Harty: It comes down to trusting McCaffery and the players
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Times like now are when you should trust that Fran McCaffery knows what is best for the Iowa men’s basketball team.
You should trust that Iowa’s four seniors will do everything within their power to make sure that Wednesday’s loss at Penn State doesn’t linger.
You should trust that Peter Jok will keep playing at a star level and that Iowa’s bench will become more consistent.
You should do all those things because, frankly, the team deserves it for making this one of the most entertaining winters in quite some time.
And because Iowa, with records of 20-6 overall and 11-3 in the Big Ten, hasn’t done enough from a negative standpoint to suggest that things are unraveling.
Penn State was certainly a bad loss, but it wasn’t a crushing loss, unless the Iowa players allow it to become that.
That seems unlikely, though, considering Iowa’s experience and maturity.
“We don’t need to go to a spa,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said to reporters after the Penn State loss. “We need to work. I can’t make it any simpler than that.”
That was McCaffery’s way of saying that now certainly isn’t time to panic or to make drastic changes. Trust the way you do things, give Penn State credit and move on to the next game, which for Iowa is a matchup against Wisconsin next Wednesday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
It’s hard to argue with McCaffery’s approach because it has worked for the most part at Iowa.
The Hawkeyes unraveled at the end of the 2013-14 season, losing their final seven games, including a first-round game in the NCAA Tournament.
But that team was younger than the current team. The seniors on the current team were only sophomores two years ago, but they still formed a big part of the rotation.
All four of Iowa’s senior starters are better players than they were two years ago. They’ve been through the peaks and valleys and understand that the Big Ten regular season is a grind that can be humbling and frustrating at times.
Their leadership and poise will be huge, considering Iowa’s last four opponents all have winning records and are likely headed to the NCAA Tournament. Two of the games against Ohio State and Michigan will be played on the road, with it being Senior Day at Michigan on March 5.
Probably the biggest concern at this point is whether Jok and senior forward Jarrod Uthoff are having to carry too much of the scoring load.
Recent games suggest that might be the case. Jok and Uthoff have combined to score 98 of Iowa’s 150 points in the last two games against Penn State and Minnesota.
McCaffery needs to work on changing that for the stretch drive. Senior center Adam Woodbury has to be more of a scoring option in order to create space for Uthoff.
Senior guards Mike Gesell and Anthony Clemmons also have to be more consistent on offense, while the bench has to make more than just an occasional basket or two.
The players and coaches will have this weekend to correct things on offense. Having this weekend off probably couldn’t have come at a better time because the players seem tired, physically and emotionally.
All is not well with the Hawkeyes right now, but it’s nothing that can’t be corrected with a little hard work, execution and some time off.