Patience, determination and athleticism all paying dividends for Isaiah Moss
By Pat Harty
IOWA CITY, Iowa – Unlike a 10-foot high rim on a basketball court, getting to college was no easy task for Isaiah Moss.
The Chicago native didn’t enroll in summer school at the University of Iowa prior to his freshman year in 2015 because he still had to complete some academic work before coming to Iowa City.
Moss was playing catchup from the moment he arrived on campus because most of the incoming freshmen basketball players attend summer school to help ease the transition from high school.
His delayed start to college led to Moss being redshirted last season as a true freshman. It wasn’t easy practicing every day and attending class without being rewarded with the thrill of playing in games.
But Moss quietly stayed the course and worked hard on being a student-athlete. He stayed patient, waiting for his opportunity to shine.
And when that opportunity finally came this season, the 6-foot-5 Moss seized the moment and continues to do so as a starter for the Hawkeyes, who face Purdue on Thursday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Moss is proof that success doesn’t always come in a hurry. He probably wasn’t thrilled about redshirting last season, but he clearly has benefitted from the decision.
“It helped me a lot, just mentally seeing the game all around and learning a lot of new stuff and getting stronger,” Moss said Wednesday before practice. “It helped a lot academically because it was a big change and transition for me.”
Moss was part of lineup change that Iowa coach Fran McCaffery made heading into the seventh game of the season against Notre Dame. Iowa was 3-3 at the time and struggling on both ends of the floor.
Moss was stunned when McCaffery announced the lineup changes in practice.
Moss’ father was even more stunned.
“I called my dad first and I was going to surprise him, but I just told him,” Moss said. “He didn’t really believe it at first.”
Moss has started 11 consecutive games and has scored at least seven points in eight of his 11 starts. He has been a force in transition, aggressively attacking the rim and scoring on drives and penetration.
“We needed to shake it up at that point,” McCaffery said of the lineup change. “We needed to shake the lineup up, and he was playing extremely well in practice. And in the small sample of minutes we gave him, he was doing well in games. So you never know if a guy's going to have it in him unless you put it out there.
“So we put him out there. He's proved that he deserved it and he's earned it. Literally earned what he's gotten. He appreciates that, and I certainly have a lot of respect for him for doing that.”
McCaffery admires the way in which Moss has handled each obstacle that comes his way.
“It was a difficult thing just to get here,” McCaffery said of Moss’ transition from high school. “And then to figure it out, he was behind everybody else. They already know stuff that he doesn't know. You can only imagine how that would make you feel. He stuck with it. We stuck with him, and that's one of the reasons we wanted to redshirt him so that he didn't feel incredible pressure. Okay, I'm not playing because I don't know exactly what this is. Well, don't worry about it. You'll figure it out. There's no pressure, and you don't lose any eligibility.
“So I think as he got to the middle of the last season, he figured this is the best thing that ever happened to me is I didn't play. You're seeing the benefit of his hard work.”
Moss said his aggressive playing style is a product of growing up in Chicago where pick-up games are filled with high-rising rim rattlers.
“Being aggressive and getting to the rim is something that you definitely have a lot going on in Chicago,” Moss said. “I kind of learned that out there and brought it here. And it’s been working for me.”
Moss speaks softly and doesn’t waste words. His shy demeanor off the court is in contrast to his flamboyant playing style.
“I think I’m a lot more confident now,” Moss said. “I’ve just been seeing a lot of improvements in my game. My teammates and my coaching staff have a lot of confidence in me. So that really helps me out.”
Moss credits much of his success to playing alongside senior star Peter Jok, who often draws a crowd on offense. Jok is the only current starter for Iowa who isn't either a redshirt freshman or a true freshman.
“A lot of teams like to double-team him so that brings opportunity to me and I just try to take advantage of it,” Moss said.
Jok sort of treats Moss like a younger brother, giving him guidance and inspiration.
“Since he came here freshman year, I’ve always known he had great potential,” Jok said. “He’s been working hard and this past summer I really took him under my wing and we worked out together.
“We played a lot of one-on-one and I talked to him about what I went through and stuff. So I’ve been talking to him to just stay positive and keep working hard.”
Moss hardly is a finished product at this stage. He still struggles with consistency and with creating for his teammates off the dribble.
But he has enormous potential, which was evident, even during his redshirt season.
“Last year in practice, he was up and down, but you saw it fairly regularly in terms of his ability to score the basketball, make threes, finish in transition, drive the ball to the basket,” McCaffery said. “Now what he needs to do is incorporate his ability to make plays for other people off the dribble. That's hard because I want him to be aggressive and score for himself. I'm encouraging him to attack and go score, go get buckets.
“So it's identifying that fine line between, okay, when do I get a bucket for myself and when do I move it all, and how are they playing me? Because he plays with kind of a reckless abandon, which is good most of the time.”
Iowa vs. Purdue
When: 8:06 p.m. Thursday
Where: Carver-Hawkeye Arena
TV: Big Ten Network
Records: Purdue is 3-1 in the Big Ten and 14-3 overall; Iowa is 10-7 and 2-2.
Last meeting: Purdue scored the first eight points and led 25-8 in the first half before cruising to an 89-67 victory in the Big Ten opener on Dec. 28 in West Lafayette. The Boilermakers made 10 3-point baskets in the first game.
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