In spite of the dire situation Iowa has played itself into this season, head coach Steve Alford has managed to maintain his scruples.
In last week’s game against Ohio State — which was make-or-break for the Hawkeyes’ quickly faltering season — Alford decided to have touted and talented big-man Reggie Evans ride the bench. Iowa’s second-leading scorer (16.3 ppg) and the Big Ten’s leading rebounder (11.5 rpg), Evans was benched for skipping classes.
“If you are going to play in our Iowa basketball program, you are a student before an athlete,” Alford said. “I thought that message had to be sent.”
After the Hawkeyes’ previous contest (a win over Penn State), a regretful Alford expressed concern over whether he was keeping control of his team.
“I think I’ve done a very poor job of compromising, and because of that, I’ve lost this team,” Alford said. “If this is a profession that I want to continue with, I’ve got to stay with what works and not compromise to players — regardless of who those players are.”
Alford felt he made his point by benching Evans, arguably his best player and a candidate for Big Ten MVP.
“This is not an NBA franchise,” he said. “This is college basketball, where academics are first and foremost.”
Alford’s morals, unfortunately, did not translate into success on the court as the Buckeyes won by six.
According to Ohio State head coach Jim O’Brien, Evans’ absence helped his team tremendously. Also a man of principle, however, O’Brien lauded the move.
“I tip my hat to Steve Alford,” O’Brien said. “There was absolutely no question about the importance of this game to Iowa, and for him to demonstrate, I think, courage for standing by what he thinks is the right thing by not playing his best player is a credit to him.”
Iowa, a preseason consensus top 10 team, now sits at 4-9 in Big Ten and 15-12 overall. After beginning the year 12-3, the Hawkeyes have watched any tournament hopes float away, losing nine of 12 since.
“It’s been a very frustrating six and a half weeks,” Alford said. “I’m not sure what’s wrong. We’re a great team in practices.”
On the mend
Illinois, another high-ranked team in the preseason that has failed to live up to expectations in midyear, may finally be finding its groove.
Illini leader Lucas Johnson has been back from injury for two weeks now. However, head coach Bill Self says Johnson has only started to feel like his old self during the past three or four games. All of those games have, incidentally, been Illinois victories.
Valuable forward Damir Krupalija, originally thought to be out for the season, may also now be back in time for March Madness.
After four consecutive victories, Self says his legions are playing with confidence and are focused on proving they are legitimate contenders. A team nearly decimated by earlier injuries, Illinois is getting healthy and hitting its stride just in time for the crunch.
Playing for the title?
The fuzzy picture that is the Big Ten will finally begin to focus when Indiana and Ohio State duel Wednesday.
At 9-3 in conference play, the two share the top spot in the Big Ten. With four conference games remaining, the Hoosiers and the Buckeyes are the only two teams that can control their own destinies at this point in the season.
Ohio State coach O’Brien was thrilled at the prospect of such an important game.
“With four games to go in this conference race, you find yourself tied for first. I don’t know if you could ask for a whole lot more than that,” O’Brien said.
Wisconsin, Minnesota and Illinois still have shots at the title should one of those teams fail.
On The Road
In a season thus far dominated by home-court advantage, Big Ten teams finally scored some road victories last week. Indiana won at Michigan, Ohio State won at Iowa, Illinois won at Seton Hall, Wisconsin won at Indiana, and Illinois won at Michigan State.