Hoosiers clash with Hawkeyes for first time this season

The IU and Iowa men’s basketball teams have shared the basement of the Big Ten conference for the past two seasons.

Both teams have begun to see their rosters grow in experience, and, along with putting together some impressive recruiting classes, the Hawkeyes and Hoosiers have made steady climbs in the nation’s best conference this season.

The two will play their first of a pair of meetings this year when Iowa (11-10, 3-5) heads to Bloomington for a 6 p.m. Sunday tipoff at Assembly Hall against the No. 16/17 Hoosiers (16-5, 4-5).

The Hawkeyes were one of the early surprises of the Big Ten this season, winning their first two road games against then-No. 11 Wisconsin and Minnesota and knocking off then-No. 13 Michigan two weeks ago.

In just his second year as head coach at Iowa, Fran McCaffery is trying to bring the same winning mentality he has had at his previous stops to the Big Ten.
McCaffery is the only coach in college basketball history to take three different teams to the NCAA Tournament in non-BCS conferences.

McCaffery took the head coaching position from Todd Lickliter last spring. McCaffrey said he knows he is in one of the premiere conferences in college basketball.

“It’s an extremely well-coached league,” McCaffery said. “It’s got excellent continuity in it, and people that have had sustained success over periods of time.”

Iowa has a roster of 11 freshmen and sophomores and will add to that next season with five players signed in the 2012 class, including a pair of top-100 players.

The Hawkeyes are currently fourth in the conference in scoring, but the other end of the floor remains an issue, as they rank last in field goal percentage defense and are giving up 71.2 points per game.

“We only had really three consistent players that were scoring the ball (last year), and this year, it’s much more than that, and quite frankly, you aren’t going to win consistently in this league without that because these teams scout you so well, watch too much tape and take away your strengths,” McCaffery said.

Success against the Hoosiers has been a staple for Iowa the past two seasons, as the Hawkeyes have swept the season series both years.

In last year’s game in Bloomington, the Hoosiers watched an 11-point lead evaporate throughout the final 7:47 as Iowa won 64-63 thanks to guard Bryce Cartwright’s jump shot with just more than a minute to play.

IU’s only win against Iowa during the Tom Crean era came Feb. 4, 2009, when junior guard Devin Dumes scored a career-high 27 points and missed just one shot from the field.

It was the lone Big Ten win during the freshman season for the current group of seniors, and that is something Crean said he wants to change Sunday.

“That’s a team that has had some real luck with us of late, and it’s time for us to change that,” Crean said. “Our guys need to be at a real, real high level. We know how good they are. I think they’re well coached, but it’s time for our guys to step up and make a stand on that game.”