Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Hawkeyes' Defensive Struggles: A Season in Peril

Starting point is 00:00:00 It is cold in Iowa. The basketball teams even colder. What's happening with the men's team? What's going on with the women? It is a long, long basketball season we dissect 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. Welcome in. 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. Hit the subscribe button just takes a moment and helps us get in front of more Hawkeye fans

Starting point is 00:00:47 Today's episode is brought to you by fan duel from the first whistle to the final drive FanDuel makes the NFL playoffs even more exciting right now new customers can bet five dollars and get 300 bucks in bonus bets if you win your first bet visit fandual.com to get started. It was a busy weekend and a frustrating one as Iowa falls both on the men's and the women's side of things out on the West Coast so we go back to Friday night and after some time to step back and to look at big picture at What happened in the game alone?

Starting point is 00:01:25 That's where we're gonna start and then we'll go get into some big picture because we got a women's basketball team That's lost five consecutive. We're gonna get into that We got a men's team that is teetering on the brink of falling out of contention falling away from being NC double a tournament team for the second year the fan base is checked out and There are some concerning elements to this program and also want to talk about Beth gets the new Iowa athletic director in what is in front of her going forward? This is a a different time of Iowa athletics of what we're used to and we'll talk about the ad Beth gets coming up here in just a little bit

Starting point is 00:01:59 But let's first go back to Friday night and had some people at halftime say, Hey, can he go live? Look, I had family in town. Uh, it's our Christmas weekend with my wife's family. They always come from two different sides of us, St. Louis and Sioux City. They meet in the middle in Des Moines. And so we have our Christmas this weekend and just didn't have time. Didn't have my set up in the basement because well, family had taken over the basement setup that I normally have. So it just wasn't able to get an instant reaction podcast and I was hot Friday night and watching it unfold and it's not losing look we're Iowa fans right

Starting point is 00:02:34 we're used to losing we've seen losses this is not some kind of program or some kind of athletic department where it is only about championships those kind of things no we're used to losing. But to lose in that fashion, to lose in the way that they did. Nine out of nine from the field to open things up for UCLA. A UCLA team that came into this one also with their own set of issues. Right? The Bruins were coming in playing some bad basketball, and Iowa made them look like they were Auburn.

Starting point is 00:03:07 They were Duke. They were one of the best teams in the country, and that's not the case. UCLA has talent. It's not a talent problem. But they came in not just losing four in a row, but losing against Nebraska, Rockers. Michigan and Maryland are above average. They're solid teams, a fringe top 25 teams. But we're not talking about the who's who and

Starting point is 00:03:30 they're blown out both of those games. This was a team that was playing bad basketball. And they look like one of the best teams in the country. Iowa could do nothing again on the defensive end of the floor. And this becomes the same song and dance and yes Peyton Sanford He leaves the game with the injury and that sucks for him, right? He's over four from the floor has a putrid performance as I was getting blown out the first ten minutes the game They're down 34 11. It's over. They're don't coming back from that

Starting point is 00:04:00 And the USC game and when you couple it together We knew going out there a split was at minimum. What Iowa needed to get was a split. Because now they sit at three and four. And though the next three games are very winnable, Minnesota and Penn State at home, followed up by the road trip against Ohio State, these are all winnable games. You're in a spot now where you might have to win the ball. And that's where we are. And we look at the next five games in totality, I think Iowa needs to go a minimum 4-1 to have any sniff of the tournament.

Starting point is 00:04:31 And this team isn't close to it. They quit. For the second straight game, they quit on the defensive end. It's laziness, it's ineptitude. You can't tell me that over the last decade and since Adam Woodbury departed last time that Iowa was anything close to Decent defensively is when Woodbury was there since then they have finished no better than 75th in the country and Adjusted defensive efficiency

Starting point is 00:04:59 75th is the high water mark You tell me that all the guys for the last decade that have been recruited are all terrible defensively is the high water mark. The fifth. You tell me that all the guys for the last decade that have been recruited are all terrible defensively. No, it's scheme. It's the inability or the unwillingness of Fran McCaffrey to coach that end of the floor and do it at a high level. He doesn't have the want. He's not going to change. It's entertaining. And here's another part that we've talked about a ton.

Starting point is 00:05:28 Where is Fran? Where is he mentally? I think it's something fair to ask. We have a coach who's had plenty of success, has won a ton of games, and there is something very commendable about what he has done year in and year out in the Big Ten. You look at the consistency over the last decade plus, it's incredible. something very commendable about what he has done year in and year out in the Big Ten. You look at the consistency over the last decade plus, it's incredible. But even if they're taking a small step back this year, and you look up at what they've actually accomplished the last couple of years. Ten and ten last year in the Big Ten, eleven and nine, twelve and eight.

Starting point is 00:06:02 The high water mark was the 14 and 6 year in the 2020-21 season. We know what a weird season that was. There was limited capacity. It was just out all over the place. The inability to punch your way into the second weekend, to never get there, and that's where we are. But to have this kind of performance, this part of the the season it's It's unthinkable. It really is and to be this bad on the defensive end this team's now 159th in the country in defensive efficiency You can't you just you can't at this level do this and Here's another thing you go through and look at different places.

Starting point is 00:06:47 I was just mentioning Ken Pomeroy. But you can also sort at another one of the analytic websites. So this is a free one. It is Bart Torvik. And Bart Torvik, where you can go and see what teams have been at any time. So over the last week, just a couple games, I get that, but over the last week Iowa, it's red. I mean it's really, really bad what they are in the defense of it and as I scroll through my notes here and try to find it because I had it just a moment ago and now I can't find the actual number because it's incredible. Where's the search? Here we go. Search. No, that's not what I'm looking for. This is a disaster on the air, but what we're looking for. Oh boy. All right, fine.

Starting point is 00:07:31 Here we go. Iowa. What they are. Here we go. All right. So Iowa, this is the number I was looking for. Iowa over the last week and defensive efficiency. This is everybody in the country. This is everybody in the country. I was 358th in the country in defensive efficiency. 358! There's 363 teams. That's how bad it's been this week. But it's not just this week. And we all know this is Iowa fans.

Starting point is 00:08:00 Pretty much checked out. This fan base has checked out. Everybody has checked out. And fan base has checked out. Everybody has checked out. And that's where we are. The frustration of basketball. Well, the last couple of years at least we've had the women's team. We'll get to that.

Starting point is 00:08:16 It's not much better. Five losses in a row for the women. Beth Getz. Did she make a mistake in taking the easy road and hiring Jan Jensen. That's next as we continue locked on Hawkeyes Today's episode of lockdown Hawkeyes is brought to you by prize picks to get The place to get real money sports action is prize picks with over 10 million members and billions in winnings prize picks has changed the game in daily Fantasy sports whether it's the playoffs or regular season prize picks has made it easier than ever to win big while enjoying all the football Action now that it's playoff time. There's no better way to get down the action with prize picks house

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Starting point is 00:10:14 your first listen every day. So, I was sucked on Friday night and it was bad. And then we look at what's kind of happening with this program. And what's the attendance going to be like tomorrow night with Minnesota coming in? Here come the gophers, one of your rivals, right? Program that played a ton of games, maybe has played if memory serves as many games as ever, then anybody that you've ever played, I believe is the case, but that aside. It's a bad Minnesota team.

Starting point is 00:10:42 You should win this game comfortably. I was been at least okay. Their favorite at Campomero by 10 points, right? Easy win. Then you get Penn State Friday night. Now if they don't, look, we have to remember this team was a play away from losing at home to Nebraska and Northwestern. Northwestern, you need a buzzer beating 30 foot heave to get it done.

Starting point is 00:11:04 It needed to get done over time against Nebraska in the game that you trailed these are Average teams probably similar to Penn State now, Minnesota is worse than them But where's the hope where's the entry where where is it that you say? All right this team Here they come because I've fallen into that trap. And as much as I love Drew Thelwell, and just how hard he tries, he can't be alone. You know, you look at the defensive numbers of this group,

Starting point is 00:11:34 and I mentioned what they are overall as a team, and some of the worst in the country over the last week, but just overall. But here's another one, and these are numbers defensively this year, an advanced number. So Iowa, an average defensive rating for an individual player is 100, right? Just an estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions. 100 is average. The best player on the team right now is Riley multi

Starting point is 00:12:07 Okay, Riley doesn't play a ton He's only played eight games this year of the regulars the best player on the team and defensive rating Is Owen Freeman fell closely by Drew Thelma out of the the regulars if you will again a hundred is average Blow average is anything above that their best players 103 103.4 the number for Roland Freeman. 104.8. I mean individually these players are awful on the defensive end. The worst of the bunch, Price Sanford. It might surprise you that Josh Dix is second worst. Laje Dibali right there with him. They can score, but the unwillingness, the inability, the front, it's so frustrating. So we look at this and we're going to talk about Beth Gepps

Starting point is 00:12:52 and what she has. But is there any coming back? Now at this point in time, we're frustrated, right? Watching this team, watching the same things over and over and over again. It's Groundhog Day. I feel like smashing the alarm clock like Bill Murray, right? I just time after time after time, anytime you have any semblance of hope with this program, it just completely fades away. The fan base is checked out. Nobody wants to go to the games anymore. You have a less than half full Carver Hawkeye Arena for conference games. And that's a paid attendance is about half, and the number of people that are actually making their way through the turnstiles is

Starting point is 00:13:26 worse than that Can it be saved? Can frame a Caffrey pull the program out of this? And we can argue if it's fair we can argue the merits of it But it looks like a guy himself much like the team Did in those two games that quit? Framma Caffrey has that look that he's defeated See him pace around with his hands in his pockets

Starting point is 00:13:54 No, friend freak out no friend red face. I yelled once a Rock-harding but come on. I'd hope any coach would do that Where's the will? Where's the frame of Caffrey that we had and I know a lot of people didn't like that. They didn't like the fire They didn't like that at times it went over the top and it did But at least you knew this was a guy that had some will to him that had some want that wanted Coach the guys up Damer Caffrey looks right now to be a guy that's just happy to get his paycheck go about his business and have some fun coaching some

Starting point is 00:14:37 offensive basketball roll the ball out and we'll see what happens I don't think that's actually the case. I don't truly believe that that's who Fray McCaffrey is and the way that he's wired, the way that he's built, but on the surface he definitely looks checked out. A sweet 16 run, does that get him back into the good graces of Iowa? Probably not. I don't think a fan base is suddenly going to be flooding back into Carver Hawkeye Arena, even if Iowa gets into the tournament and gets to the second weekend. It's not enough. It's not that bridges have been burned. And that's the interesting part about this is you look at the totality, you look at the success overall and it looks very solid

Starting point is 00:15:27 But we know as Hawkeye fans as that's not the case that's not that Friends and F and people know when he goes to the grocery store That's not what this is just after a certain amount of time a fanbase seeing the same things over and over again they start to check out. And worse than the anger that a lot of us feel, worse than the frustrations that came watching this team,

Starting point is 00:15:53 the more concerning part is the apathy. And I was shocked last week. Obviously, late games, West Coast. Tuesday night was incredibly late against USC. But even Friday evening, and the amount of people, buddies in a group text, friends that I text during the course of the game, people that I talk to before or after, that are just out, that have found other things that fill their time Whatever that may be

Starting point is 00:16:29 That number continues to grow We're talking about a lost generation of fans. I Talk all the time about my love of Iowa basketball and it was my first sporting love was Iowa hoops and going back to the 80s When we only had three channels and on Thursday nights back then The only sports that I could watch it out the course of the week during the winter Was Iowa basketball that was it and what it meant in this state what it meant to kids growing up That's gone and that's been lost now for a generation The Big Ten Network formation and all the games not being involved locally and how we got the BTN plus on top of the Big Ten

Starting point is 00:17:10 Network that you have and just on and on and on. This was a huge part of the Iowa culture and as we sit here a day after the anniversary of Chris Street's passing and as we look back at his tenure as we think back to Chris Street and the story a kid that all he wanted was to be an Iowa Hawkeye to be a Hawkeye basketball player a guy that could have played college baseball a guy that could have played college football at six foot eight as a quarterback a guy that had everything that you want and all he wanted as an Iowan was to be a Hawkeye basketball player Those kids aren't around anymore

Starting point is 00:17:52 There aren't people like Chris Street. There aren't kids that have done it because Iowa basketball isn't that anymore It is gone And there's no getting it back with Fran McCaffrey. Unfortunately, that is the reality. Fran cannot get this program back. Fran cannot win this fan base back. So it's up to Beth Getz to make a change. There will be no change for the Iowa women's basketball team.

Starting point is 00:18:22 They will maintain, they will continue with Jan Jensen. This is not going to be a one and done situation even as the losses continue to pile up and the frustration certainly piling up along with it. We're going to talk about the Iowa women's basketball program and speaking of Beth Getz. What exactly she's going to do when you look big picture this athletic department. She has a lot on her plate going forward. We continue here a locked on Hawkeyes as we talk Iowa basketball here on a Monday. Stay right there we're back with more in a moment. From the first whistle to the final drive, FanDuel makes the NFL playoffs even more exciting. Right now new customers can bet $5 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win your first bet.

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Starting point is 00:19:49 Trying kind of back with you one final time Hey If you're watching this on YouTube hit that subscribe button if you're listening on the podcast side five star views really do appreciate it And helps all those analytics out there and it's a computer spin in our way to get us in front of more Hawkeye fans So as we wrap things up over to the women 5049, they drop another one to Oregon. You're up by 13. You're up by double digits in the third quarter and it was just a slow bleed of a lead. Now you did it without Hannah Stolke and we know Hannah is one of the more important players on this squad but to fall again to now have the continued frustrations building inside this program. The Iowa women are still searching for their first quad one victory of the season and when you look at their

Starting point is 00:20:38 numbers metrically and you look what's still in front of them. This is a team that is 12 and 7 on the year, has lost five consecutive games. They go to Washington which is a coin flip game coming up on Wednesday night. They're home for Northwestern, they'll throttle them. You win both those games or we're back in good shape. However, lose to Washington again a coin flip game. After the Northwestern game this is what you still have remaining. You're home for USC. You're projected to be an 11-point underdog there. You go to Minnesota and Nebraska. You're an underdog in both of those games. You get Rutgers at home. Alright, another victory.

Starting point is 00:21:18 So there's two. Then three more consecutive games where you're pretty significant underdogs. 11 and a half at Ohio State Thirteen and a half at home against UCLA and by eight at Michigan before you wrap up against Wisconsin So you have three very winnable games left Three more wins is not going to make you an NCAA tournament team 15 wins is not going to get there All right, give them Washington. There's four. It's still 16 wins. I mean, just to get to 18 and feel at least okay going into the

Starting point is 00:21:52 Big Ten tournament, that means upsetting USC, UCLA, one of those two at home, or going on the road beating a Nebraska team that just beat you, beating a Minnesota team that's one of the more surprising in the Big Ten, going to Ohio State that just suffered their first loss, or Michigan. Folks, I think this is more dire straights than a lot of people even want to realize. This thing's getting scary in a hurry. Lucy Olson has really struggled. And in Big Ten play, she's shooting 31% from the floor The numbers are bad

Starting point is 00:22:28 And once you get away from in the paint She's shooting 42% from outside the arc The restricted area it inside the three-point line and she's only shooting 26% from three Folks this team is in trouble. And is bright of a star as Aliyah Guyton is going to be. And Taylor Stremlow can get to, and Teagan Mulaney and Ava Hayden and the excitement of the freshmen.

Starting point is 00:23:00 You need more out of the veterans and they just haven't been able to deliver. Maybe it's unfair You drop a great play at the end you get a good-looking shot one that We have seen it happen a ton Addison O'Grady knocks down that short jumper and she didn't That's where we are You know Addison O'Grady is the best mid-range two-point shooter on the team she is best on the squad this year. I've at least players that have taken more than ten shots.

Starting point is 00:23:31 She's the best. You drew it up. You got her the shot. She didn't make it. She didn't make it. That's how it goes. Jan Jensen is going to continue to be positive because that's who she is. You have to get this one.

Starting point is 00:23:49 You just do. Must win. Yeah, this is must win. A five game losing streak, something that hasn't happened in 11 years for Iowa women's basketball. It needs to end here against Washington. Finally Beth Getz. She's made one hire, one significant higher.

Starting point is 00:24:07 And that is Jen Jensen. And it's been frustrating, right? But she's going to have to make a higher soon in men's basketball, maybe as soon as this year. She's going to have to make a higher in football soon in football. What is she looking for? And you as a fan base, what do you want to see? What are we looking for in the two most impactful positions in Iowa athletics?

Starting point is 00:24:33 Who do you want? Who do you want to see? Hit us up on the comment section on YouTube, hit subscribe while you're there. Let us know. Football, men's basketball. Who do you want? Who are some names that are realistic that you believe are going to be the ones to get the Iowa program football or basketball wise where you want to see it. We'll talk about that a little bit tomorrow. Scott Dockerman from The Athletic also going to join us. We'll get ready for Iowa Minnesota on the hardwood. The Gophers finally got a win. Can Iowa turn the tide here and give us a little hope?

Starting point is 00:25:05 Can we get to February with some hope, please? Thanks for being with us and making Lockdown Hawkeyes your first listen every day. We'll talk to you again tomorrow. That's what we do. We're with you each and every day on the Lockdown Network and we got you covered with everything. Your favorite MLB team. It is Hot Stove has continued on. Now starting to get ready, what a month away from spring training right around the corner. The NBA is going, of course the NFL as we make our way to the conference championships. We got you covered there.

Starting point is 00:25:35 Plus Craig Schieman locked on Big Ten. He has you covered on that front and a whole lot more. Thanks for being with us Locked On Hawkeyes. We'll talk to you tomorrow. Go Hawks.

Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Iowa Hawkeyes' Defensive Struggles: A Season in Peril

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