Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Will Iowa Hawkeyes' Jan Jensen Find the Winning Formula? Tom Kakert joins on Hawkeye Hoops & Mark Gronowski injury

Starting point is 00:00:00 After back-to-back appearances in the National Championship game, the Iowa women appear to be in big trouble just to making the NCAA tournament. The losing streak is four 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 00:00:30 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, make sure you hit the subscribe button. Helps us get in front of more Hawkeye fans. Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. From the first whistle to the final drive, FanDuel makes the NFL playoffs even more exciting.

Starting point is 00:00:55 Right now, new customers can bet $5 and get $300 in bonus bets if you win your first bet. Visit FanDuel.com to get started. Thursday night, it was women hoops, and it was another disappointment. As for the fourth time in a row, the Iowa women fall, this time at the hands of Nebraska. In a game where Iowa had plenty of opportunities to salt it away, double-figure lead. Big lead in the fourth quarter. All it takes is some free throws or even a layup, and Iowa gets the victory. Once again, they fall by the wayside

Starting point is 00:01:32 as a losing streak is up to four games after it looked like Iowa got off to a pretty good start on the season. Had the disappointing loss earlier this year against Tennessee, but other than that, they got through unscathed to the non-conference, had the nice win against Iowa State, a preseason top 10 of their own right. And it felt like this Iowa team, though it was not Kaitlin Clark, it was a different look Hawkeye squad. They were going to be in good shape.

Starting point is 00:02:00 After a loss at Michigan State, they bounced back, win three in a row. But then since then, these four consecutive losses, each individually is not a big deal. If you take them just in this singular nature, losing a game against a Maryland team that's 16-1, going on the road and losing to

Starting point is 00:02:17 a pretty good Illinois team, you don't get frustrated there. You lose to Indiana, you lose to Nebraska, those things are going to happen. These are all fine squads, but when they happen back to back to back to Indiana, you lose to Nebraska. Those things are going to happen. These are all fine squads. But when they happen back to back to back to back, that's when the questions start. Let's go to last night and what we saw. And some of the reasons for, I think, a lot of the angst

Starting point is 00:02:37 amongst the fan base right now. In a game where Iowa got cooking inside. You know, they were able to, they went with Hannah Stolke in the starting lineup, so at the five position. They went that direction and changed things up a little bit. And we've seen Jan Jensen continually now moving around with this lineup, doing some different things, and just trying to fight this right combination.

Starting point is 00:02:58 We talked about it a ton, right? That this Iowa squad, they are just built so differently than what we're used to. You have veterans. You have veteran players that have played in big-time games, but they also did it with the best women's player ever. It's different. Game plans are different.

Starting point is 00:03:16 Schemes are different. You're not going to get the same shots and the same opportunities that you did when you were playing with 22. And with Kaitlyn Clark not being there, we're seeing a squad that we learn as role players, they were excellent. But when you have to move up a rung, when you have to become more of a leader,

Starting point is 00:03:34 when you have to be more of a player that comes in there and has to take over games, they just haven't been able to do it. You also couple it with this team. Hannah Stolke was banged up in the offseason. We saw surgery for her. Zendaya Fulter then, right, looked like Stolke was getting back,

Starting point is 00:03:50 and Fulter had to go under the knife. So you haven't had the continuity. You haven't had that. But this losing streak is more than just lack of continuity. There's been a bunch of things that have happened. The shooting has gone awry. You go 16 of 29 from the free throw line. Lucy Olsen, we talked about it at the Indiana game.

Starting point is 00:04:08 There were times in the fourth quarter where your senior, your transfer portal addition that was going to bridge the gap to the future, she wasn't on the floor. I saw that at a few moments of the game against Nebraska. It's befuddling. What Lucy Olsen is is a tremendous offensive player in the mid-range game, is her strength, an 85% career free throw shooter,

Starting point is 00:04:30 82% going into the game last night. She misses her first five free throws. Free throws that could have put this one away. The difficult part of this right now for Jan Jensen is finding the right combination. And she's continuing to try but when you're trying at this point when you're trying to figure out exactly what you want to do as we sit here in the middle of January that's a huge concern these are things that should have

Starting point is 00:04:57 been done in November early December that's when you're figuring out the rotation and yes the veterans have not led at the level and i thought it was maybe a pretty big indictment to the veterans when the question was asked post game of jan jensen oh who's the leader who's the one that's stepping up and she mentioned a leo guyton and that's not to slight a leo guyton by any means it isn't because you love to see that you love to see somebody stepping up because none of the veterans are. What's going on? How is this happening? 8-27 from the three-point line.

Starting point is 00:05:33 16-29 from the free throw line. In a game where you get more points off turnovers, you have more steals, you have more assists, you have less turnovers. You shoot 53% inside the arc. These are games at home that you have more steals. You have more assists. You have less turnovers. You shoot 53% inside the arc. These are games at home that you have to win. And yet another collapse late in the game. This is tough.

Starting point is 00:05:57 And when you look at the program and what happened, look, if Lisa Bluter would have retired right after the season a year ago I think this would have been this would have been a job that would have been open and it wasn't Bluter went to Beth Goetz said she was retiring and within a couple hours Jan Jensen was announced and they wanted to do that for continuity they wanted to do it for the recruits they don't want to lose anybody you want to hand it off but we saw what happened with Bo Ryan retired and Greg guard got the job at Wisconsin on the men's side. This is,

Starting point is 00:06:29 this happens a lot, but when you don't open it up, you're going to open yourself up to criticism when things are not going well and things are not going well. Do I believe that Jan Jensen is going to be fine long-term? I do, but I understand where the frustration comes from from this fan base. And you have a fan base that you also have to remember,

Starting point is 00:06:52 this has not been built up over decades and decades. This has been built up recently. From Meg Agustin in to Kaitlyn Clark. And Kaitlyn Clark took it to a completely different stratosphere. Well, fans are fickle. And as we know different stratosphere. Well, fans are fickle. And as we know on the men's side, fans are fickle. And you want to be careful.

Starting point is 00:07:11 You're excited about the future. Addie Deal coming in next year. They got to host a big time recruits that they're after. They appear to be in good shape in the NIL world. Things are well, are set up well. The foundation is great

Starting point is 00:07:24 for Iowa women's basketball. But if you follow up these back-to-back appearances in the national championship with an NIT appearance, it's going to be tough. And for the casuals, and I've heard from plenty of the casual fans out there that got on the, can't watch anymore. It's not enjoyable to watch. That's scary because this has a chance long-term to be

Starting point is 00:07:49 really special. Iowa women's basketball can be a big time thing year in and year out, but you're losing momentum. Could be a one-year blip, but if it's more than that, be concerned. I love what's happening next though for this women's squad. I love that they're going on the road. Long trip out to Oregon this weekend. Then they play Wednesday at Washington. Oregon, one spot ahead of them right now in the net rankings. Iowa's at 37. Oregon's at 36.

Starting point is 00:08:17 That'll be an incredibly difficult game, but a chance at getting a quad one victory. And then you go to Washington. Their net is 48. Another opportunity to get a quad one win. They're you go to Washington. Their net is 48. Another opportunity to get a quad one win. They're 12 and six on the year. That's the more winnable of the two games,

Starting point is 00:08:30 but it's there. A real chance for it to happen. And maybe this group needs to be galvanized. Something needs to happen. Somebody step up. Somebody call out. Whatever it is,

Starting point is 00:08:43 something needs to change because losing four straight with this team, I don't think it's a talent deficiency. I don't think that it's a talent problem right now. Have to find out the right combinations and it's just not happening for this squad. We'll talk about that a whole lot more coming up. Tom Cakert from HawkeyeReport.com going to join us. We'll talk about that.

Starting point is 00:09:00 Preview the UCLA game and his thoughts on the Mark Gronowski injury. We talked to him right before the news a week ago. What does he think about the injury to Grinowski? We'll do that as we continue on the Locked On Hawkeyes podcast. 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.

Starting point is 00:09:30 That's $300 to keep the action going. The FanDuel app is easy to navigate, and the variety of bets keeps every game exciting. Plus, when you win, you get paid instantly. No waiting around for your winnings. Whether you're betting on your favorite team or just looking to add something extra and a little excitement to the playoffs,

Starting point is 00:09:48 FanDuel has you covered. Just visit FanDuel.com to join today. You'll get started with $300 in bonus bets. FanDuel.com. Make this playoff season unforgettable with FanDuel, an official sportsbook partner of the NFL. Now, Tom Kakert from Hawkeye Report. Tom Kakert, HawkeyeReport.com, part of On3 Media.

Starting point is 00:10:14 We'll get to the UCLA-Iowa game tonight. The latest, if there is any football news that Tom can share with us. But let's start, Tom. First of all, welcome, as always, on this Friday. We appreciate you coming on let's start with the women's basketball and the I guess the bad slide that they're on right now let me put it this way to you when it comes to Jan Jensen an assistant coach being elevated to the to the head coach quite often on a coaching staff you know the the head coach is the disciplinary and the butt kicker.

Starting point is 00:10:46 And you go to that assistant coach who kind of wraps her arms around you and, you know, makes you feel okay type of thing. If Jen was that, does she have the ability, I guess, to, you know, to be, to change her role, to be that authoritarian that when somebody needs a good swift kick in the, you know what, she's, she's there to do it or because of her role, perhaps. And I don't know if this is true. I'm just kind of, you know, going back to coaching staffs over the years. Can Jan Jensen light up her team if she has to? I think so. I think she's just, you know, to me, if you're a coach, you just have to be who you are. And because I think your players will spot it if you're phony about something and you're not being real with them.

Starting point is 00:11:32 So I'm sure she's having, you know, discussions. I know there's some people who are already kind of calling for Jan's head. And I'm just like, come on, we're 20 games in or whatever. I mean, let's relax a little bit. Um, you know, they faced some challenges this year before the season with, you got a, you know, two new staff members, you, everybody's moving up a different chair, you're bringing in Lucy Olson, but then Hannah Stolke was out most of the summer. Then Sona Falter was out for the back end of that. Aaliyah Guyton, who I think we'd all agree is certainly going to be a dynamite impact player. She wasn't participating in practice and

Starting point is 00:12:19 everything. My point is, it's kind of an evolving chemistry experiment right now where they're trying to the chemistry that they may have been able to build in the summer if all those people are healthy and ready to go and staff is in there and everything that wasn't afforded to them and maybe that's something you need with a new head coach and a new voice leading the program. And they just didn't have that. And I think some of that, but, but also here's the other thing. They're probably two, they've lost two games that if they just shoot normally from the foul line,

Starting point is 00:13:00 they probably win two more games. So there's some of that too that if they if they um they've just got to figure out they got to figure out the foul thing they've figured out the turnover thing i think which was really plaguing them early in the year with too many turnovers the tennessee game i mean that 30 turnovers for gosh sakes um but now they've got to figure out this fouling thing. And as you guys will probably agree with me, that stuff can be contagious sometimes on a team where if you start missing them, everybody starts missing them,

Starting point is 00:13:34 even good foul shooters. And we saw that with Lucy Olsen 0 for 5 before finally making her 6, an 82% free throw shooter coming in and just couldn't get it done. So big picture, is this team in danger of missing the tournament or do you believe they'll get it turned around and they'll at least do enough to be a tournament team?

Starting point is 00:13:54 And you gotta at least do that to kind of continue the momentum of the program, don't you? Yeah, I know. But I do think they're in danger now. I really do. You have to because they're skidding. And look, there's a long list of Big Ten teams. Basically, everybody in that conference that's been waiting to get a little something from Iowa after the last couple years.

Starting point is 00:14:20 Because Iowa's put some lumps on people. And, you know, Caitlin, a little brash sometimes. A little. A little brash sometimes. And that's just who she was. And that's what made her great. You know, as I call her on the message board, the greatest player in the history of women's basketball, period. You know, she is.

Starting point is 00:14:41 You know, she is. But there are people who are, as I called it, settling some scores with the University of Iowa women's basketball program right now. And one of them that got tormented a lot in that time was the University of Nebraska. And they settled a score last night. Although they did have a big tournament win, right? Yeah, they did. There's that one. But you're a thousand percent right.

Starting point is 00:15:08 So off they go onto the West coast. This might not be a bad thing, Tom, to get away, right. To get there because they got a few days in between Oregon, Washington, get away, have some team time. And, and when we'll see when they get back, what is it a week from now? Probably a little bit more than that. You know, just if we, if we see a different Hawkeye women's team, fair to say. But Dave,

Starting point is 00:15:28 yeah, the problem they're going to face though, guys, Oregon's good. The Oregon's good. I don't know anything about Washington, but then they got, you know, they got those Sunday games against USC and UCLA or two of the five best

Starting point is 00:15:41 teams in the country, you know, and they're, yeah, they're going to be in Carver Hawkeye Arena, but UCLA is number one and USC's got Juju Watkins, the best player in the game at college level. So, I mean, that's a long way of saying the back end of the schedule

Starting point is 00:15:59 loads up on them pretty heavily and is going to make it challenging. So, yeah, they're going to have their hands full to make it challenging. So yeah, they're going to have their hands full to make it in the tournament this year, for sure. A split on the West coast knee at minimum, and maybe have to win both of those games because you're right. Not just use USC and UCLA. They still got to play Ohio state who hasn't lost.

Starting point is 00:16:19 They got to go to Nebraska. Minnesota is much improved this year. That's a road game for them. They got to go to Michigan. Who's a tournament this year. That's a road game for them. They got to go to Michigan, who's a tournament team. That schedule on the back half is a bear. Well, that leads us to another basketball team that we know the back half of their schedule is a bear as well. The men's side of things, it's UCLA tonight. There's no such best win as January 17th.

Starting point is 00:16:39 But after what happened on Tuesday night, we're getting pretty close to must-win territory because road wins are tough. And this is a UCLA team that is absolutely reeling right now, Tom. It is. They've lost four straight. McCrone got tossed. He's yelling at his players. I mean, that team just seems like it's ripe for a mutiny right now with everything. But it's also maybe they're back home

Starting point is 00:17:09 and with everything that's gone on out there, maybe it's a huge emotional game tonight for them. You wonder if I was kind of getting ready to walk right into one. I think so. This is the circle of wagons for UCLA. I totally agree with you. Classic circle of wagons for UCLA. I totally agree with you. Classic circle of wagons game. But if they come out and they stink it up,

Starting point is 00:17:32 boy, that team's done then. That just means that they have tuned out Mick Cronin and his act, and they are done with him. And he's probably going to be done with them based on his comments already before. This is just... But, boy, Iowa's got to figure out how to guard somebody. They just, on the road.

Starting point is 00:17:53 I mean, you know, at home in three games, they're giving up 75 points a game. On the road in three games, 100 points a game. Jesus. Incredible. It really is. Jesus. Incredible. It really is. Incredible. Yeah. Obviously, that has to change.

Starting point is 00:18:12 I'm not sure it will tonight. I think it will because I don't think the UCLA scores it as well, but we'll see. I mean, they gave up 99 to USC. I guess the bright spot going back early in the week, Nathel will seemingly whenever he takes the floor is a bright spot. At some point in the game, he's going to do something that just – God, you're glad he's a Hawkeye.

Starting point is 00:18:30 Maybe Owen Freeman's best game of the year, Tom, certainly one of them. Yeah, and I think he's got a chance to have a good game tonight too. They just don't have a lot of size on UCLA. So I think he's got a chance. on UCLA. So I think he's got a chance, but boy, they're just, you know, they got to find a defensive mindset at some point if they're going to, if they're going to win these road games, because, you know, as Trent mentioned, I mean, five, the last eight are on the road. And, you know, one of those home games is Michigan State, who's showing that they're much improved, although some might point out their schedule so far is not exactly the 27 Yankees coming at them. But they are, you know, Iowa's still got to go to Rutgers and Maryland and Illinois and Northwestern,, you know, at Walsh Ryan last night, I was got to go to Nebraska and, you know,

Starting point is 00:19:29 that place is a house of horrors for opposing teams. Usually. I mean, it's just, uh, especially Iowa. We've seen some bad Iowa beats and, and, you know, we talk about UCLA, maybe not scoring a lot of points, great guards team scored 116. So I'm going to never say that again. How do you get Peyton Sanford going in the first half? How about this one? Unless it's wide open, you need to either make a free throw or a basket inside the three-point line before you can shoot a three.

Starting point is 00:19:59 Would that work? Nah, maybe. Post him up? What they have said is that other teams are just guarding him there he's the number one option and they're just guarding him tight and he's just more than happy to let josh dicks and drew selwell and owen freeman and whoever else take those shots in the first half and and get buckets And offense is not the problem for Iowa. No.

Starting point is 00:20:25 It's not. They've scored over 80 points in 11 straight games. So they're doing something. They're doing things right on the offensive end. It is purely about defense right now. It's just they have got to figure out how to get some. And they show they could do it against Indiana. A little football for you,

Starting point is 00:20:47 Tom. And when we talked to you last week at this time, it was all great. Mark Arnowski is coming. This is going to be incredible. We're all Friday night news dump. And then here it comes. Oh,

Starting point is 00:20:59 there is a shoulder injury and he is not going to be part of spring practice. We not able to go through it. I'll full way. Take us through kind of the timeline. And I can completely understand the fans that are frustrated because we've seen this before. Damaged goods. Here we go again.

Starting point is 00:21:19 It's well, we were talking about with Ken a little bit earlier, that fan scar tissue that builds up and it just, it feels like the fan base is fielding it again here. Why do you think this is different? Um, I, I think this is, it's not an accumulation of things. I don't, he doesn't have like this history of,

Starting point is 00:21:39 of injuries where Cade McNamara came in, he was hurt. And then he got hurt right away in practice and then it was and he tore his acl and it was just like okay this guy's kind of washed now i think he's just he's kind of he just had so many injuries that the just taken toll on his body uh growski's from everything i've been told not really injury prone. And I was told he's already had the surgery, and it went really, really well. I mean, just like it's a quick surgery to repair the thing in his shoulder,

Starting point is 00:22:17 and they think he might be back a month, six weeks, sooner than anticipated now. So May, perhaps. Yeah, yeah. I think they're thinking that, I mean, the June thing was just kind of like that's when they'll start doing more kind of team activity things. But they're really thinking that by the end of April, he'll be throwing football and doing most of the things.

Starting point is 00:22:44 But it's just like when what when they put in that press release june that was just like that's when they come back to the team and start doing things makes a lot of sense what else are they looking at in the portal anything we got uh what tuesday classes start that doesn't exactly close the door but could you see anything potentially happening before we get ready and obviously deep into the second semester? No, don't see anything unless something just completely falls out of the sky. We're looking for a defensive back. I think they'd like to add something there.

Starting point is 00:23:20 But I think they're pretty content to just wait until that spring portal period opens up and then see if they can find somebody at that point to help them out there. And then if they feel like there's some needs, but I think they're pretty content with the roster right now. Good stuff, Tom Caker. We will speak with you next Friday. Thank you, Tom.

Starting point is 00:23:42 Okay. Thanks, guys. Yep. Good to talk to you. Tom Caker at HawkeyeReport.com. Today's episode is brought to you by PrizePix, the place to get real money sports action. With over 10 million members and billions in winnings,

Starting point is 00:23:59 PrizePix has changed the game in daily fantasy sports. Whether it's the playoffs or regular season, PrizePix has made it easier than ever to win big while enjoying all the football action. Now it's playoff time, and there's no better way to get in on the action than with PrizePix. Here's how it works. You simply pick more or less on at least two players, and if your picks hit, you could win up to 1,000 times your cash. Yes, that's right. 1,000 times your money

Starting point is 00:24:26 just by making a few simple picks. For me, it's all about hot takes this season. This week on Prize Picks, I'm taking a look at Travis Kelsey, more than 70 yards along with Lamar Jackson, more than 250 yards passing. It's fun to predict and easy to play. Plus, with PrizePix FlexPlay, you can still double your money even if one of your picks doesn't hit. And with the app, you get your winnings fast, sometimes in as little as 15 minutes. Ready to run your game this football season? Download the app today and use the code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $50 instantly when you play your first $5 lineup. That's right. $50 just for playing with our friends at prize picks. Don't wait,

Starting point is 00:25:11 wait, take your game to the next level with prize picks, prize picks, run your game. Trent kind of back with you. One final time locked on Hawkeyes tonight. The Iowa men get an opportunity against UCLA. As we talked about with Tom Caker, it's not must win, but it's kind of must win. This is just a game that you have to find a way to put in the win column.

Starting point is 00:25:36 I believe if Iowa is going to be a tournament team, we've talked about the back end of the schedule, how difficult that's going to be. You have to stack up some victories. And after a missed opportunity against USC, the defense was as dreadful as we have seen going back to the Wisconsin game. Iowa bounced back after that one, got the victory against Nebraska and Indiana.

Starting point is 00:25:54 They got to play well. The good news is UCLA, Mick Cronin doesn't like his team. They're having their own set of issues right now. UCLA comes into this one themselves with a four-game losing streak, including losing to Nebraska, Maryland, Rutgers the last time out.

Starting point is 00:26:10 They come back home after being out on the East Coast for the Maryland-Rutgers games. They're not playing well. They're not a big team. This needs to be an Owen Freeman game. And is there any way that you can get some kind of defense out of this group? Yes, we've had the conversation a bunch.

Starting point is 00:26:27 This is a very limited team defensively year after year because of the way that Fran McCaffrey goes. So we mentioned USC was not a very good defensive team. This UCLA team's even worse. They're 100th in the country in offensive efficiency. If Iowa gives up 80, 85, 90 points, whatever it turns out to be against this one, oh boy.

Starting point is 00:26:47 It's not a must win, but it feels like a must win. We will be back with you at a Rapid Reaction podcast late Friday night into Saturday morning. We will have that for you as we get ready for this final turn for Iowa basketball. We need to get some good feelings again. This team is 0-4 on the road, still looking for their first quad one victory. This is an opportunity. It's a talented UCLA team that is playing poorly. You have to take advantage of situations like this.

Starting point is 00:27:14 The turnaround that next week, Minnesota comes to town followed by Penn state. This needs to be a big stretch for Iowa basketball. Any hope of being a tournament team. I believe it has to start tonight with a victory. You can't just hope that you're going to get enough wins at home and that'll be enough. No, you got to get some road victories.

Starting point is 00:27:32 And when you still have to have the rematches against Northwestern Nebraska, two teams that you got by but need a little bit of help. You still have to go to Illinois, maybe the best team in the Big Ten. You still have to go the East Coast trip to Rutgers and Maryland, along with a trip to Ohio State. This is an opportunity for a victory.

Starting point is 00:27:50 Get it done tonight. I'm normally not the most optimistic guy when it comes to the Hawkeyes. I think they hang around. At least I'm going to grab the points over on the FanDuel Sportsbook app. Thanks for being with us again. We'll be back with you with a rapid reaction podcast coming up after the finish of the game,

Starting point is 00:28:06 eight o'clock tonight against UCLA. Thanks to Tom Caker as well for joining us here. That will do it. We'll be back with you again tomorrow. Thanks for joining us and go Hawks.

Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - Will Iowa Hawkeyes' Jan Jensen Find the Winning Formula? Tom Kakert joins on Hawkeye Hoops & Mark Gronowski injury

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.