Whats up Hawk fans the Outback Bowl is next Wednesday so I thought I would write up a preview of the matchup between the Tigers and Hawkeyes.This should be a great match up,of course everyone is probably going to be picking LSU in this game. Iowa is 5-1 vs SEC Teams so they are one of the teams in the BIG Ten that has had success against teams from the SEC. I'm really excited for this game Iowa will be facing a real challenge LSU is a lot like a BIG Ten team, they play a very physical brand of football. This will be a very physical football game so lets jump in and look at the Iowa Offense against the LSU Defense.
The Iowa offense improved every week of the season so I expect we will see a very strong offense next Wednesday. Jake Rudock has been a very solid quarterback for the Hawks he had a tendency to turn the ball over so he will have to be very careful with the football vs a ball hawking Tiger defense. On the season Iowa averaged 200 yards passing per game with Jake Rudock throwing for 18 touchdown passes and 12 interceptions. Iowa's offense is built around the rushing attack led by Weisman and Jordan Canzeri the running game was really elevated in the last few weeks. As a team Iowa is rushing for 188 yards per game while scoring 27.3 points per game. The one constant was the ability to run the football they will need that to be able to move the football against LSU. The Tigers defense is ranked 17th in the nation against the pass only allowing 200.8 yards per game. They also have a decent run defense ranking number 48 in the country giving up 148.6 yards rushing per game. As a team LSU is allowing 22.7 points per game so they have a pretty solid defense. This isn't going to be the best defense we have played this season but will probably be one of the most athletic defenses we've seen. LSU has 24 sacks on the season so they have a decent pass rushing. The good thing is Iowa has allowed the 11th fewest sacks this season with only 12. This will be a key, if Iowa can protect Jake Rudock they will have a great shot to win. Receiver play is another key for Iowa they improved over the course of the season but will need to be consistent for Iowa to win this game. I look for CJ Fiedorwicz to have a strong game this will be his last game at Iowa one last chance to show pro scouts what he is capable of. The guy that I think will step up to make plays will be Don Shumpert he has had an up and down career but came on strong towards the end of the season. Keyvonte Martin Manley is probably the most consistent receiver for the Hawks so he should be able to find openings in the LSU defense. A guy that hasn't been mentioned in a while that could play a bigger role Wednesday is Damond Powell he has the ability to make a big play I wouldn't be surprised if we some package plays designed to get him the football. Tevaun Smith is another guy who has been inconsistent so hopefully he can find that consistency on Wednesday.
Looking at the LSU offense they are going to be missing a huge piece that is their starting Quarterback Zach Mettenberger who is out with a Torn ACL. Anthony Jennings will start in his place on the season he is 6-10 for 99 yards one touchdown. Jennings is a very mobile quarterback so we will probably see a lot of QB runs in the game plan for LSU. Iowa has faced a number of mobile QB's this year so although I'm worried about his ability to run I don't think it will make a huge difference. The Tigers are rushing for 200 yards per game while being led by Jeremy Hill who has run the ball for 1185 yards 14 TD's. The Second Running Back for LSU will be Terrance McGee who has 614 yards 8 TD's. Iowa's run defense has been very good this season only allowing 120 yards rushing per game. Expect LSU to run the football a lot without Mettenberger. Iowa should be able to slow down the run forcing the Tigers to beat them through the air. One of the things that separates the Tigers from other teams Iowa has played is the Wide Receiver position they have two legitimate NFL Receivers. Jarvis Landry has 75 receptions for 1172 yards 10 touchdowns. Odell Beckham is a dangerous speedster has 57 catches for 1117 yards and 8 touchdowns. The Iowa pass defense although they have given up a lot of big plays this season has been very good only allowing 182.4 yards passing. Big plays have been a weakness. LSU has some guys that can exploit the defense like Ohio State did so getting pressure on Jennings will be a real key. The LSU offensive line has allowed 21 sacks this season while the Iowa defense has sacked the QB 20 times. LSU averages 37 points per game while allowing 22.7 points per game, Iowa on the season is scoring 27.3 points per game while allowing 18.8 points per game.
Special teams can completely change a football game LSU has some big time playmakers for the return game. The kickoff return game has been very good for LSU as they averaged almost 26 yards per kick return. The Iowa kickoff unit hasn't always been great so for this game this has to be a major focus the Tigers haven't had a TD yet on the return but still very dangerous. The Hawks have some playmakers in the return game too Kevonte Martin Manley is the 5th leading punt returner averaging 15 yards per return. LSU is the number one unit in the country only allowing .91 yard per return. This could be a key on Wednesday Iowa's punt return game against LSU's punt defense and their kick return game against the Iowa kickoff coverage. I see this being one of the key factors the team that controls special teams will win this football game. To go along with special teams turnovers will be a factor on the season Iowa has forced 20 turnovers 8 fumbles and 12 interceptions, while LSU has 7 fumbles and 9 interceptions. I give Iowa a slight edge here with an inexperienced Quarterback in Jennings playing I think he will make some mistakes with the football. Iowa's linebacking core is if not the best one of the best in the country so it will be fun to see them against a strong Tigers rushing attack.
I think the Hawks will make enough plays to win this one with an inexperienced QB for LSU I think Iowa will be able to design packages to pressure him. I think the real key will be if Iowa can run the football if so I think Rudock will be able to make plays in the play action passing game. I think for Iowa to win Rudock can't throw interceptions he had a tendency to throw an interception per game this season. Tackling is extremely important this week LSU has receivers that can take a short pass and turn it into a long touchdown if they aren't wrapped up. Alright it's prediction time I see Iowa finding a way to win this game 27 to 20. I think this will be a very close game but I think the Iowa defense will force Jennings into a couple of turnovers helping the Hawks become Outback Bowl Champions. I'll have a review of the game next week so check back thanks for reading.
Go Hawks.
Friday, December 27, 2013
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Iowa vs Iowa State Review
Hey Hawk fans I needed a little bit a time before I could re watch the game that took place in Ames last Friday Night. Now that I have re watched the game I can finally write up a review. Now the officiating wasn't great but I'm going to try not to blame this loss on the officiating. In the first half Iowa completely outplayed Iowa State except for one stat Iowa State went to the foul line 20 times compared to just 9 for Iowa. It seemed to me that Niang lived at the foul line all night but with the new rules it is a lot harder to defend without fouling. Especially on a guy with the size and skills of Niang he is very good at drawing contact he went 8 for 10 at the free throw line. I had no problem with the officials calling Iowa for fouls on him but when Iowa State was playing the same defense that Iowa was they were not getting called for fouls I have a problem with that. Iowa State shot 36 free throws in the game, they were in the bonus with 9:43 to go in the first half, and 9:50 to go in the second half. Coming into this game Iowa had made more free throws than their opponents were shooting. They averaged only 16 fouls per game yet were called for 27 in this one. Okay I'm getting off topic a little bit lets try to break down the game not look at the officiating.
Iowa played better than Iowa State for 38 minutes of this game they just let up at the wrong time allowing Iowa state to go on an 8-0 run to finish the game with an 85 to 82 victory. As an Iowan this was a fantastic basketball game to me it was a heavyweight fight and it felt bigger nationally than a normal Iowa and Iowa State game. Hilton Colosseum is a very difficult place to play and a very tough place to come in to win a basketball game. This was Iowa's first road test of the season but Iowa wasn't phased at all by the crowd controlling the game for all but 2 minutes. Iowa's star players came to play on Friday Night Aaron White had his best game at Iowa scoring 25 points with 17 rebounds. If he can play like that all season we are a legitimate Big Ten Title contender. Devin Marble had another good game with 19 points 6 assists he continues to be the guy we need him to be. Adam Woodbury really had a nice game also he didn't score a lot but grabbing 11 rebounds getting 5 points with a couple of assists. The one thing he needs to work on is knowing when to take a risk going hard after a loose ball he plays the game so hard that sometimes he picks up a foul he doesn't need too. The back court was outstanding for the Hawkeyes as Clemons, Marble and Gesell combined to score 32 dishing out 15 assists with only 2 turnovers. That is the type of play Iowa will need in the back Court to have a chance to win a Big Ten Championship.
The Front Court was pretty good also dominating the rebounding battle 49 to 35 including 14 offensive rebounds which led to 13 second chance points. Aaron White was the leader he plays small forward but he plays inside a lot of the game. On the season Iowa has had good production off the bench in the front court that wasn't the case Friday. Zach McCabe who came in as a 50 percent 3 point shooter was 0-7, Gabe Olaseni who had provided a lot of energy this season only had one dunk in 10 minutes, Melsahn Basabe only had 4 points and 6 rebounds. Adam Woodbury only scored 5 points but he had 11 rebounds. Our power Forward center position combined to score 11 points Iowa is going to need more production from this group in the Big Ten Season. Iowa's bench was outscored for the first time this season they came in averaging 48 points off the bench which is a little skewed due to the competition but they lost this battle to ISU 19 to 18 Friday. The Hawk bench had been good all season but it seemed that Uthoff was the only guy that was able to provide a spark as he scored 12 points on 5 of 10 shooting while grabbing 5 rebounds. Peter Jock only scored 2 points off the bench he looked a little bit shaky but that is expected from a Freshman in his first road game. Usually Iowa is going to get more production from the bench so that was a big factor in the loss to Iowa State Friday.
Now lets take a look at some of the team stats Iowa shot good enough from the field to win the basketball game shooting 47 percent in the first half and 45 percent in the second half. That is plenty good enough to win a basketball game. Three point shooting wasn't nearly as good as it has been this season as Iowa went 4-17 from beyond the arch only 23.5 percent. On the season Iowa was shooting a lot better from 3 the biggest reason for that was Zach McCabe's shooting, Friday he just couldn't get anything to fall. Free throws Iowa shot good from the line in the first half shooting 8 for 9 but in the second half they couldn't make the big free throws to put the game away only hitting 6 for 12 including 2 front ends of a 1 and 1 plus the last 2 free throws Gesell missed at the end of the game. Even though Mike missed those 2 free throws he still played a great game scoring 11 points and dishing out 6 assists with 0 turnovers. Iowa did everything right to win that game they just couldn't seal the deal from the foul line the good thing is that it's December these guys will learn from this. I imagine we will see them in this scenerio again but this time Iowa will come through to win a big road game.The Hawks only turned the ball over 11 times which is great as you want to keep that number around 10. Iowa defensively was pretty good also they held Iowa State to only 6 made 3 pointers on the season they were averaging 10 a game. The free throw line was the biggest difference in this game as ISU got to the line 36 converting 23 while Iowa got there 21 times making 14. I think the play that started the come back for Iowa State was when Woodbury fouled out in the second half the Hawks did a pretty good job on Georges Niang. Niang made both free throws to cut the lead to 3 if Iowa gets a stop there the game is likely over instead a foul things get crazy. Then on the other end Iowa took the clock all the way down missed the shot but Aaron White got the rebound in this situation Iowa should have called timeout even though there was a lot of contact on the steal by the Cyclones. Ejim makes a pair than we all know the free throw story at the end of the game. The last Possession Iowa couldn't draw up a better play a wide open 3 for your best shooter it just wasn't meant to be.
Now Iowa will finish up the Non Conference portion of the schedule with a game against Arkansas Pine bluff on Sunday Afternoon. Even though Iowa couldn't pull out wins against Villanova or Iowa State don't worry about the RPI if Iowa wins the games they are supposed to they will without a doubt be an NCAA Tournament team. After Arkansas Pine bluff it is time to start the BIG Ten season Iowa will begin the season at home with a game vs Nebraska on December 31st they then go to Wisconsin who is ranked number 4 in the country on January 5th, than at home vs Northwestern. I think Iowa should start at least 2-1 if not 3-0 Wisconsin is good but Iowa plays a style that tends to frustrate the Badgers that should be a Marquee game on January 5th. So the Non Conference portion of the schedule is nearly over things didn't go exactly how we wanted but big things are still ahead for the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Next game I will be previewing will be the Nebraska Basketball game plus watch out for my preview of the Outback Bowl Thanks for Reading
GO Hawks.
Iowa played better than Iowa State for 38 minutes of this game they just let up at the wrong time allowing Iowa state to go on an 8-0 run to finish the game with an 85 to 82 victory. As an Iowan this was a fantastic basketball game to me it was a heavyweight fight and it felt bigger nationally than a normal Iowa and Iowa State game. Hilton Colosseum is a very difficult place to play and a very tough place to come in to win a basketball game. This was Iowa's first road test of the season but Iowa wasn't phased at all by the crowd controlling the game for all but 2 minutes. Iowa's star players came to play on Friday Night Aaron White had his best game at Iowa scoring 25 points with 17 rebounds. If he can play like that all season we are a legitimate Big Ten Title contender. Devin Marble had another good game with 19 points 6 assists he continues to be the guy we need him to be. Adam Woodbury really had a nice game also he didn't score a lot but grabbing 11 rebounds getting 5 points with a couple of assists. The one thing he needs to work on is knowing when to take a risk going hard after a loose ball he plays the game so hard that sometimes he picks up a foul he doesn't need too. The back court was outstanding for the Hawkeyes as Clemons, Marble and Gesell combined to score 32 dishing out 15 assists with only 2 turnovers. That is the type of play Iowa will need in the back Court to have a chance to win a Big Ten Championship.
The Front Court was pretty good also dominating the rebounding battle 49 to 35 including 14 offensive rebounds which led to 13 second chance points. Aaron White was the leader he plays small forward but he plays inside a lot of the game. On the season Iowa has had good production off the bench in the front court that wasn't the case Friday. Zach McCabe who came in as a 50 percent 3 point shooter was 0-7, Gabe Olaseni who had provided a lot of energy this season only had one dunk in 10 minutes, Melsahn Basabe only had 4 points and 6 rebounds. Adam Woodbury only scored 5 points but he had 11 rebounds. Our power Forward center position combined to score 11 points Iowa is going to need more production from this group in the Big Ten Season. Iowa's bench was outscored for the first time this season they came in averaging 48 points off the bench which is a little skewed due to the competition but they lost this battle to ISU 19 to 18 Friday. The Hawk bench had been good all season but it seemed that Uthoff was the only guy that was able to provide a spark as he scored 12 points on 5 of 10 shooting while grabbing 5 rebounds. Peter Jock only scored 2 points off the bench he looked a little bit shaky but that is expected from a Freshman in his first road game. Usually Iowa is going to get more production from the bench so that was a big factor in the loss to Iowa State Friday.
Now lets take a look at some of the team stats Iowa shot good enough from the field to win the basketball game shooting 47 percent in the first half and 45 percent in the second half. That is plenty good enough to win a basketball game. Three point shooting wasn't nearly as good as it has been this season as Iowa went 4-17 from beyond the arch only 23.5 percent. On the season Iowa was shooting a lot better from 3 the biggest reason for that was Zach McCabe's shooting, Friday he just couldn't get anything to fall. Free throws Iowa shot good from the line in the first half shooting 8 for 9 but in the second half they couldn't make the big free throws to put the game away only hitting 6 for 12 including 2 front ends of a 1 and 1 plus the last 2 free throws Gesell missed at the end of the game. Even though Mike missed those 2 free throws he still played a great game scoring 11 points and dishing out 6 assists with 0 turnovers. Iowa did everything right to win that game they just couldn't seal the deal from the foul line the good thing is that it's December these guys will learn from this. I imagine we will see them in this scenerio again but this time Iowa will come through to win a big road game.The Hawks only turned the ball over 11 times which is great as you want to keep that number around 10. Iowa defensively was pretty good also they held Iowa State to only 6 made 3 pointers on the season they were averaging 10 a game. The free throw line was the biggest difference in this game as ISU got to the line 36 converting 23 while Iowa got there 21 times making 14. I think the play that started the come back for Iowa State was when Woodbury fouled out in the second half the Hawks did a pretty good job on Georges Niang. Niang made both free throws to cut the lead to 3 if Iowa gets a stop there the game is likely over instead a foul things get crazy. Then on the other end Iowa took the clock all the way down missed the shot but Aaron White got the rebound in this situation Iowa should have called timeout even though there was a lot of contact on the steal by the Cyclones. Ejim makes a pair than we all know the free throw story at the end of the game. The last Possession Iowa couldn't draw up a better play a wide open 3 for your best shooter it just wasn't meant to be.
Now Iowa will finish up the Non Conference portion of the schedule with a game against Arkansas Pine bluff on Sunday Afternoon. Even though Iowa couldn't pull out wins against Villanova or Iowa State don't worry about the RPI if Iowa wins the games they are supposed to they will without a doubt be an NCAA Tournament team. After Arkansas Pine bluff it is time to start the BIG Ten season Iowa will begin the season at home with a game vs Nebraska on December 31st they then go to Wisconsin who is ranked number 4 in the country on January 5th, than at home vs Northwestern. I think Iowa should start at least 2-1 if not 3-0 Wisconsin is good but Iowa plays a style that tends to frustrate the Badgers that should be a Marquee game on January 5th. So the Non Conference portion of the schedule is nearly over things didn't go exactly how we wanted but big things are still ahead for the Iowa Hawkeyes. The Next game I will be previewing will be the Nebraska Basketball game plus watch out for my preview of the Outback Bowl Thanks for Reading
GO Hawks.
Friday, December 13, 2013
Iowa vs Iowa State Preview
What's up Hawk fans it has been a while since I had time to write but coming up tomorrow night is a huge basketball game. I thought I would give a quick preview on the CyHawk game. First of all this is probably one of the most anticipated match ups in a long time due to the fact that both teams are ranked. Iowa State is undefeated on the season with a record of 7-0 quality wins at home against Michigan and on the road against BYU and are ranked 17th in the nation. Iowa on the other hand is 10-1 ranked 23rd in the country with quality wins at home against Notre Dame and wins in the Battle 4 Atlantis over Xavier and UTEP. This game is always important in the State but this year it has a lot of National appeal also. Both teams are ranked, have a combined one loss on the season plus it's a rivalry doesn't get any better than that. Lets jump into some of the key match ups on Friday Night.
The Hawkeyes play a very fast offense looking to run every second of the game, on the season they are averaging 89.5 points per game while shooting 46 percent from the field 18 assists per game. They also average 46 rebounds per game. Iowa seems to be the deeper team looking at the stats as 10 guys play more than 15 minutes per game. Iowa is led in scoring by Roy Devin Marble who is averaging 15.6 points per game with 3.6 rebounds per game and 3.5 assists. Aaron White also scores in double figures with 12.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Jarrod Uthoff is the third Hawk scoring in double figures with 10.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. Iowa also has 3 guys averaging over 7.7 points per game in McCabe 9.5 points, Peter Jok 8.4 points, Melsahn Basabe 7.7 points and 6.7 rebounds and Gabe Olaseni 7.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
The Hawkeyes are balanced offensively they don't play through one guy specifically and the depth they have will be a major factor vs the Cyclones.Devin Marble has shown the ability to take over games. This will be the first Hostile Environment that Iowa has played in, but with the experience on this team I don't see this as a major factor. Three point shooting has been a pleasant surprise for Iowa with 4 guys shooting over 40 percent. Iowa State defensively is very good against the 3 point shot only allowing teams to shoot 26.9 percent. This will be an interesting match up with both teams likely to play a lot of zone defense Iowa should get some good looks from the outside the question will be can they make them.
The Cyclones allow 67.6 points per game and 37 percent from the field. Rebounding will be a major factor on Friday as both teams are out rebounding opponents by 9 per game. Iowa State has forced 86 turnovers on the season while Iowa has taken pretty good care of the ball only turning it over 10.6 times per game. For Iowa to have success on offense they must take advantage of their size advantage Iowa State is going to play a lot like Villanova a small lineup that shoots a lot of 3 pointers. The Iowa bigs need to be ready to play tomorrow as they will have a chance to put a big game together.
The Cyclones on offense play a lot like Iowa pushing the ball every second of the game averaging 91.7 points per game shooting 49.3 percent from the field. They play very good team ball with 19.9 assists, 46.3 rebounds per game. As a team ISU is shooting 37.4 percent beyond the Arc. The Cyclones are also a 68 percent free throw shooting team which could play a major role in the game. Fouls have changed in College Basketball more fouls are being called than ever before but these two teams have been able to avoid fouls with Iowa averaging 16.8 and ISU a little over 18 per game. Iowa is allowing opponents 64.7 points per game on 36 percent shooting. The Hawks are also holding opponents to 25 percent from beyond the Arc. Iowa State has a very balanced attack with 5 guys scoring in double figures and one scoring 9.9 points per game.
Melvin Ejim is the leader for the Cyclones and will present Iowa with some problems he is scoring 18 points and 7.8 rebounds, shooting 52 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3. Ejim is a 6 ft 6 Forward so Iowa has a number of options they can put on him but I expect to see Aaron White guarding him the majority of the time. DeAndre Kane is their second leading scorer the 6 ft 4 guard averaging 15.4 points 8.0 rebounds 5.3 assists per game. Kane will be a difficult match up on Friday night he is a big guard build wise so I think Marble will likely be defending him and he will have his hands full. Georges Niang is their main post presence a 6 ft 7 forward averaging 13.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 4 assists per game. Iowa State also gets double figure scoring from Dustin Hogue 12.7 points and Matt Thomas 10.3 points. Naz Long scores 9.9 points per game. Iowa State is turning the ball over 11 times per game while Iowa is very good at forcing turnovers getting 7.1 steals per game.
There are a lot of intriguing match ups in tonight's ball game Iowa clearly has the size advantage but can they utilize it tonight. How much zone will Iowa State play since Iowa is the bigger team the Cyclones will likely play a lot of 2-3 zone to keep the Hawks on the perimeter. I have the same question for Iowa how much zone do we see from the Hawkeyes they have played it a lot already this season but with Iowa States ability to hit 3 pointers we will probably see that tonight. The Match up Devin Marble against DeAndre Kane both of these guys have been the leaders on the team so seeing them go head to head should be interesting to see if this is the match up we see. Kane is a big guard at 6 ft 4 but Marble is even bigger than that at 6 ft 6. Kane play's point guard for the Cyclones so he will be have the ball in his hand most of the game. Gesell could get the assignment at first but I think when the game is on the line in the second half Marble will be the guy to guard him. On the inside Iowa needs to attack Georges Niang he had a tendency to get in foul trouble last year if Iowa gets him in foul trouble that takes a huge weapon away from Iowa State. So there is a little preview of the game and some of the key match ups I see.
My prediction is Iowa hands the Cyclones their first loss on the season 87 to 77. I see an extremely close game but I just think Iowa has too much depth for the Cyclones. In a game that will likely be a shoot out the team that doesn't get tired will be the one that wins. I don't think Iowa State will be able to handle Iowa's size in the post which will allow the Hawkeyes to get Niang in foul trouble. I still think it will be a close game I just see Iowa pulling away at the end. This would be a signature win for either team as we will see both of these teams in March which great for the State to have 2 great basketball teams again.
On a Special note congratulations to the Iowa Football team for making the Outback Bowl against LSU I will preview that game when we get closer to January 1st. We aren't far from the start of the Big Ten Conference Basketball Season so I may write up a little preview on the Conference. Thanks for Reading
GO Hawks
The Hawkeyes play a very fast offense looking to run every second of the game, on the season they are averaging 89.5 points per game while shooting 46 percent from the field 18 assists per game. They also average 46 rebounds per game. Iowa seems to be the deeper team looking at the stats as 10 guys play more than 15 minutes per game. Iowa is led in scoring by Roy Devin Marble who is averaging 15.6 points per game with 3.6 rebounds per game and 3.5 assists. Aaron White also scores in double figures with 12.6 points and 5.6 rebounds per game. Jarrod Uthoff is the third Hawk scoring in double figures with 10.3 points and 7 rebounds per game. Iowa also has 3 guys averaging over 7.7 points per game in McCabe 9.5 points, Peter Jok 8.4 points, Melsahn Basabe 7.7 points and 6.7 rebounds and Gabe Olaseni 7.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
The Hawkeyes are balanced offensively they don't play through one guy specifically and the depth they have will be a major factor vs the Cyclones.Devin Marble has shown the ability to take over games. This will be the first Hostile Environment that Iowa has played in, but with the experience on this team I don't see this as a major factor. Three point shooting has been a pleasant surprise for Iowa with 4 guys shooting over 40 percent. Iowa State defensively is very good against the 3 point shot only allowing teams to shoot 26.9 percent. This will be an interesting match up with both teams likely to play a lot of zone defense Iowa should get some good looks from the outside the question will be can they make them.
The Cyclones allow 67.6 points per game and 37 percent from the field. Rebounding will be a major factor on Friday as both teams are out rebounding opponents by 9 per game. Iowa State has forced 86 turnovers on the season while Iowa has taken pretty good care of the ball only turning it over 10.6 times per game. For Iowa to have success on offense they must take advantage of their size advantage Iowa State is going to play a lot like Villanova a small lineup that shoots a lot of 3 pointers. The Iowa bigs need to be ready to play tomorrow as they will have a chance to put a big game together.
The Cyclones on offense play a lot like Iowa pushing the ball every second of the game averaging 91.7 points per game shooting 49.3 percent from the field. They play very good team ball with 19.9 assists, 46.3 rebounds per game. As a team ISU is shooting 37.4 percent beyond the Arc. The Cyclones are also a 68 percent free throw shooting team which could play a major role in the game. Fouls have changed in College Basketball more fouls are being called than ever before but these two teams have been able to avoid fouls with Iowa averaging 16.8 and ISU a little over 18 per game. Iowa is allowing opponents 64.7 points per game on 36 percent shooting. The Hawks are also holding opponents to 25 percent from beyond the Arc. Iowa State has a very balanced attack with 5 guys scoring in double figures and one scoring 9.9 points per game.
Melvin Ejim is the leader for the Cyclones and will present Iowa with some problems he is scoring 18 points and 7.8 rebounds, shooting 52 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3. Ejim is a 6 ft 6 Forward so Iowa has a number of options they can put on him but I expect to see Aaron White guarding him the majority of the time. DeAndre Kane is their second leading scorer the 6 ft 4 guard averaging 15.4 points 8.0 rebounds 5.3 assists per game. Kane will be a difficult match up on Friday night he is a big guard build wise so I think Marble will likely be defending him and he will have his hands full. Georges Niang is their main post presence a 6 ft 7 forward averaging 13.1 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 4 assists per game. Iowa State also gets double figure scoring from Dustin Hogue 12.7 points and Matt Thomas 10.3 points. Naz Long scores 9.9 points per game. Iowa State is turning the ball over 11 times per game while Iowa is very good at forcing turnovers getting 7.1 steals per game.
There are a lot of intriguing match ups in tonight's ball game Iowa clearly has the size advantage but can they utilize it tonight. How much zone will Iowa State play since Iowa is the bigger team the Cyclones will likely play a lot of 2-3 zone to keep the Hawks on the perimeter. I have the same question for Iowa how much zone do we see from the Hawkeyes they have played it a lot already this season but with Iowa States ability to hit 3 pointers we will probably see that tonight. The Match up Devin Marble against DeAndre Kane both of these guys have been the leaders on the team so seeing them go head to head should be interesting to see if this is the match up we see. Kane is a big guard at 6 ft 4 but Marble is even bigger than that at 6 ft 6. Kane play's point guard for the Cyclones so he will be have the ball in his hand most of the game. Gesell could get the assignment at first but I think when the game is on the line in the second half Marble will be the guy to guard him. On the inside Iowa needs to attack Georges Niang he had a tendency to get in foul trouble last year if Iowa gets him in foul trouble that takes a huge weapon away from Iowa State. So there is a little preview of the game and some of the key match ups I see.
My prediction is Iowa hands the Cyclones their first loss on the season 87 to 77. I see an extremely close game but I just think Iowa has too much depth for the Cyclones. In a game that will likely be a shoot out the team that doesn't get tired will be the one that wins. I don't think Iowa State will be able to handle Iowa's size in the post which will allow the Hawkeyes to get Niang in foul trouble. I still think it will be a close game I just see Iowa pulling away at the end. This would be a signature win for either team as we will see both of these teams in March which great for the State to have 2 great basketball teams again.
On a Special note congratulations to the Iowa Football team for making the Outback Bowl against LSU I will preview that game when we get closer to January 1st. We aren't far from the start of the Big Ten Conference Basketball Season so I may write up a little preview on the Conference. Thanks for Reading
GO Hawks
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