Iowa basketball: What to watch for in Hawkeyes' matchup with Wisconsin on Saturday

Iowa basketball: What to watch for in Hawkeyes’ matchup with Wisconsin on Saturday

Posted by author February 6, 2025 Basketball

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IOWA CITY — Payton Sandfort and Josh Dix came through in Iowa’s first game since news broke that Owen Freeman is done for the remainder of the season.

Neither Sandfort nor Dix had been playing their best leading up to that game against Purdue.

Dix combined for just 14 points in the previous three games, including being shut out entirely against Ohio State. Sandfort shot just 33% from the field in the four games prior to Purdue.

But both delivered against the Boilermakers.

Sandfort and Dix combined for 50 of Iowa’s 81 points on Tuesday and were an efficient 19-of-33 (58%) from the field.

It was an encouraging development for Iowa that Sandfort and Dix played the way they did against Purdue. The problem, however, was that Iowa didn’t get enough help around them.

The Hawkeyes’ other three starters combined for just nine points. It helped that Brock Harding and Pryce Sandfort combined for 18 off the bench. But it wasn’t enough in the 90-81 loss.

This is the dilemma that Iowa faces now. The loss of Freeman hurts Iowa on multiple levels, including scoring. If Iowa’s defense continues to be poor, the Hawkeyes’ most realistic path to wins is outscoring the opponent with a high-octane offensive pace, which means they will need more contributions outside of Payton Sandfort and Dix.

Drew Thelwell is a candidate to help Iowa in that area. Thelwell had 16 points against Penn State and 20 against Ohio State but only seven in the loss to Purdue. Seydou Traore, who made his first career start for Iowa on Tuesday, didn’t score. Neither did Ladji Dembele off the bench.

For a team that was already trying to find its footing before, Iowa is clearly grappling with how to compensate for being without one of its best players.

First major red flag

Iowa and Wisconsin will meet Saturday for the second time this season. The Jan. 3 game in Madison was the first major red flag of Iowa’s 2024-25 campaign.

The Badgers dropped 116 points on 65% shooting from the field and 68% from 3-point range. It was an utterly embarrassing performance by the Hawkeyes, who had previously given reason to believe that they were much better than what they showed that Friday night in Madison.

At the time, it seemed like that game might be an aberration. The Hawkeyes bounced back with consecutive wins over Nebraska and Indiana to steady the ship. But in retrospect, it’s easier now to say that the Wisconsin game was a sign of things to come, rather than a one-time deal.

Since that win over Indiana, Iowa has lost five of its last six games in a stretch featuring more poor performances on the road. All four of Iowa’s road losses this calendar year have been by double figures. The Wisconsin game started to expose Iowa’s flaws.

After that January game in Madison, a comment by Badgers guard Kamari McGee gained traction on social media.

“We just knew that they didn’t want to play defense and all we had to do was play a little bit more defense than them and the game is ours,” McGee said.

That struck a vein in the Iowa locker room. But obviously the response hasn’t been sustained. After those back-to-back wins over Nebraska and Indiana, there hasn’t been much reason for optimism.

But Iowa has a chance to get redemption against the Badgers on Saturday in Iowa City.

Scouting Wisconsin

Since losing three in a row in December, Wisconsin has won 10 of its last 12 games. The Badgers have been a surprise team in the Big Ten this season, thriving with an overall record of 18-5, including an 8-4 mark in conference play.

John Tonje and John Blackwell are both averaging better than 15 points per game this season. The Badgers also typically start two bigs, Steven Crowl and Nolan Winter, which could present issues for Iowa on the glass. Rebounding was an area Iowa already struggled with even when Freeman was available.

Wisconsin will enter Saturday’s contest averaging 81.3 points per game, so Iowa’s ability to slow down the Badgers’ offensive attack remains a major concern.

Iowa vs. Wisconsin prediction

This week presented two major chances for Iowa to inject some semblance of life into a season that is crumbling. The Hawkeyes missed their first of two resume-building opportunities at Carver Hawkeye-Arena this week with the loss to No. 7 Purdue.

Iowa still has a chance to salvage it against Wisconsin. But given the direction each team has been trending, it figures to be an uphill battle for the Hawkeyes. Wisconsin 87, Iowa 77

Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com