Today’s loss

[LaQuintaHawk]

Unless we win one of the remaining two, just ruined the season for me.

I was willing to overlook the Minnesota and Maryland losses, but this is strike three.

I don’t see a miracle BTT championship or Sweet Sixteen coming this year, but either one would also salvage it for me.

 

[IowaCityLit]

Unless we win one of the remaining two, just ruined the season for me.

I was willing to overlook the Minnesota and Maryland losses, but this is strike three.

I don’t see a miracle BTT championship or Sweet Sixteen coming this year, but either one would also salvage it for me.

Your expectations are way out of whack. Enjoy the bumpy ride.

 

[T_Woods]

So year 1 for some fans, like OP, wanted or expected a BTT championship or a sweet 16?!? Damn that’s a high bar for first year coach in a program that hasn’t seen a sweet 16 since the Clinton administration.

 

[Hawklove]

A pretty awful loss. Sometimes these guys play like they don’t care. They shoot like they are simultaneously posing for a picture, looking cool, and not having a sense of urgency - remember those last second heroics under Fran with Jordan or Payton and others? This team doesn’t seem capable of doing that. Maybe I’m too bitter right now, but I have been feeling the whole season. But then, this is Ben’s first season. They have by far exceeded my expectations, as I was sure we would have a losing season. So, go Hawks!

 

[QChawks]

I think it all comes down to expectations

I expected this team to go 20-11

And for a while there it looked like we were going to struggle to get to 16 wins and then things switched and my expectations got higher and then I thought there was a chance we could win as many as 23 games

And here we are with a few games left and my prediction looks like it’s right on track

This team is certainly not great nor are they awful. They’re pretty average in my opinion. They lack height, they lack consistent scoring I’m most importantly, I don’t trust their defense anymore.

 

[scotihawk]

Is absolutely meaningless.

100% wanted a win, but game means NOTHING.

 

[Buffalo43]

They need a shot blocker rim protector next year

 

[Max Rebo]

I predicted 18 wins a few weeks ago. We are at 20. Tough loss today, but I’m not disappointed in the season as a whole. And it’s not over yet.

In making the 18-win prediction, I noted that some of the folks making loftier predictions were setting themselves up for disappointment. I think I was right.

I think our fandom — or at least our message board fandom — is clinically bipolar.

 

[TampaHawkFan]

Is absolutely meaningless.

100% wanted a win, but game means NOTHING.

Only if you don't care about tournament seeding.

 

[EvilMonkeyInTheCloset]

A pretty awful loss. Sometimes these guys play like they don’t care. They shoot like they are simultaneously posing for a picture, looking cool, and not having a sense of urgency - remember those last second heroics under Fran with Jordan or Payton and others? This team doesn’t seem capable of doing that. Maybe I’m too bitter right now, but I have been feeling the whole season. But then, this is Ben’s first season. They have by far exceeded my expectations, as I was sure we would have a losing season. So, go Hawks!

I've said it before in a roundabout way. This team has not gelled/is lacking in chemistry, even with all the Drake guys on the roster, and what's worse, when you hear in the post-games about the body language and the negative reactions when things aren't going well, it shows that these guys are kind of going through the motions at best with Ben's coaching to this point in the season.

It's not a good look, regardless, and has me concerned going forward given what I know about other mental midget recruits and transfers at the D1 level.

 

[scotihawk]

Only if you don't care about tournament seeding.

Quibbling about an 8 or 9 seed in a worthless Big Ten tournament is as close to meaningless as you can get.

Always like a win, but in three weeks no one will ever remember a thing about this meaningless game.

Flush it and move on.

 

[Hawk48]

A pretty awful loss. Sometimes these guys play like they don’t care. They shoot like they are simultaneously posing for a picture, looking cool, and not having a sense of urgency - remember those last second heroics under Fran with Jordan or Payton and others? This team doesn’t seem capable of doing that. Maybe I’m too bitter right now, but I have been feeling the whole season. But then, this is Ben’s first season. They have by far exceeded my expectations, as I was sure we would have a losing season. So, go Hawks!

I agree with your comments

 

[Tsawvell55]

Iowa is a field hockey school!

 

[Hawk48]

I predicted 18 wins a few weeks ago. We are at 20. Tough loss today, but I’m not disappointed in the season as a whole. And it’s not over yet.

In making the 18-win prediction, I noted that some of the folks making loftier predictions were setting themselves up for disappointment. I think I was right.

I think our fandom — or at least our message board fandom — is clinically bipolar.

I tried to temper my expectations as well and if someone said 20 wins I would have been very pleased.

 

[Hawkfan_08*]

Iowa is a field hockey school!

I've got bad news for you...

 

[DukeSlater]

Your expectations are way out of whack. Enjoy the bumpy ride.

It's "way out of whack" to expect Iowa, a 20-win team that just blew out Ohio State, to beat a 2-15 PSU team in front of a handful of fans in Happy Valley? I guess Iowa fans should expect to lose every game, then we would never be disappointed, and maybe then our expectations would be back in whack.

 

[IowaCityLit]

It's "way out of whack" to expect Iowa, a 20-win team that just blew out Ohio State, to beat a 2-15 PSU team in front of a handful of fans in Happy Valley? I guess Iowa fans should expect to lose every game, then we would never be disappointed, and maybe then our expectations would be back in whack.

You’re sounding like a meathead. Big picture. Iowa was gonna lose some of these games. Getting all butthurt about records is missing the point. Iowas roster in all seriousness has no business being a 20 win roster. One step at a time.

 

[TampaHawkFan]

You’re sounding like a meathead. Big picture. Iowa was gonna lose some of these games. Getting all butthurt about records is missing the point. Iowas roster in all seriousness has no business being a 20 win roster. One step at a time.

He's right. Iowa is a 20 win team in the Big Ten and much of this roster was in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago. You don't lose to Penn St. I'm just going to agree to disagree on this.

 

[IowaCityLit]

He's right. Iowa is a 20 win team in the Big Ten and much of this roster was in the 2nd round of the NCAA Tournament a year ago. You don't lose to Penn St. I'm just going to agree to disagree on this.

And this Iowa team may be in the 2nd round.

last years drake roster doesn’t finish 500 in the big 10.


Take the best player later off each roster in the big 10 and then rank the rosters. Iowa would be around 15 or 16.

 

[TailgateTom]

You’re sounding like a meathead. Big picture. Iowa was gonna lose some of these games. Getting all butthurt about records is missing the point. Iowas roster in all seriousness has no business being a 20 win roster. One step at a time.

It should have been a 23-8 roster, but we couldn' beat 3 three of the worst teams in the conference for some bizarre reason.

 

[fivecardstud14]

It should have been a 23-8 roster, but we couldn' beat 3 three of the worst teams in the conference for some bizarre reason.

Life on the road.

 

[HawksRule25]

It should have been a 23-8 roster, but we couldn' beat 3 three of the worst teams in the conference for some bizarre reason.

Minnesota has beaten Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State and UCLA at home. They are OK - not a terrible loss. The other 2 losses (Maryland and Penn State) were not good at all.

 

[QChawks]

 

[LaQuintaHawk]

Your expectations are way out of whack. Enjoy the bumpy ride.

I don’t think so. Not with a great coach, veteran team and a future lottery pick on the team.

 

[HawkeyeGenius]

If Iowa upsets Michigan, maybe they'll have win against the top two teams and losses against the bottom two teams.

 

[T_Woods]

If you look closer at the teams that Iowa beats and loses to, you see a pattern: teams like Nebraska want to pass the ball around and find an open look—a scouting report is more valuable against teams like that. Look at Maryland they went iso ball and a scouting report doesn’t matter nearly as much because it’s just a one on one game. Remember the USC comeback, all one guy. Wisconsin second half went back to the same guy over and over

Iowa is good stopping the other team’s traditional offense, it’s when the other team starts to go one on one is when they have struggled.

So I think you can disregard to the other team’s record, to some degree, and look more at what they are looking to do on offense.

 

[HawkeyeGenius]

If you look closer at the teams that Iowa beats and loses to, you see a pattern: teams like Nebraska want to pass the ball around and find an open look—a scouting report is more valuable against teams like that. Look at Maryland they went iso ball and a scouting report doesn’t matter nearly as much because it’s just a one on one game. Remember the USC comeback, all one guy. Wisconsin second half went back to the same guy over and over

Iowa is good stopping the other team’s traditional offense, it’s when the other team starts to go one on one is when they have struggled.

So I think you can disregard to the other team’s record, to some degree, and look more at what they are looking to do on offense.

Backyard basketball?

 

[UIAlumFireFighter]

I don’t care what any of you say.. Losing this game was god awful. Terrible.

Aren’t they, PSU, last in the conference?

 

[UIAlumFireFighter]

I don’t think so. Not with a great coach, veteran team and a future lottery pick on the team.

200%

 

[Hawkeye1984]

Where are the university cheerleaders?

And this is exactly why Iowa cannot have nice things.

We have state media reporters and commentators overhyping everything just to drive fan excitement and revenue. Instead of honest evaluation, we get inflated narratives. They should all be ashamed of themselves.

When we start getting fair, balanced, and objective analysis, then we can actually begin building a strong program.

 

[Rambler Hawk]

Minnesota has beaten Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State and UCLA at home. They are OK - not a terrible loss. The other 2 losses (Maryland and Penn State) were not good at all.

Agreed - but don’t forget we also struggled against a couple other bottom feeders, Northwestern and Rutgers. Big picture, I’d say most people are pleasantly pleased with Ben’s 1st year. The Nebraska and UCLA win’s were impressive and hopefully gets us in the Dance at least…