It may be blasphemy...

[hawkeyemark18]

Well They were called the "twin towers" before Payne and Stokes"......

I do remember the twin towers now. Thanks! Good point made earlier in the thread that The Big Ten did have some big front lines back then. A reflection of the very different game played with no three point line.

This thread has refreshed some memories for me of some just beautiful basketball played in a previous life. We have started playing some beautiful basketball again which warms my heart after such a long absence.

 

[HoggI74]

Lester had Arnold. Beyond that they were average but over achievers. Bobby H was good

Bobby was a freshman when Ronnie was a senior. 5.5 PPG as a freshman.

The FF 4 team had 5 starters who averaged in double figures in scoring. More than 11 PPG but less than 15. Total team effort.

Once again Stirtz, the 40 minute " Ironman, " put the team on his back and carried them to a win...

 

[Chicagoherky]

...but there I said it. Bennett Stirtz is the best point guard ever to play at Iowa. Sorry Ronnie and Andre...

I've never seen a better Iowa point guard and unstoppable player than Andre Woolridge. He almost beat a great Kentucky team single handedly in the NCAA tourney.

 

[LaQuintaHawk]

Anyone who doesn't have Lester as the CLEAR #1 needs to take a timeout and re-evaluate.

I respect all the others mentioned and it would be hard to rank them after Lester, but have no doubt, it would be after Lester.

 

[Gonzo_Bloor]

Usually both of them were in the starting lineup, probably because many teams had big front lines. Twin Towers. In the 1980 tourney, though, Lute started Brookins instead of Waite. That moved the 6’6” Boyle to PF. Vince was 6’5” and definitely a wing.

Vince Brookins was so silky smooth. My favorite Iowa MBB player ever. I couldn't wear #32 in HS because it was already claimed but I wore #31 because of VB.

 

[HoggI74]

Starts to get silly? Nope. If you watched Ronnie Harmon play, and watched Bennet Stirtz now, there is no comparison. (both fine players, but please.....)

You think Bennett Stirtz is taking Iowa to the Final Four? Cause Harmon wasn't surrounded by studs either, and Iowa made the Final Four, and won a share of the Big Ten title his Junior year. The dream died when his knee died. That's how good Ronnie Harmon was.

He had a growth spurt in high school that caused him knee pain, and that pretty much continued apparently. 5'6" to 6'2" between sophomore and junior year.

He was an All-American as a Junior at Iowa, and missed 16 games as a Senior with knee issues. Iowa won a share of the Big Ten title his junior year, the last time that has happened. Kenny Arnold and the boys came together without him his last year, were 10-8 in the Big Ten, and when he played late in the season.......well, the rest is history.

Iowa lost to eventual champ Louisville 80-72. Lester was 4-4 from the field and 2-2 from the line, when he was injured 12 minutes in. That's how good Ronnie Lester was.

I wasn't old enough to remember Freddy Brown and Company, but for me it's Ronnie Lester AINEC.

Harmon was surrounded with a lot better players than Stirtz. The starting 5 all averaged over 11 PPG and Waite, Gannon and Hansen came off the bench and added another 20 PPG among the 3...

Well They were called the "twin towers" before Payne and Stokes"......

They were referred to as " The Ivory Towers..."

Anyone who doesn't have Lester as the CLEAR #1 needs to take a timeout and re-evaluate.

I respect all the others mentioned and it would be hard to rank them after Lester, but have no doubt, it would be after Lester.

Again, I attended every home game and a few on the road that Lester played in and Stirtz does things and controls the game at a higher level than Ronnie. Plus the 40 minutes a game, every game. It'd be nice if we had a 6'11" and a 6'10" for Stirtz to work with like Ronnie had...

 

[Jonesy5960]

Anyone who doesn't have Lester as the CLEAR #1 needs to take a timeout and re-evaluate.

I respect all the others mentioned and it would be hard to rank them after Lester, but have no doubt, it would be after Lester.

Yup. Point guard is akin to the QB on a football team. Basketball and football are team games with the exception of point guard and quarterback. When you have great ones, they lift the entire team to much greater heights. When you look at that 79-80 team, you have the perfect with Ronnie and without Ronnie comparison. Without him they were a slightly above average team that barely made the tournament. With him I'm not sure that they lost a game that he finished and likely win a national championship.

 

[HMB Trumpet]

They were referred to as " The Ivory Towers..."

That's an LOL-worthy nickname, but I don't remember ever hearing it. The Steves were called the Twin Towers when they were on the floor together.

 

[Gonzo_Bloor]

That's an LOL-worthy nickname, but I don't remember ever hearing it. The Steves were called the Twin Towers when they were on the floor together.

This is what I remember. Never heard them called Ivory Towers. Then Payne and Stokes came as the "Twin Towers" 2.0.

To this day IMO the coolest Iowa MBB nickname was Al Lorenzen "The Vanilla Gorilla" followed closely by "Sir Jamalot" Gerry Wright.

 

[HawksRule25]

This is what I remember. Never heard them called Ivory Towers. Then Payne and Stokes came as the "Twin Towers" 2.0.

To this day IMO the coolest Iowa MBB nickname was Al Lorenzen "The Vanilla Gorilla" followed closely by "Sir Jamalot" Gerry Wright.

Great nicknames. I would like to submit Bruce 'Sky' King as well.

 

[HMB Trumpet]

Steve Krafcisin was Special K.

 

[HoggI74]

It's not blasphemy. It's just premature, at best. Did you ever see Lester or Andre Woolridge play at Iowa? Downtown Freddie Brown? How about Murray Wier of Waterloo?

Stirtz, especially recently, has been outstanding. Bennett is one of the best point guards Iowa has ever had. But the best ever? That might be a step too far. Let's revisit that when the season is over.

Yes I grew up with all of them except Murry Wier who came from Grandview, Iowa in Louisa county and played at Muscatine, not Waterloo. I can't think of anyone from Waterloo, Kent McCausland maybe...

 

[HMB Trumpet]

Regarding nicknames, current women’s player Chit Chat is near the top.

 

[LaQuintaHawk]

Again, I attended every home game and a few on the road that Lester played in and Stirtz does things and controls the game at a higher level than Ronnie. Plus the 40 minutes a game, every game. It'd be nice if we had a 6'11" and a 6'10" for Stirtz to work with like Ronnie had...

All I know is that Ronnie would’ve taken over that game last night and pulled it out for the Hawkeyes.

 

[Tsawvell55]

He’s definitely up there with some of the best. No way to argue against that. Ronnie and Bj were super special. Andre was great. Dean Oliver was a lot of fun to watch. Jeff Horner was awesome. But going further back, Down Town Freddie Brown was unbelievable to watch. There were a couple of other ones whose names escape me now.

I seen Ronnie before he hurt his knee, Bennet is an All American no doubt but Ronnie still is the best I’ve seen. Matter of fact probably the best ever at Iowa. Lute was asked who was the best pg he ever had without hesitation he said Ronnie Lester, he had like 4 all American pg’s at Arizona.