Fanhouse NCAA Basketball Blog - iowa-basketball

Stringer Takes No Pleasure in Facing Iowa

Michelle Smith — 2010-03-19T18:46:00 00:00

Filed under: Iowa, Stanford, Big East, Big Ten, Women's Basketball

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- C. Vivian Stringer found herself standing in the hallway in the Stanford athletic department building chatting with Cardinal coach Tara VanDerveer and Iowa coach Lisa Bluder.

She had already run into Stanford athletic director Bob Bowlsby in the hallway, exchanging updates about their now-grown children.

The ties that bind are everywhere this weekend for Rutgers' head coach.

VanDerveer and Stringer go back more than 25 years as friends and coaching adversaries. Bluder and Stringer share more than the common experience of being the Iowa head coach. And Stringer and Bowlsby used to stand on the soccer fields together in Iowa City and watch their sons -- now young men -- play on youth teams. Bowlsby is the former Iowa athletic director.

"This is really ironic," Stringer said Friday. "There's a real personal kind of connection here. It's like a family reunion."

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Alexander Leads Iowa Into NCAA Tourney

Michelle Smith — 2010-03-19T18:23:00 00:00

by Michelle Smith

Filed under: Iowa, Big Ten, Women's Basketball

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Kachine Alexander strapped a plastic brace to her lower right leg as she prepared for Iowa's practice on the day before the eighth-seeded Hawkeyes open the NCAA tournament against No. 9 seed Rutgers.

That brace, that injury -- a mysterious stress fracture that forced her to sit for seven games -- could be the defining symbol of her junior season.

But it isn't.

Instead, Alexander's season has been defined by her leadership in the face of adversity, her work ethic in pursuit of her goals and a nose for the ball off the rim.

The Hawkeyes junior forward enters Saturday's game as the team's leading scorer, averaging 15.5 points, and its leading rebounder at 11.1.

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Notebook: Critical Summitt Sees Big Picture for Improving Vols

Michelle Smith — 2010-03-01T18:30:00 00:00

by Michelle Smith

Filed under: Connecticut, Iowa, Kentucky, LSU, Texas, Big East, Big Ten, Georgia, Women's Basketball, Florida State

If Pat Summitt were easily satisfied ... well, she wouldn't be Pat Summitt.

It seems as if after every Tennessee game -- as her maturing, improving Lady Vols have clicked off one win after another -- Summitt goes public with her unhappiness about one element of the game or another.

On Sunday, Tennessee defeated Mississippi, 75-63, to close the regular season and Summitt said, "There's no excuse for not being ready," and, "You can't pick and choose when you play."

On Valentine's Day, the Vols defeated Florida 83-44 and she said, "We need to be a 40-minute team. I told them, 'We're not going to San Antonio. We're not going anywhere in the tournament unless we invest in being a 40-minute team.' "

On Feb. 18, following a 74-67 win over last-place Alabama, Summitt said. "We disrespected the game of basketball tonight."

But Summitt sees the big picture. She knows her young team -- the one that left her disappointed and frustrated a year ago -- has turned into a national championship contender, navigating a brutal season in the SEC during which eight games were decided by single-digits.

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Lots of Good Saturday Ball -- Except in the Big Ten

Chas Rich — 2010-02-13T11:25:00 00:00

by Chas Rich

Filed under: Indiana, Iowa, Michigan State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten, Media Watch

Lots of great games today. The ACC has big showdowns with Maryland-Duke, Virginia-Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech-Wake Forest. The Big East has big bubble games with Cinci-UConn and South Florida-Marquette. The Mountain West has an intriguing New Mexico-Utah match-up. The A-10 has a big game with Dayton-St. Louis. Plus a non-con bubble game of Xavier-Florida. Then there is the primetime ESPN game of Tennessee-Kentucky.

Everywhere but in the Big Ten.

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Nation's Best Coaching in Big Ten

Matt Snyder — 2009-05-04T18:58:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten, Coaches

In 2008, the Big Ten sent only four teams to the NCAA tournament. None reached the Elite Eight The Big Ten toiled down with mid-majors in conference RPI and were nationally maligned as the "Average 11." This past season, however, the league enjoyed a resurgence. It ranked only behind the ACC in conference RPI. Seven schools earned a berth into the NCAA tournament, and Penn State won the NIT. Michigan State toppled the defending national champions and two number one seeds en route to a national runner-up finish.

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Penn State Cancels Out Its Illinois Win

Chris Burke — 2009-03-07T16:40:00 00:00

by Chris Burke

Filed under: Iowa, Penn State, Big Ten

The NCAA bubble is a fickle mistress. One day -- literally, for one day -- Penn State appeared to be an NCAA Tournament lock after Thursday night's shocking come-from-behind win over Illinois. Less than 48 hours after that miracle, Penn State's profile looks shaky again following a 75-67, double-overtime loss at Iowa.

Penn State nearly pulled off another Houdini job against the Hawkeyes. Iowa led 51-42 with two minutes left when Nittany Lions point guard Talor Battle decided to take over. Battle scored the next 11 Penn State points, while Iowa got sloppy with the ball, and the Lions actually surged ahead 56-54 just 34 seconds from the final buzzer. Iowa tied it, Battle missed a last-ditch three-pointer and on to extra sessions the two teams went.

Iowa 75, Penn State 67 (2 OT): Recap | Box Score | RPI | Scores

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Michigan Down to Last Strike

Chas Rich — 2009-02-22T19:47:00 00:00

by Chas Rich

Filed under: Iowa, Michigan, Big Ten

Michigan's NCAA tournament hopes took a big blow in Iowa City.

The Wolverines made a gutty comeback on the Hawkeyes, before letting Iowa tie the game in the final seconds and send it to overtime. But in the extra frame, Michigan's fight, and its leading scorer were nowhere to be found. Manny Harris, the Wolverines leading scorer was stuck on the bench in overtime, apparently for something that upset Coach John Beilein, as Michigan fell 70-60.

And they might have lost more than just the game.

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Big Ten Update: Penn State Is Cooked, But Badgers Are Back

Matt Snyder — 2009-02-12T14:30:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten

A few weeks ago I did a halfway point roundup for the Big Ten, in which I buried Wisconsin and hailed Penn State to no end. Boy, do I look like an idiot now. Since then, Penn State crumbled, while Wisconsin has done a 180.

The Nittany Lions were embarrassed by Michigan, lost at home to Wisconsin, and handily lost at Purdue. They now sit just 6-6 in conference play, and their RPI has plunged into the 80s. With road trips to Illinois and Ohio State -- not to mention hosting Illinois and Minnesota -- it would appear they are fading back into obscurity.

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The Big Ten: Halfway Point Roundup

Matt Snyder — 2009-02-05T18:30:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten

With just over a month in the books and most teams having played about half their conference schedule, let's check out the big boys of the Midwest. We're seeing a slight upheaval when it comes to traditional powers, as Indiana and Wisconsin sit in the bottom third of the standings, Northwestern is respectable, and Penn State is in the mix toward the top.

At this point, the conference is very balanced, and much stronger than it has been in recent years. They have a shot at seven bids for the Big Dance, but six is the more likely number.

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Tom Crean Was Excited Last Night

Will Brinson — 2009-02-05T16:51:00 00:00

by Will Brinson

Filed under: Indiana, Iowa, Big Ten, Coaches, Fans, Video

Tom Crean won his first Big Ten conference game Wednesday night (It's a Swingers moment, "Our little baby is all growsed up") and, understandably, the guy was a little excited. Although, perhaps tackling the leader of Indiana's band was a bit much, no? Seriously though, while I want to criticize him for being overly exuberant, as Ryan Corazza said, it's hard not to love the guy for being enthusiastic. And besides, he's not Kelvin Sampson. So that's an immediate plus.

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Hoosiers Finally Win a Big Ten Game

Matt Snyder — 2009-02-04T23:05:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Indiana, Iowa, Big Ten, Coaches

In their ninth try, the young Hoosiers finally gave Tom Crean his first Big Ten win as the head coach of Indiana University. This was the first win for Indiana in nearly two months, as they had tied a school record with 11 consecutive losses. Still, this seemed like a natural progression, as they had been keeping games close for the past three weeks.

Behind the hot shooting of Devan Dumes, the Hoosiers built a 20-point lead early in the second half. Down the stretch, however, Iowa closed the gap, coming within three on a few different occasions.

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Coaches Think There Could Be 7 or 8 Big Ten Teams in NCAA Tourney

Matt Snyder — 2009-01-06T14:45:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten, March Madness, Coaches

I've been trying to impress upon the FanHouse readers for a little while that the Big Ten is back to being a strong conference this year, but it seems to me the coaches are getting a bit ahead of -- or maybe too proud of -- themselves for it being early January.

Illinois coach Bruce Weber said as many as seven teams will play in the tournament. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo predicted as many as eight.

Alright, guys, step away from the microphone.

In order for a conference to get eight bids, there's going to have to be a ton of unusual circumstances. First of all, the top eight teams are going to have to basically win every single game over the bottom three. With Indiana and possibly Iowa, I could see that. Northwestern, though, has enough potential to win four or five conference games. Second of all, the teams must all have built stellar non-conference resumes, and Penn State, to name one, did not.

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Big Ten Roundup: Penn State on the Rise, Ohio State Falling, and Michigan State Up Top

Matt Snyder — 2009-01-05T12:34:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten

We learned a few things in just one week of Big Ten play. All of them point back to one conclusion: This is a strong league, nearly from top to bottom.

Michigan beat Duke at home. Wisconsin went into Michigan and won this past week, yet had trouble at home against Penn State. Purdue made Davidson look horrible, yet they lost at home to Illinois. Illinois proceeded to go into Michigan and lose. The one thing we could definitively say is that Michigan State looks like the best team in the conference after winning in Minnesota. Of course, Northwestern hung with the Spartans in East Lansing yesterday.

Dan Shanoff is one of those taking note of the Big Ten resurgence, as he referred to the conference as "Big East Lite" today.

Team to Watch: Penn State
Wisconsin, coming off the aforementioned triumph in Ann Arbor, had trouble with the feisty Nittany Lions in the Kohl Center -- a place in which they have only lost twice in Big Ten play under Bo Ryan. The upset would have been quite a feat for Ed DeChellis' program. They have an outstanding inside-outside duo in Jamelle Cornley -- who plays like a very poor man's Charles Barkley -- and Stanley Pringle. While eventually they'll need much more balance -- the two combined for 46 of Penn State's 61 points in Madison -- they provide an impressive foundation.

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Big Ten Conference Season Set to Begin: A Quick Once-Over

Matt Snyder — 2008-12-29T16:25:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten

Just when I was ready to start tooting the Big Ten's horn, again, for being on their way back to a powerhouse conference, Ohio State gets embarrassed by West Virginia and Iowa gets trounced at Drake. Those were quality opponents, sure, but it was a good time to capitalize on the impressive Michigan State and Purdue wins during the weekend prior to Christmas.

Regardless, I have to root for the conference as a whole this year to maintain some level of sanity, as my alma mater has now lost consecutive games to Northeastern and Lipscomb. What a way to build momentum heading into January, huh?

Conference season for the Big Ten kicks off Tuesday night in Mackey Arena, as Purdue hosts Illinois in what is shaping up to be quite the contest. On paper, the Boilers are easily the favorite and should handle Illinois. They very well could. The Fighting Illini, however, have only lost one game all season -- a two-pointer to undefeated and 16th ranked Clemson. Sophomore seven-footer Mike Tisdale has really come into his own in the past four games, and he'll pose a major problem for the Boilers down low. I like Purdue here, but it's gonna be a doozy.

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Maybe the 'Average 11' Doesn't Suck After All

Matt Snyder — 2008-12-08T13:30:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Wisconsin, Big Ten, Fans

It's becoming an annual tradition to hate on the Big Ten these days, and in recent years it's been hard to argue. The results haven't been great for the once mighty conference as a whole, even if there was a standout team -- Ohio State as national runner-up, for example.

As we inch closer to the conference season this year, however, it may be a bit lazy -- and even arrogant -- to start slapping the moniker "Average 11," or titles far more disrespectful, on these teams. In this non-conference season, they have proven their worth on several different occasions. This past weekend presented a coming out party for two teams.

We've already covered Michigan's resurgence, as they've now taken down both UCLA and Duke. I was actually surprised to not see them get more love in the rankings, but that loss at Maryland kept them out.

Ohio State should be quickly climbing the polls as well, after taking down two ranked opponents in the past week, neither of which was a home game (they played at Miami and against Notre Dame in Indianapolis). Gary Parrish has them ninth, but they didn't see any action in the official polls.

Adding these two to the expected upper-echelon trio of Michigan State, Wisconsin, and Purdue; the Big Ten appears to have a very strong top five.

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ACC/Big Ten Challenge Heads Into Final Day as Even as It Can Get

Shiloh Carder — 2008-12-03T01:37:00 00:00

by Shiloh Carder

Filed under: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, UNC, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Wisconsin, ACC, Big Ten, University of Miami, North Carolina

The ACC/Big Ten Challenge is entering its final day of action. Both conferences have won three games. The ACC has a slim lead in points, 405 to 402.

One interesting note is that the ACC was 33-4 at home during the first nine years of the Challenge. They've already lost two home games this year.

Let's take a look back at what has happened:

Wisconsin 74, Virginia Tech 72: The Badgers avoided an upset with a Trevon Hughes jumper with 0.7 seconds remaining. The Tech loss was the first for an ACC team at home in the Challenge in 11 games. Big Ten leads 1-0

Ohio State 73, Miami-FL 68: How about another road win for the Big Ten? Miami's Jack McClinton was ejected after taking a swipe at a Buckeye player. After an agressive run by the Canes, Ohio State mounted a second half comeback and pulled out the win. Big Ten leads 2-0.

Clemson 76, Illinois 74: Clemson puts the ACC on the board with their own road win. The Tigers' Demontez Stitt led the Tigers with 18 points and they used their defensive pressure to force 17 Illini turnovers. Big Ten leads 2-1.

Boston College 57, Iowa 55: Iowa's Andrew Brommer missed the front end of a one-and-one with 0.4 seconds left as the Hawkeyes fell to BC. Boston College held on despite scoring just one point in the final 4:45. Challenge tied 2-2.

Duke 76, Purdue 60: Jon Scheyer came back to his home turf and scored 20 points for the Blue Devils. Kyle Singer was scorching hot late to put the game away. The win helped flex the ACC's muscle. ACC leads 3-2.

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Boston College Holds On For Dear Life In Win Over Iowa

Shiloh Carder — 2008-12-02T23:01:00 00:00

by Shiloh Carder

Filed under: Boston College, Iowa, ACC, Big Ten

You'd think that if you held Tyrese Rice to just five field goal attempts that you would be able to handle Boston College. Rice would hit nine of his 12 free throw attempts and helped BC to a 57-55 win over Iowa.

The Eagles nearly gave this one away. They held a 56-45 lead with 4:45 left in the game. So, naturally, BC would score just one point the rest of the way and held off a furious Hawkeye comeback.

The comeback was nearly complete as Iowa's Andrew Brommer had two free throw attempts to tie the game. As Brommer was receiving the ball for a desperation three-pointer to win it, BC's Corey Raji grabbed him with 0.4 seconds left and before he could get a shot off. Brommer would miss the front end of the one-and-one and the game was over.

Brommer is just 3-of-15 from the stripe this year and I don't understand why he was even on the floor at that point of the game. It was Iowa's only missed free throw all night.

Everyone shot bad in this one. Iowa shot just 42%; Boston College shot 38.8%. Rice (15 points) was the only Eagle in double figures.

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Steve Alford Left Iowa Because New Mexico is a Better Opportunity

Matt Snyder — 2008-12-01T16:00:00 00:00

by Matt Snyder

Filed under: Iowa, Big Ten, Mid-Majors, Coaches

When Iowa hired Steve Alford in 1999, he was one of the most sought after coaching commodities in the country, after what he built in Southwest Missouri State. The luster of his name -- what with the all-American accolades, national championship, and gold medal -- in the Big Ten surely didn't hurt matters with the Iowa basketball contingent. Excitement around the program led people to think they'd be a player in the Big Ten for the foreseeable future.

Eight years, a losing conference record, and a solitary NCAA tournament victory later, Alford fled the scene.

To hear it from him, though, he didn't move to escape a firing, nor was he pushed out by the athletic department. He left Iowa because he was presented with a better coaching opportunity. You know, leading the New Mexico Lobos.

"I just felt like at that time in my life, New Mexico was a better move," Alford said Saturday after a 67-55 loss to Virginia Commonwealth. "I still feel that way."

Really? It wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that the State of Iowa was teeming with people ready to pack his bags and drive him all the way down to New Mexico themselves?

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ACC/Big Ten Challenge Begins Tonight

Shiloh Carder — 2008-12-01T06:10:00 00:00

by Shiloh Carder

Filed under: Boston College, Clemson, Duke, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, UNC, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wake Forest, Wisconsin, ACC, Big Ten, University of Miami, North Carolina

The ACC/Big Ten Challenge is back once again. This is the 10th edition of the Challenge with the ACC winning it in each of the first nine seasons.

The ACC has won 16 of the last 22 games in this series.

Already we've seen a few games between ACC and Big Ten teams: Duke beat Michigan in the 2K Sports Championship game; Maryland beat Michigan State in the Old Spice Classic. Purdue beat Boston College in the Preseason N.I.T.

So let's take a look at what the next three days have in store.

Wisconsin at Virginia Tech (Mon. 7 pm ET): The Badgers are 0-5 as the road team in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge. Tech is coming off a tough showing in the Puerto Rico Tip Off. They lost two games by a total of five points and barely beat Elon ~~in the 7th-place game~~ at home. Both could find themselves in the NCAA Tournament in March. Watchability: It is a decent appetizer to get ready for the Challenge.

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Lute Olson Reportedly Stepping Down as Arizona Head Coach Due to Health Issues

Shiloh Carder — 2008-10-23T12:09:00 00:00

by Shiloh Carder

Filed under: Arizona, Iowa, Pac-10, Coaches

ESPN's Dick Vitale is reporting that Arizona Wildcats' head coach Lute Olson is stepping down. This comes a day after he uncharacteristically missed an appearance at a Rotary Club of Tucson luncheon due to laryngitis. Olson's likely replacement as head coach, Mike Dunlap, took over at the luncheon.

It isn't yet known why Olson is abruptly retiring, though the speculation is his health (UPDATE: Vitale is reporting this on ESPNews, though he said that they may not be the reason given to the public during an upcoming news conference).

Still, it comes as a shock as just last week, Olson told the Arizona Republic that he was excited about the upcoming season.

Olson took a leave of absence for the entire 2007-2008 season to deal with an illness and family matters (he filed for divorce from his second wife a month after taking the leave). Kevin O'Neill took over as the interim coach and led the Wildcats to the NCAA Tournament. Olson came back to his post in the spring and promptly dumped O'Neill.

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