Scouting Notes: Iowa

Indiana basketball is coming off of five straight wins, including its third-straight Big Ten win to begin January. Now, it hits the road to face Iowa.

Iowa enters Saturday’s matchup at 11.4 overall and 2-2 in Big Ten play. The Hawkeyes once again bring in a terrific offensive team under Fran McCaffery, ranked 20th the country with an offensive efficiency rating of 119.1. Defensively, they rank 124th overall with a rating of 103.7. Overall, they rank 51st in KenPom’s ratings.

Here is a deep dive into some of the challenges Iowa could give the Indiana basketball program.

Key Players

The backbone of the Hawkeyes is the duo of Payton Sandfort and Owen Freeman, a terrific one-two combo. While Sandfort is second on the team in scoring (16.5 ppg), he is the most explosive and has showcased his ability to both be a shooter and slasher this season as the go-to perimeter option. Sandfort is best known for his shooting, 55.9 percent of his shot attempts are from three on the season, taking 7.5 3s a game. But, he’s been a bit streakier than normal this season. In the first seven games of the season he shot just 27.8 percent from three, but has seen that increase to 40.7 percent in last seven games, making 3.0 a game. His game starts with his ability to make 3s both on and off the dribble and that opens up his slashing ability — much improved from the past few years. He’s shooting a career-high 3.5 free throws a game and has five games with at least four attempts. Sandfort can fill it up in a hurry, and has 20+ points in five games. IU must run him off screens and off the three-point line, forcing him to be a slasher first.

Owen Freeman is the leading scorer (16.7 ppg) for Iowa and is the most consistent player for the Hawkeyes. He’s scored in double-figures in every game, the only player on the roster to do so. He’s a physical, yet vey skilled and athletic forward who can dominate in the paint. Currently, Freeman ranks third in the conference and 12th nationally shooting 63.2 percent from the floor. Freeman starts in the paint and can post up, be an effective roller and can even step out and hit the 15 footer. He’s shooting 36.4 percent from three, but only attempted 11 on the season. Where Freeman is also effective is on the glass — an important matchup with IU’s Oumar Ballo. Freeman averages nearly three offensive rebounds a game and has the length and strength to battle for the boards.

In the backcourt with Sandfort is Josh Dix. Dix has great size playing, at 6-foot-5, alongside Sandfort and point guard Brock Harding. Dix is a terrific scorer and it starts with his ability to shoot the ball. He’s a fantastic catch and shoot perimeter player, connecting on 45.5 percent of 3s on 2.1 makes per game. He has a quick release and is a very difficult player to defend with his ability to move off the ball and find the best opening in the defense. He has nine games with at least two made 3s. While he won’t necessarily beat opposing defenses off the dribble, he still has the ability to make plays for himself and teammates, with the three-ball opening up his potential driving lanes.

Drew Thelwell is another perimeter option for the Hawkeyes who can stretch the defense with good length, size and an ability to connect from three. He’s a quick guard who has a very good first step and can get to the rim at will. Thelwell is a terrific addition to the Hawkeyes offense as a drive-first player to pair with numerous shooters around him. While he’s shooting 41 percent from three, he’s not a high-volume shooter, with seven games this year taking two or less 3s a game. Thelwell has played Indiana each of the last two years at Morehead State, averaging 10 points a game.

Brock Harding is another guard in the starting lineup for the Hawkeyes and he’s the stabilizing force for Iowa. He’s also the motor of the offense, ranking fourth in the Big Ten in assists per game and assist rate. He’s a smaller guard who has good athleticism and strength that allows him to get into the lane and create easy opportunities for the shooters around him. The one knock on Harding is his high turnover rate, with seven games of at least three turnovers, including a six-turnover and five-turnover game. He’s going to look to past first and second, and then look to score for himself. Harding is going to look to shoot from three before anything else when he’s in score-mode, shooting 39.1 percent.

Off of the bench is Payton Sandfort’s brother, Pryce Sandfort — who like his brother, is a terrific shooter. At 6-foot-6, Sandfort has great size and length on the wing but is limited to a three-point shooter. 75.7 percent of his shot attempts this year are from three, with 63 percent of his total made field goals this year being 3s. He’s scored in double-figures eight times this year and is averaging 9.3 points per game while shooting 40 percent from three.

The key big man reserve for Iowa is Ladji Dembele, who is averaging 4.3 points and 3.6 rebounds a game. He can stretch the floor, shooting 42.1 percent on 19 attempted 3s this year, but is either double-digits or very limited in his production. He has very good size at 6-foot-8 and is 250 pounds.

Another wing off the bench that Indiana will see is Seydou Traore, another perimeter player with good size at 6-foot-7. He’s averaging 6.7 points and is strictly a slashing guard. He’s a versatile wing who is also a notable defender.

Key Tendencies

Iowa is a team that is going to get up and down the floor like no other. It ranks 20th in adjusted tempo, while also ranking 8th in the nation in turnover rate — a combination that you typically don’t see with a team of that much pace. With the tempo comes 3s. Iowa leads the Big Ten with 10.8 made 3s a game, with eight games making at least 10. The Hawkeyes also rank 12th in the country in three-point percentage, while ranking just 74th in percentage of points coming from 3s. It truly is a team that has numerous options, with the ability to score at the rim, in the paint or from the perimeter. And, likely one of the more well rounded offensive teams Iowa has had in the past few years. With its size and versatility on the perimeter, it’s going to force Indiana basketball to switch on numerous ball screens or weaves. Because IU is playing smaller without Malik Reneau, it’s a matchup that won’t be as difficult as it could’ve been with two bigs on the floor.Overall, it’s a team that will live and die by the three, while not finding a lot of success on the offensive glass or the free throw line. But, ranks 1st in the country in made field goals and second in the nation in points per game.

Defensively, Iowa is going to give up points, ranked 319th in opponents points per game. What it won’t do, however, is foul. They rank as the 10th best defensive team in foul rate. Iowa has great length and size at the perimeter that allows for a lot of versatility, something that has caused IU to force the issue at times with if there’s been an inability to get out in the open floor or downhill.

Overall, Iowa has the type of offensive unit that will cause Indiana fits. Quick guards and terrific shooters isn’t an ideal matchup for a group that has struggled to stop straight-line drives, resulting in over help situations and wide open 3s. Indiana basketball needs to make this a half court game as much as possible, while still being able to pick its spots in transition. While IU won’t be able to slow down Iowa, it can limit the amount of opportunities it gets in the first 10 seconds of the shot clock.

Projected Starters

G – Brock Harding (Sophomore; 6-0, 170)

Stats: 9.7 ppg, 5.9 pg, 39.1% 3pt

G – Josh Dix (Junior; 6-5, 192)

Stats: 14.8 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 3.0 apg, 45.5% 3pt

G – Drew Thelwell (Senior; 6-3, 185)

Stats: 10.1 ppg, 3.2 apg, 41% 3pt

F – Payton Sandfort (Senior; 6-7, 220)

Stats: 16.5 ppg, 5.8 rpg, 3.3 apg, 34.5% 3pt

F – Owen Freeman (Sophomore; 6-10, 230)

Stats: 16.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 2.1 bpg

Key Notes

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