be a good team, to be an above average team. And this is right now a below average team, certainly for Big Ten standards. It's gonna be incredibly difficult still for them to punch their ticket into the Big Ten tournament. We're gonna get into that a little bit later on. Also gonna talk about the women's basketball team. And we will break down their matchup tonight

Starting point is 00:03:17 against Michigan, an opponent that, this is a winnable road game. After the back-to-back losses though, after that big winning streak from the women, how they're gonna bounce back, we're gonna get into that also. Back to what we saw against Illinois. Mention Brock Harding, and he was the bright spot

Starting point is 00:03:33 in the game, he finishes in double figures, knocks down a couple of three-pointers, good to see. That shot continues to develop, 16 points in the game, four assists, but maybe one of the most baffling aspects of this game was Iowa's inability to hold on to the ball. That's not frame of Caffrey basketball. Now when you're turning it over at this rate that's just not anything that we're used to with a frame of Caffrey coach team and it hasn't been an issue throughout the course of this year. It

Starting point is 00:04:01 was against Illinois. You have a 14 assists pretty good on 24 made field goals. That's solid. But the 16 turnovers, just can't afford it. And it was a little bit of everybody. Harding had the five turnovers, but three from Traore. Dembally had a couple of turnovers. Sanford had a couple of turnovers. That's Peyton that had a couple in the game. Two apiece from Dix and from Bronze. It's not I will hoops. They're depleted. They're trying a bunch of different things. It's just it's not working. Now that's where we are. This is a lost season and lost season that very well could be the end of the frame of

Starting point is 00:04:38 Cafferiera. And as we talked about yesterday with Chad Leistigau, we've talked to a number of different people about this. What I continue to hear is that we are turning that direction that this is going to be it. Other people, including Chad, think that that's not the case. So we'll see. I mean, nobody, if anybody had the story, they come out and say it. Everybody has thinks they have sources. Everybody has connections. People hear things. You hear rumblings. Maybe you read it online. maybe it's social media, maybe it's the guy at the corner bar, whatever it is, you hear things, I hear things, but

Starting point is 00:05:11 it's nothing definitive. This is not breaking news. This is not that I'm reporting anything. There's no reporting here, just from what I've heard and the people that I talked to. And I believe that I think this is going to be the end. But again, it's just a thought. There's nothing definitive because if it was, I'd have the breaking news. I don't have that. And that's not where we're going to go. We're not going to be saying things that we don't know are 100% accurate. We're going to speculate. That's what we do. And that's what we have the

Starting point is 00:05:37 ability to do here on the podcast. And when there's rumblings and rumors out there, I always pass them along to you with the caveat. this is not reporting, this is not coming out with news stories, just what we hear. Regardless, there's still three games left of the regular season. We'll see if there's a Big Ten tournament behind it. We'll see if there's postseason for this Iowa men's team on top of it. When you look at what they did defensively at times,

Starting point is 00:06:03 you know, there were some good moments overall, but again, it's just more of the same. Slow rotations, slow getting out. There's times where you got trying to play zone, you got two guys in the same spot. It's the same things that have plagued this team throughout the course of the season, really this program on the defensive end of the floor. They're just not good enough there. One thing I was happy to see last night, even in a losing effort, is that Sadu Troyori got some minutes. When

Starting point is 00:06:28 he made mistakes, he wasn't yanked quickly. Now, who knows what his future holds at the University of Iowa, but this is just in general. There are certain players that under Fray McCaffrey, when they've made a mistake, just doesn't feel like they have the same kind of leash as some other guys But Peyton Sanford was terrible last night To attend from the floor. He still plays 34 minutes now. He's also a senior I get that He's gone through the battles and he's come up big many times for Iowa in the past Traori though was able to play through it a little bit and when there was rough stretches, it wasn't automatic

Starting point is 00:07:03 There's a horn you're out of the game. Carter Kingsbury, another 18 minutes out of him. Man, that kid's a fighter. And for us that remember his dad, Chris, at the University of Iowa and kind of what could have been for him, decided to leave after his junior campaign and had a good opportunity to make an NBA team and I believe missed a flight of memory centers. But that aside, Chris Kingsbury was a McDonald's All-American. Chris Kingsbury was a stud coming out of Ohio. And when Dr. Tom nabbed him, I remember watching him for the first time. I was at Iowa basketball camp as a youngster and watching him just hoist up those deep threes, which at the time, it's

Starting point is 00:07:42 kind of unheard of at the collegiate level. The guys taking 25, 27, 30 footers in a game, he didn't see that very often. He was incredible. And to see Carter have these moments, and we talked about this with Evan Bronze, who continues to go out there at that monster dunk, that was great to see. These guys that are not going to be program changers,

Starting point is 00:08:06 but they're guys that care about the program. From Carter deciding to walk on, his dad a star here. Evan, a kid that grew up in Iowa City, went to mid-major route, played at Belmont, decided to come home, didn't play a ton. In fact, played a little bit more early last year when he first came in. Saw those minutes dissipate, didn't pout, didn't whine, and when the opportunity came he was ready. And we know Evan Browns is a great athlete. I mean the dude's leaping

Starting point is 00:08:37 ability is in the upper crust, right? Certainly for a guy that's 6'9". He is up there and he gets up there with those dunks. But to go out there to play hard, those are some of the good stories in a disappointing year for Iowa basketball. We continue here on Lockdown Hawkeye. So the question remains, what is it going to take for this team to make, no, not the big dead not the NCAA tournament the Big Ten tournament. Yeah, that's where our conversation is we're going to talk about that as we continue Lockdown Hawkeyes.

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Starting point is 00:10:19 Make every moment more with FanDuel, the official sports betting partner of the NBA. Trent Konda back with you once again, Lockdown Hawkeyes. Thanks for being with us and making Lockdown Hawkeyes your first listen every day. All right, so we got to go to the website. You hear me mention it from time to time. It is bball.notnothing.net. This has been a

Starting point is 00:10:45 long time tool for tools like myself that love the NCAA tournament, love conference tournament time, love brackets in general. It's very simply a website that was built from an Iowa State fan, but it was built in order for you to project what happens at the end of the regular season and what that means as it pertains for the conference tournament. What the conference tournament will look like, what the seating will look like, what the bracket will look like overall. If there are tiebreakers involved, it also breaks that down for you. A lot of great work that was

Starting point is 00:11:16 done on this website, even from an Iowa State fan, and we will utilize it. So as we project as of right now, going into the games here on Wednesday evening, this is the way that it looks. If everything goes according to plan, we know that it won't. This is what would happen. I would finish the year with three consecutive losses. They would be tied with Minnesota in the number 15 spot, the last spot to get into the big 10 tournament. Bottom three teams do not get in team Teams 16, 17, and 18, they're out. Not going to Indianapolis, their season comes to a close unless they get a postseason invite. That aside, in that scenario, Iowa would be on the outside looking in. Why? Because they lost it home to this godforsaken Minnesota

Starting point is 00:12:01 team. That leaves Iowa on the outside looking in. So that very simply shows us, well, you gotta find a win. And when you look at the remaining schedule, what's the most realistic spot you're gonna find a victory? Coming up this weekend, they go to Northwestern. Now this Northwestern team is really banged up. Now they've had their set of issues this season.

Starting point is 00:12:23 They have really struggleded up. They've had their set of issues this season. They have really struggled at times. But they've also shown an ability to beat some good teams. They've won a couple in a row, beat Minnesota on the road, beat Ohio State on the road, not only beat the Buckeyes in Columbus, but they did it by 21. They beat Minnesota at the barn by 12. Oh great. So that's what you have coming up this weekend on Friday night. That'll be an eight o'clock tip off. That seems likely, at least the most likely of the remaining three to me.

Starting point is 00:12:56 At least it did until what we see the last week from the Wildcats. All right. Let's say that's an L. Up next is the home finale. It will be senior night for Peyton Sanford, Evan Bronze, and the other seniors, as here comes the number A team in the country, Michigan State, to town. Michigan State in the past has been a thorn in the side of Iowa, though recently they have played a whole lot better against the Buckeyes.

Starting point is 00:13:25 Now, Tom Isla is not gonna let them forget about that though. It's not gonna be one that falls to the side. So let's say that's a loss and then it comes down to the game against Nebraska on the road. What I'm getting to is all three of these games are going to be tough. You know there's not an easy one there. That's not one that you say, yeah, that's going to be automatic the way that it's going to happen for Iowa. So I want to look at it this way and take you to look at the numbers as I scroll through and find where Iowa is. There we are. Is that for this season? No, I believe that was. There we go. Iowa, 77th in the country of Bartorvik. So in terms of odds It actually has Michigan State being the most likely a 30% chance of winning the game against Michigan State

Starting point is 00:14:11 27% chance in each of the road tilts at Northwestern and at Nebraska About a six and a half point underdog in both the road games and a six point dog at home against Michigan State Let's just take the math for what it's worth here. Let's go that direction and let's give them that win at home against Michigan State. I know it feels crazy. Just bear with me. We're trying to get Iowa in the big 10 tournament. All right, it does. Iowa is in. Iowa is in fact tied for 13th place in this scenario with Northwestern, USC, and there's Iowa, because of tiebreakers though, Iowa is the number 15 seed.

Starting point is 00:14:49 Here's the path for the Hawkeyes. Well, they get a rematch against Nebraska, let's say. Then they get Oregon, almost got them. Well, we're living crazy here, we are. We're talking about getting a win where you have a 70% chance of losing, then winning a game in the Big Ten tournament, then winning another game.

Starting point is 00:15:11 Who awaits in the quarterfinals? Again, still three more victories to win a Big Ten championship. You gotta win five in a row to win it all when you're coming out of the opening day on Wednesday. There sits the Wisconsin Badgers. Yeah, we know how that is gone for Iowa. This is where we are.

Starting point is 00:15:27 And when you look at the program big picture, when you take a step back and look at where Iowa basketball is and where it is as it pertains to the fans, the fan base, people are over it. And the scary part is, I talk about back in the day probably too much. It's very formative for everybody being a youngster, but for me as a sports fan, Iowa basketball is really what built me

Starting point is 00:15:59 into being a sports fan and doing what I do for a living. And all the things revolve around Iowa men's basketball. That's A number one. And because of that, I guess I probably have a closer connection to the program and wanting more from the program and just hoping. But I find it incredibly sad when I talk to people that I know are Hawkeye fans, that I know used to love.

Starting point is 00:16:27 I haven't watched in weeks. I don't know when the games are on. It's not on locally. People that loved Iowa basketball and just how completely detached they are from the program and what's happening. Oh, they played last night. What happened? Those kinds of conversations are scary.

Starting point is 00:16:56 And regardless of it's for amicafé or a new coach next year, what can be done to repair this fan base because a new hire loan is not going to be good enough. I do hire. You get that initial bump, but after that there's work not going to be good enough. A new hire, you get that initial bump, but after that, there's work that needs to be done. And it's getting back into the communities and getting back and showing Iowa basketball is entertaining, it can be fun, that it's gonna be different,

Starting point is 00:17:19 that there's a possibility of some marked success. All the things that haven't happened for a long, long time. There's been almost a hundred programs that have made a Sweet 16 since the last time Iowa did in the 98-99 season. Now think of that. Almost a hundred programs have gone to the Sweet 16, winning two games in the big dance.

Starting point is 00:17:45 Iowa has had things open up for him. Iowa's had bad luck, bad draws, all the different things and all the excuses that you can point to, but that's the reality. You and I and St. Peter's and VCU and on and on and on and we can play this game, we can go through the list and it's terrible. But work needs to be done because this is a fan base. It's not that they're, they're mad. It's that they're checked out.

Starting point is 00:18:11 How do you get those people back? How do you reinvigorate it? And with people using their disposable income on women's basketball, on the wrestling program as they have for a very long time, and there's other things to do. On the wrestling program as they have for a very long time And there's other things to do People's lives get busy and we don't give them that reason or you you let them off the hook in a way You know where we are right now speaking of that women's team. They got a big one Plus we're gonna let you know you want to see Caitlin Clark back at Carver Hawkeye Arena how you can get tickets

Starting point is 00:18:42 We'll talk about that as we continue on the Locked On Hawkeyes podcast. Back with you one final time Locked On Hawkeyes thanks for being with us and making Locked On Hawkeyes your first listen every day. So it's Iowa-Michigan tonight in women's basketball really important game for Iowa as it pertains to Big Ten seeding and a potential path for them making a run, the three time defending champion in the Big Ten tournament.

Starting point is 00:19:12 Well, the path is gonna be much more arduous this season. We'll talk about that momentarily in the matchup against the Wolverines. But I mentioned, Caitlin is coming home. Back to Carver Hawkeye Arena. Coming up on Sunday, May 4th for an exhibition game with the Indiana Fever. We are 67 days away.

Starting point is 00:19:30 In fact, yes, on the Iowa website right now where you can find out about it. They have a countdown clock for Kaitlin Clark returning to Carver Hawkeye Arena as they'll face off against the Brazilian national team in a preseason game. That'll be Sunday, May 4th. Tickets are limited to four per customer and you can purchase them online. It will begin tomorrow, Thursday, February 27th, 9 o'clock Central time. You can be logged in. This is where the pre-sale for people that have women's season basketball tickets, also Kinnick Society, Gold and Kinnick Society iClub level donors

Starting point is 00:20:05 will be available at 9 o'clock. Then after that, it will be Indiana Fever season ticket holders. I'm sure there's a few of you out there, but not many of us Iowans that are a part of it, but for you crossover fans, thank you and hello. And finally, it will get to then Friday the 28th at 9 o'clock You will be able to access tickets at that time if there are any available Do I believe there are gonna be any available? I don't think we're gonna get there We will see with the limited though just for per person that is at that top level Possibly they'll go to that one. Here's the other part though we have Possibly they'll go to that one. Here's the other part though. We have some big tickets.

Starting point is 00:20:47 In fact, on the upper ends, about 70 bucks a pop. And the high end tickets, $250 a pop. Then the secondary market. And you just wait. This thing is going to be an absolute behemoth. I mean, there are going to be some big, big ones that are gonna be set for that one in terms of ticket prices that you're gonna have

Starting point is 00:21:10 when Caitlin Clark comes back. All right, tonight, the Iowa women taking on Michigan. Back-to-back losses, missed opportunities. We talked about it against Ohio State, that great comeback in the final minute and a half of regulation, of course. Overtime took the early lead and then just ran out of gas. And then what happened against UCLA, a lot of what ifs, disappointing whistle, all the different things, but didn't get it done. So here they

Starting point is 00:21:33 are two consecutive losses after that six game winning streak. Michigan is a team that is playing much better here as of late. Now I really thought coming down the stretch and we talked about this down, this was maybe one of the more winnable games outside of the gimmies against Rutgers and Wisconsin to wrap things up. But after a little bit of a lull where we saw the Wolverines lose to Ohio State, took losses by 30 to Michigan State, that was at home.

Starting point is 00:22:03 They lost to a bad Wisconsin team. But, oh boy, they're maybe gonna even struggle to make the NCAA tournament, even with the great start that they had to the season. Instead, they ripped off five out of six in there. They beat Oregon. They beat Nebraska. They beat Michigan State, beat Indiana, then Penn State the last time out. But not just beat these teams. For the most part, they're crushing them. They're winning big in these games. Olivia Olson, really fun player to watch as a team. That's really efficient offensively. They will not going to play at the quickest pace, but overall really good shooting team. They are 30th in the country in three point shooting at nearly 36%.

Starting point is 00:22:47 For Iowa, what I enjoy is boy, this team did guard you. This is not your prototypical Iowa women's basketball team that we've grown accustomed to recently under Lisa Bluter. But even before that and Caitlin Clark, before the Caitlin Clark era, there's a team that just tried to outscore you. They could get some stops on you now. And I think that's going to have to be the case tonight. They're going to have to win it on the defensive end of the floor if they're going to pull off the upset. Slight underdog. I've not seen the lines yet from FanDuel. Again, the projections have that about a three and a half point underdog tonight against Michigan,

Starting point is 00:23:18 and they'll wrap things up against Wisconsin over the weekend. That will be senior day and we will say goodbye to the great group of seniors that have been a big part of this women's basketball program and and that'll be coming up over the weekend. We'll be back with you with another rapid reaction podcast. Here it was with the men's side of things in the matchup against Illinois. Then for tomorrow we'll have you covered with the Iowa women against Michigan. Big upset could go a long, long ways that pertains to Iowa moving up and as we look through the projections also we did it for the men's side let's do it for the women. If everything plays out

Starting point is 00:23:54 according to plan Iowa will be the number 11 seed in the Big Ten tournament. That's right opening up again back-to-back games and against Wisconsin in this scenario Iowa then would move on as the 11 seed to face six seeded Illinois I think they'd like a rematch against the Illini after letting that one slip away and then after that another victory in the quarterfinals they would get Ohio State oh yeah oh Doug definitely sign up for that one but we're still talking about a team that would have to win five games in five days let's's just flip one thing though. If Iowa wins tonight against Michigan, what that would do again, all the other favorites would go. Iowa would bump up to the number

Starting point is 00:24:33 10 seed. They get Penn State in the opening round, Illinois again in the second round who would then be the seventh seed in this scenario, though the quarterfinals would be against USC. Just a little bit more difficult than Ohio State in the rematch for USC. I think the Trojans would be ready. Well, we do know this is going to be an NCAA tournament team unless the wheels completely fall off lose to Michigan lose to Wisconsin lose an opening round game and I think even then they're safely in the tournament and that is a good thing Continuing the momentum of this program and having G and Jets and her opportunity to build this thing up Maybe build it into a behemoth that'll do it for today. Thanks for being with us

Starting point is 00:25:13 Excuse me and making lockdown Hawkeyes your first listen every day your team every day. That's what we do here on the lockdown network I got you covered on the Hawkeye side your favorite baseball baseball team with spring training going, we got you covered there. It could be your favorite baseball team, NBA, NHL, NFL, all covered here. Plus Craig Scheman doing great work, locked on Big 10. You love Big 10 talk, Craig's got you covered. Check it out on Locked on Big 10.

Starting point is 00:25:38 We're locked on Hawkeyes, I'm Trent Cotten. We'll talk to you again tomorrow. Hit us up again, five star review if you're listening on the audio side or if you're watching on YouTube, hit that subscribe button. Greatly appreciated. We'll talk to you again tomorrow.

Starting point is 00:25:50 Let's get it done tonight. Go Hawks.

Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Hawkeyes' Brock Harding Shines Despite Illinois Loss, Women Face Michigan tonight

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