Tag: Cooper Koch

Iowa provides injury update on Cooper Koch, Seydou Traore ahead of Northwestern date

Fran McCaffery updated the injury statuses of Cooper Koch and Seydou Traore.

Iowa (6-1) opens Big Ten play on Tuesday with a date against Northwestern (6-2) from inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Ahead of its date against the Wildcats, Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery provided injury updates on multiple Hawkeyes.

McCaffery said that Iowa sophomore forward Seydou Traore is expected to be a “game-time decision” and that Iowa will be without freshman forward Cooper Koch.

Traore exited Iowa’s 110-77 win over USC Upstate last Tuesday after just a pair of minutes with what coach McCaffery said was a bad ankle sprain.

“Yeah, it’s just a bad sprain, so you just hope it’s a week or a few extra days rather than two, two and a half weeks, three weeks. You don’t know,” McCaffery told the Hawkeye Radio Network afterwards.

Traore, a transfer from Manhattan, is averaging 6.8 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game on 41.9% field goal shooting.

According to Tyler Tachman of the Des Moines Register, McCaffery didn’t specify on the nature of Koch’s absence. Koch missed Iowa’s matchup versus USC Upstate.

The 6-foot-8, 215 pound freshman forward has appeared in six games this season and is shooting 50.0% from the field and 44.4% from 3-point range. Koch is averaging 4.0 points and 2.2 rebounds per game.

McCaffery also said that senior forward Even Brauns will “be fine.” The reserve big also missed Iowa’s date against USC Upstate.

In a positive update, senior forward Payton Sandfort said he is feeling 100% again. Sandfort had been dealing with a wrist injury since Iowa’s 76-66 win over Washington State on Nov. 15.

“I feel comfortable now. I kinda have all my tools back. So I’m good to go,” Sandfort told reporters on Monday.

Iowa tips off against Northwestern at 6 p.m. CT with the game set to stream on Peacock.

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Iowa basketball duo listed out vs USC Upstate

A pair of Hawkeyes made their way onto Iowa basketball’s Big Ten availability report and were listed out vs. USC Upstate.

A pair of Hawkeyes won’t be available on Tuesday night when Iowa basketball hosts South Carolina Upstate.

According to its Big Ten availability report, Iowa (5-1) will be without senior forward Even Brauns and freshman forward Cooper Koch. Brauns and Koch were both listed out against USC Upstate.

Koch is averaging 4.0 points and 2.2 rebounds per game while shooting 50.0% from the field and 44.4% from 3-point range.

Brauns is averaging 1.2 points in 4.0 minutes per game. The 6-foot-9 forward is shooting 50.0% from the field and 42.9% from the free throw line.

The Hawkeyes are looking to bounce back from their first loss of the season. Iowa fell against Utah State, 77-69, last Friday, Nov. 22, in the Hall of Fame Classic from the T-Mobile Center in Kansas City, Mo.

Despite the loss, sophomore point guard Brock Harding had his finest game of the season. The 6-foot, 165 pound guard knocked down 8-of-15 shots, including 3-of-6 from 3-point range to register a team-high 19 points.

Harding also added five assists, four steals and one rebound.

“Brock was terrific tonight. He really attacked the zone, played great defense, shot it well and loaded up his teammates. If we shot it better tonight, he likely would have been in double digits for assists.

“I am really proud of him. We went small a couple times tonight, but we have to do a better job on the glass. It’s going to be hard to win when being outrebounded by 16,” Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery said of Harding.

Sophomore forward Owen Freeman and senior forward Payton Sandfort were Iowa’s other double-figure scorers in the loss. Freeman added 18 points and 11 rebounds to tally the seventh double-double of his career.

Sandfort finished with 14 points as well, but he struggled to shoot he basketball. Sandfort was an icy 1-for-13 from beyond the arc and just 4-of-18 overall.

Tipoff against USC Upstate is set for 7 p.m. CT and the game will air on the Big Ten Network.

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Wisconsin basketball target Cooper Koch Commits to a Big Ten rival

2024 forward Cooper Koch has committed to a rival Big Ten school:

After narrowing his list of schools down to Iowa, Wisconsin, and Purdue, 2024 four-star forward Cooper Koch has officially committed to the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Per 247sports, Koch is the No. 51 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, the No. 8 PF in the country, and the No. 4 player in the state of Illinois.

As a sophomore, the 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward averaged 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, and a block on 49% shooting from beyond the arc for Notre Dame High School.

The Illinois native announced his commitment to the University of Iowa via his Twitter account:

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2023 PG Brock Harding commits to the Iowa Hawkeyes, joins teammate Owen Freeman

Point guard Brock Harding out of Moline High School committed to the Iowa Hawkeyes, becoming the second pledge in the 2023 class.

Iowa men’s basketball is having one heck of a day. Several hours after the Hawkeyes picked up a commitment from class of 2024 power forward Cooper Koch, Iowa has another in the form of 2023 point guard Brock Harding.

The 6-foot, 155 pound point guard committed to Iowa after earning his offer just three days ago. Harding is teammates at Moline High School with now fellow Hawkeye commit Owen Freeman. Freeman is a 6-foot-10, 220 pound center that’s rated as a three-star by 247Sports.

Harding is also a three-star recruit according to 247Sports. According to the recruiting experts at 247Sports, Harding is the nation’s No. 33 point guard and the No. 7 player from Illinois in the 2023 class.

On3 also lists Harding as a three-star commit. In the On3 consensus rankings, Harding is regarded as the nation’s No. 163 player overall, the No. 27 point guard and the No. 5 player from Illinois.

Harding chose the Hawkeyes over offers from Appalachian State, Bradley, Cal Poly, Colorado State, Drake, Eastern Illinois, Illinois State, Illinois-Chicago, IPFW, Loyola (Chi.), Radford, Rice, Saint Louis, Southeast Missouri State, Southern Illinois and Western Illinois.

After receiving his offer from Iowa on June 20, Harding spoke with HawkeyeInsider’s Sean Bock to discuss what his primary recruiter at Iowa, former assistant coach Kirk Speraw, liked about his game.

“When Speraw saw me in the winter, he liked that I could pass, dribble, and shoot. He liked that I was under control with the ball. I was quick, but never too quick, where I couldn’t control myself. I did a great job of controlling the game, talking, and being the true point guard. That’s something that they wanted whether it be me or someone else in a different class. That’s something they think they could see me doing there,” Harding told HawkeyeInsider.

Iowa’s new assistant coach Matt Gatens liked Harding enough to extend the offer and it’s clear that Harding sees himself fitting in nicely with the Hawkeyes.

“I like that they have five guys on the court that can score at all times. They play up and down and get shots up. That’s somewhere where I can really affect the game is going up and down, and not just playing the half-court game. I’m really good in the full court with creating stuff for myself and others, and I feel like they do that with all five guys,” Harding said to HawkeyeInsider.

As evidenced in his AAU highlights below from Courtside Films on YouTube, Harding has terrific handles, excellent court vision and a pretty jumper. Here’s a look at Harding’s AAU highlights with MidPro Academy and his full recruiting profile.

4-star 2024 PF Cooper Koch commits to the Iowa Hawkeyes

In a major recruiting win, Iowa landed legacy commit Cooper Koch. The four-star power forward in the 2024 class is out of Peoria, Ill.

Iowa Hawkeyes men’s basketball just secured a big-time commitment from class of 2024 power forward Cooper Koch.

The 6-foot-7, 205 pound product of Peoria Notre Dame High School in Illinois is rated by 247Sports as a four-star talent, the nation’s No. 51 overall player in the 2024 class, the No. 8 power forward and the No. 4 player from Illinois.

ESPN also ranks Koch as a four-star recruit, the country’s No. 57 player nationally and the No. 3 player from the state of Illinois. Koch is the son of former Hawkeye forward J.R. Koch, who played for Iowa from 1995-99. His father was a second-round 1999 NBA draft selection of the New York Knicks.

“I have grown up dreaming of playing for the Hawkeyes. Yesterday I made that dream a reality! I am proud to say I have committed to play for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes and Coach McCaffery!” Koch wrote on Twitter.

Iowa was Koch’s first Power Five offer all the way back on May 11, 2021. Now, he’s the first Hawkeye commit in the 2024 class. Koch chose Iowa over offers from schools such as Illinois, Indiana, Purdue, Wake Forest and Wisconsin.

The commitment from Koch is a major recruiting coup for Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery. In fact, Koch represents the third highest-rated commit Iowa has ever secured according to 247Sports since the service began ranking players.

The only two players to rank ahead of Koch according to 247Sports were small forward Tyler Smith in the 2006 class and center Adam Woodbury in the 2012 class.

With that in mind, Koch’s commitment could help lure in other big-time players to consider making Iowa City a part of their futures. Iowa just recently offered 2023 Moline High School point guard Brock Harding. Harding is teammates with current class of 2023 commit Owen Freeman.

In the 2024 class, Iowa has also recently offered Lyon County High School point guard Travis Perry, St. Rita High School shooting guard Nojus Indrusaitis, Pewaukee High School combo guard Nick Janowski and Sycamore High School center Raleigh Burgess.

Here’s a look at some of Koch’s recent AAU highlights courtesy of TheHoosier on YouTube. Plus, Koch’s full recruiting profile is included below.

Wisconsin makes top three for 2024 four-star F Cooper Koch

The Badgers make the top three for a four-star F in the 2024 recruiting class:

After Greg Gard offered 2024 forward Cooper Koch back in September, the four-star wing out of Peoria, Illinois has officially narrowed down his list of schools down to three.

According to a report by Sean Bock of 247Sports, the Illinois native will be focusing on Iowa, Wisconsin, and Purdue moving forward. He also held offers from Bradley, Illinois, Indiana, Wake Forest, and Western Illinois.

Per 247sports, Koch is the No. 51 overall prospect in the 2024 recruiting class, the No. 8 PF in the country, and the No. 4 player in the state of Illinois.

As a sophomore, the 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward averaged 16 points, seven rebounds, four assists, two steals, and one block on 49% shooting from beyond the arc for Notre Dame High School.

It will be interesting to see which Big Ten school ultimately lands the talented four-star forward, as he appears to be headed towards an early commitment.

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