Harty: This shouldn’t happen to a team with four senior starters
INDIANAPOLIS – Adios Indianapolis.
And so much for the comfort of playing in Des Moines.
That pretty much sums up the depressing circumstances for the Iowa men’s basketball team in the wake of Thursday’s 68-66 loss to Illinois in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament at Bankers Life Fieldhouse.
An Iowa team that won 10 of its first 11 Big Ten games and climbed to as high as third in the national rankings lost to an Illinois team that entered Thursday’s game with a 14-18 record, seeded 12th in the tournament and depleted by injuries.
Iowa coach Fran McCaffery also saw his record fall to 2-6 in the Big Ten Tournament, with each of the last three losses coming in Iowa’s first game and against an opponent seeded lower than 10th.
“I know coach expects a lot more out of us,” senior guard Anthony Clemmons said of McCaffery. “He’s going to get more out of us.
“We’re going to swallow this one and remember this pain.”
The Iowa players now have to wait until Sunday to learn where they will play in the NCAA Tournament. One thing seems certain, though, that it won’t be at the regional site in Des Moines.
Iowa probably would have to be at least a four-seed to earn the luxury of playing in Des Moines. But with five losses in the last six games, Iowa doesn’t deserve that luxury.
It’s embarrassing that Iowa hasn’t advanced past the quarterfinals of the conference tournament since 2006.
“I mean it sucks,” said Clemmons, who missed all eight of his shots and was held scoreless. “But as of right now, we can’t do nothing about it.”
What made Thursday’s loss a head-scratcher is that Iowa started four seniors and a junior, while Illinois started one senior, three juniors and a freshman.
And yet, it was Illinois that played with more poise, precision and passion, with exception to the 11-0 scoring run that Iowa had late in the game.
Iowa was careless with the basketball, committing 18 turnovers, including four by Clemmons and three by senior point guard Mike Gesell.
“You can’t win a tournament game turning the ball over 18 times,” McCaffery said. “Can’t.”
It’s also hard to win a tournament game playing two against five on offense, which was the case for Iowa on Thursday.
Take away the combined 50 points that were scored by junior guard Peter Jok (29) and senior forward Jarrod Uthoff (21) and Iowa’s offense barely fired a shot against a mediocre and undersized opponent. Jok and Uthoff were a combined 19-of-32 from the field, while the rest of team made just 6-of-30 shots from the field.
“The offense didn’t really flow very well in the first half,” McCaffery said. “It was pretty much Pete and Jarrod making shots.
“It was a little bit better in the second except for that one stretch when we coughed it up a few times.”
Illinois deserves credit for some of Iowa’s miscues, but some of it also was Iowa being careless with the basketball.
That’s disappointing because Iowa almost always had three or four seniors on the court at the same time in Thursday’s game.
If not for Nicholas Baer’s energy off the bench, Iowa’s second-half comeback probably wouldn’t have happened. The walk-on freshman forward scored all eight of his points during the final 4 minutes of the game, sparking the comeback.
But with four senior starters, Iowa shouldn’t have to rely on a kid paying his own way to school to ignite a comeback.
It was a shame, and costly, how Jok’s brilliant performance came to an end, with him fouling out after being called for his fourth foul and for a technical foul with 4:02 left to play. Jok and Illinois guard Kendrick Nunn both were called for technical fouls after a brief altercation under Iowa’s basket.
"You have no idea how much I would like to describe my frustration," McCaffery said. "Leave it at that."
The legacy of Iowa’s senior class is on the line heading into the NCAA Tournament. They’ve accomplished some wonderful things, including winning 12 Big Ten games in each of the past two season.
But they’ve also failed to deliver in the clutch on too many occasions.
“We’ll get back on track,” Gesell said. “If you’re not ready to play in the NCAA Tournament, then I think there is something wrong with you.
“We’ll be ready to go. It starts tomorrow, and we’ll get back to work.”
The frustration from Thursday’s loss was apparent during McCaffery’s post-game press conference. He was in no mood to discuss what play Iowa tried to run at the end of game when trailing 68-66.
Whatever play it was, it didn’t work as Iowa didn’t even attempt a shot. Gesell’s inbound pass sailed over Dom Uhl, who then tipped the ball out of bounds while trying to retrieve it, giving Illinois possession with 2.6 left to play.
“It’s none of your business what the play was,” McCaffery fired back at a reporter.
The frustration with losing seems to be wearing on McCaffery because asking what play Iowa tried to run at the end of the game seems like a fair question.
The frustration with losing is definitely wearing on the Iowa fans, who flocked to social media after the game to voice their displeasure.
Fans are confused and upset, wondering why a team with so much proven talent and experience would unravel at the end of the season.
The same thing happened two years ago, so it shows signs of being a disturbing pattern under McCaffery.
Fans wonder why a senior-led team that looked almost unbeatable in December and January now looks discombobulated when it matters the most.
McCaffery is probably wondering the same thing because he, obviously, doesn’t have the answer.