Looks like Peter Jok didn't play last night as he is nursing a back injury. Hawkeyes still scored 85 though. I think we have a great shot for a W.
Iowa on Tuesday
- Thread starter jersey07080
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As we all know, Rutgers always fills the bill "just what the doctor ordered" when it comes to opposing players. Remember the Terps last week? We are the Lourdes of college basketball and football.
I think the staff has improved from Game one to Game two based on what I saw live at MSG yesterday.....The mistakes of leaving 3 point shooters open like we did at Madison, was minimized to the very end of the game yesterday and they made Wisconsin shoot 2's instead of doubling down and leaving Showalter and Koenig open for threes....the threes they took were contested all game long.
With the next two games being "rematches" with Iowa and then at Penn State on Saturday afternoon, I think it allows RU to adjust and figure out what they can focus on and what they have to change when defending Iowa.
I think Iowa is dangerous because Jok not playing takes away the defensive focus and you can count on him taking 15-20 shots a game.....yes he can pass the ball and creates double teams, that leaves shooters open, but we'll see how RU matches up.......if he doesn't play, it forces RU to play honest defense and they have enough shooting to win here. I'm almost certain this is about the rebounding and defense again and can we get the backcourt to 45 points at home (Sanders, Johnson and Williams).
Thiam is a player that will have to play 8-10 minutes with Laurent out, so can we squeeze a couple of threes out of him?? RU is progressing in the right direction in the last 2 games, Iowa and Penn State are almost certainly going to have to adjust their game plans or they could find themselves on the wrong end of the scoreboard.
With the next two games being "rematches" with Iowa and then at Penn State on Saturday afternoon, I think it allows RU to adjust and figure out what they can focus on and what they have to change when defending Iowa.
I think Iowa is dangerous because Jok not playing takes away the defensive focus and you can count on him taking 15-20 shots a game.....yes he can pass the ball and creates double teams, that leaves shooters open, but we'll see how RU matches up.......if he doesn't play, it forces RU to play honest defense and they have enough shooting to win here. I'm almost certain this is about the rebounding and defense again and can we get the backcourt to 45 points at home (Sanders, Johnson and Williams).
Thiam is a player that will have to play 8-10 minutes with Laurent out, so can we squeeze a couple of threes out of him?? RU is progressing in the right direction in the last 2 games, Iowa and Penn State are almost certainly going to have to adjust their game plans or they could find themselves on the wrong end of the scoreboard.
you never know which Iowa team you are going to get from game to game. I will say on the road, they are not very good at all and this is where they will need an experienced player like Jok. He is or was the Big 10 leading scorer. They adjusted in his absence against a mediocre OSU which doesnt play much defense. We know RU plays defense but will they be able to hit shots and score. RU was hitting at a high percentage in the first half vs Wisky but then fell off and we have seen this inconsistency alot and in the last game vs Iowa. Will RU be able to score more than Iowa? As great as RU defense was against Wisky, Wisky was missing shots they normally make. You cant count on a team scoring in the 40s, this game will likely be in the 60s
We have to make hay in these next 2 games. There are no easy B1G games but these are some of our best shots for league wins and our first league road win. I'd like to take 1 if not both. We are playing well enough now, just need to avoid a Whisky hangover or not bringing the same effort as we have the last 2-3 games. I expect a boisterous crowd Tuesday. I will be there and hope to be hoarse at work on Wednesday.
The issue going forward really isn't the opponent but rather Rutgers inability to score .The trend is toward 60 points or less which won't get the job done regardless where the game is played.There are far too many players getting significant minutes and producing five or less points.Its simple math which Coach Pikiell has explained ,ie, can't win if you can't score.Squeezing points out of a squad of non scorers in a power conference is a challenge that even the best college coach would find daunting.
I wouldn't take anything away from our defense. We didn't give them squat for the majority of the game. They didn't know whether to scratch their as# or wind their watch.
IMO, this is a game we need to win after the heartbreaking loss on Saturday. Whether Jok plays or not doesn't matter to me. What matters is we play our game, which is strong defense and rebounding and hopefully hit our shots, which include FT's.
