Tag: Fran McCaffery

For The Win has Sacramento Kings selecting Iowa forward Keegan Murray as lottery pick in 2022 NBA draft

Iowa forward Keegan Murray is mocked to the Sacramento Kings in For The Win’s latest 2022 NBA mock draft.

Now that Iowa forward Keegan Murray has chosen to forgo his remaining years of eligibility, it appears he is in line for lottery pick money. That’s what For The Win’s Bryan Kalbrosky is projecting anyways.

Kalbrosky put together his 2022 NBA mock draft 5.0 where he predicted every pick of both rounds. In Kalbrosky’s latest mock draft, he forecasted the Sacramento Kings to draft Murray with the No. 6 overall pick.

Don’t overthink this one. I feel that Iowa’s Keegan Murray was pretty clearly the best player in college basketball and his skill set translates perfectly to the NBA.

All season, this guy was a scoring machine who could create his own basket at the rim with ease. He was also a good shooter and defensive playmaker; there is not very much he cannot do. – Kalbrosky, For The Win.

The Kings would be adding a player in Murray that burst onto the scene as a national player of the year candidate this past season with the Hawkeyes. After averaging 7.2 points per game as a freshman, Murray upped his average by more than 16 points in his breakout sophomore season. The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native finished the 2021-22 season averaging 23.5 points per game. The 6-foot-8, 225 pound forward also averaged 8.7 rebounds per game, which ranked second in the Big Ten.

Before Murray at No. 6, Kalbrosky had the Houston Rockets taking Gonzaga’s Chet Holmgren No. 1 overall, the Orlando Magic drafting Jabari Smith No. 2, the Detroit Pistons selecting Duke’s Paolo Banchero No. 3, the Oklahoma City Thunder landing Purdue’s Jaden Ivey and the Indiana Pacers choosing Arizona’s Benedict Mathurin.

Kalbrosky projected the rest of the lottery picks as follows: Duke’s AJ Griffin No. 7 to the Portland Trail Blazers, Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis No. 8 to the San Antonio Spurs, Kentucky’s Shaedon Sharpe No. 9 to the Portland Trail Blazers, Ohio State’s Malaki Branham No. 10 to the Washington Wizards, Baylor’s Jeremy Sochan No. 11 to the Memphis Grizzlies, Memphis’ Jalen Duren No. 12 to the New York Knicks, LSU’s Tari Eason No. 13 to the Atlanta Hawks and Duke’s Mark Williams No. 14 to the Charlotte Hornets.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Iowa Hawkeyes’ Keegan Murray named Naismith Trophy finalist

After sophomore Keegan Murray averaged 23.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, the star forward was named a Naismith Trophy finalist.

Iowa sophomore forward Keegan Murray had a season for the ages. After averaging 23.5 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, Murray was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Trophy.

The 6-foot-8, 225 pound native of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, joins Kansas senior guard Ochai Agbaji, Wisconsin sophomore guard Johnny Davis and Kentucky junior forward Oscar Tshiebwe. The award is presented annually to  recognize the nation’s most outstanding men’s college basketball player. With Murray’s inclusion among the finalists, it now marks three consecutive seasons that the Hawkeyes have had a Naismith Trophy finalist.

Luka Garza was also a finalist during the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons. Of course, Garza won the Naismith Trophy last season after 24.1 points, 8.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 blocks per game. Garza shot 55.3 percent from the field and 44.0 percent from 3-point range last season with the Hawkeyes.

Murray’s 23.5 points per game ranked fourth nationally and was tops among power-five players. His 8.7 rebounds per game ranked second in the Big Ten behind only Illinois junior center Kofi Cockburn. Murray recorded 26 games where he eclipsed 20 points and 16 games where he surpassed 25 points.

He increased his points per game average from last season by more than 16 points per game. Illinois’ Rick Schmidt was the last Big Ten player to increase their points per game average by more than 16 points per game from one season to the next. Schmidt accomplished that feat back in the 1973-74 season. Murray also averaged 1.9 blocks, 1.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game and shot 55.4 percent from the field and 39.8 percent on 3-point attempts.

Murray became Iowa’s fourth consensus first-team All-American, joining Murray Wier (1948), Charles Darling (1952) and Garza (2020 and 2021). Murray totaled a Big Ten Tournament record 103 points, averaging 25.8 points in the Hawkeyes’ four Big Ten Tournament games en route to the program’s third tournament title. The sophomore star earned Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player for his efforts in the tournament.

Murray also registered a program-best six Big Ten Player of the Week awards this season. That feat meant Murray joined Ohio State’s Evan Turner and Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan as the only players in league history to win the weekly award six or more times in a single season since the honor was introduced in the 1981-82 season.

Murray is also a Wooden Award semifinalist, was named to the Lute Olson National Player of the Year midseason list and is a Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year finalist.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Let us know your thoughts, comment on this story below. Join the conversation today.

Jordan Bohannon reflects on record-setting career with the Iowa Hawkeyes

While it ended on a frustrating note in Iowa’s NCAA Tournament loss to Richmond, Jordan Bohannon had a magical career with Iowa.

The finality of any loss in the NCAA Tournament stings. The pill of defeat is even more difficult to swallow when it’s a career-ending loss. Such is the case for Iowa redshirt senior guard Jordan Bohannon.

The 6-foot-1, 175 pound sharpshooter from Marion, Iowa, leaves the Hawkeyes as the most prolific 3-point shooter in both program and Big Ten history. After connecting on 2-of-7 from distance in Iowa’s 67-63 NCAA Tournament loss to No. 12 seed Richmond, Bohannon ends his career with 455 made 3-pointers. That’s 81 made 3-pointers clear of Ohio State’s Jon Diebler and 193 in front of Iowa’s next-closest shooter Jeff Horner.

He also ended his career having played in the most games in NCAA history with 179. In Bohannon’s postgame interview with reporters, it was only natural that emotions took over when he was asked to reflect on his career with Iowa.

“Just thanks for giving me a chance. You know this has been some of the best years of my life. I can’t even put into words what the guy to my left, Keegan, what coach (McCaffery) has meant to me. There’s not a lot of people in the country that believed in me out of high school. I faced a lot of adversity coming back, you know, a couple hip surgeries, dealt with a lot of injuries. And I can honestly say this last game, I put my heart and soul into this team.

“And I just, hopefully I left this jersey in a better place than I found it. That’s all I wanted to do when I came here. That was the only goal I had. I didn’t care about my individual statistics, nothing like that. I just wanted to make coach proud, I wanted to make my family proud and this whole entire state. I just want to thank every single Hawkeye fan that hopefully I inspired them to do something great with their lives and I can’t even put into words what it’s meant to be here wearing this jersey,” Bohannon said as he fought back tears.

In trying to make sense of Iowa’s defeat inside the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y., Bohannon was quick to credit Richmond.

“Richmond is a really great team. I thought we played one of our worst basketball halves all season the first half, and we were only down one. So we knew we had a little bit of light still in us, and we made a little bit of a run, but, you know, got to credit them. They did everything great tonight. They were locked in, and they’re playing some of their best basketball this season right now,” Bohannon said.

His head coach Fran McCaffery discussed what made Bohannon special and the legacy he left at Iowa.

“It says a lot about him, the way he responded to the question. Like we care about numbers, but you think about the numbers and they’re absolutely staggering. Two thousand points. More threes made than anybody else that ever played in the Big Ten, more assists than anybody that ever played at Iowa. That’s somebody that takes great pride in wearing that jersey, which is what he said. But his leadership, his mental toughness, it epitomizes what a true competitor is, and he came here to make a difference.

“And you think back, before his hip surgeries, he played a whole season in terrible pain, never asked to come out. I didn’t even know half the things that were bothering him. He just showed up every day at practice and played in the games and gave me everything he had. And then, double hip surgery is not easy, and we’ve had two guys that have had to go through it. Two guys who were sitting on my left and that really is difficult, and it takes tremendous sacrifice and determination,” McCaffery said.

Bohannon’s return and the leadership he provided were necessary ingredients that helped Iowa win a Big Ten Tournament championship.

“Just watching him come back and perform at the level that he did and then come back to lead a team that needed his leadership. He and Connor both had to lead a young team. They had to help Keegan take his game to the next level and bring along Kris and Tony, Joe T., Patrick, incorporate Filip and that’s what character is and that’s what he has. That’s what Connor has, and, you know, when you get into this business, you hope one day to be able to coach guys like that, and so I’m really proud,” McCaffery said.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Iowa Hawkeyes stunned by No. 12 seed Richmond

After a run to a Big Ten Tournament championship, Iowa’s stay in the NCAA Tournament was abbreviated. Richmond stunned Iowa, 67-63.

After a first half that saw Iowa make just 1-of-13 from 3-point distance, the Hawkeyes trailed Richmond 29-28 at halftime. The Hawkeyes connect on just 30 percent of their field goal attempts in the first half.

But, it was just halftime, and this Iowa team came steamrolling into the NCAA Tournament with a head of confidence after winning the Big Ten Tournament championship and nine of its past 10 games. Surely, Iowa would manage to outrace Richmond in the final 20 minutes.

It looked that way, too. Even after Richmond’s Jacob Gilyard score five quick points right after halftime to bring the score to 34-28. Iowa’s Patrick McCaffery canned a couple of back-to-back 3-pointers, Tony Perkins added a three-point play and McCaffery added another jumper. That quick 11-0 response from Iowa seemed to signal that there was no panic from the Hawkeyes and that they were set to figure things out and advance.

Instead, Richmond responded right back with an 11-0 spurt of their own that began with a Nathan Cayo layup and ended with another made Gilyard 3-pointer. Iowa pulled back within a point after star Keegan Murray drove inside and finished a layup with 10:21 remaining.

The Hawkeyes were held scoreless for the next five minutes and three seconds of game time, though. Ultimately, that drought proved too much to overcome for an Iowa team that some thought had a chance to emerge as the champion from the Midwest region. Instead, it’s a short stay in the NCAA Tournament.

Richmond advances and will meet No. 4 seed Providence in the NCAA Tournament’s second round.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Iowa’s Keegan Murray, Jordan Bohannon preview first round NCAA Tournament matchup versus Richmond

Iowa star Keegan Murray previewed the challenge that the Richmond Spiders present in the NCAA Tournament’s first round.

After winning nine of their past 10 games, Iowa (26-9, 12-8 Big Ten) enters the NCAA Tournament with all sorts of momentum. That stretch included four wins in four days to capture the program’s third Big Ten Tournament championship after a 75-66 win over Purdue.

Now, the Hawkeyes are gearing up to tip off as the No. 5 seed in the Midwest region against 12th-seeded Richmond. Richmond also won its conference tournament championship, upsetting Davidson in the Atlantic 10 Tournament championship game, 64-62.

Iowa sophomore forward Keegan Murray met with reporters ahead of the Hawkeyes’ first round matchup to preview what type of challenge Richmond will bring to the table inside of KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.

“Yeah, I think they’re a really experienced team. They have a lot of seniors on their team, so that helps them a lot going into March, but they’re a team that plays really well together. They share the ball really well. They have a couple good players, and I feel like their team is really, their experience helps a lot, and that’s what you need and that’s how they made their run in their tournament as a six seed. So, yeah, for us it’s full hands on deck because we know that they’re a really good team,” Murray said.

Richmond brings a wealth of experience to the table. The Spiders’ starting five features a sixth-year player in forward Grant Golden and a pair of fifth-year players in guard Jacob Gilyard and forward Nathan Cayo. Nick Sherod is another sixth-year Richmond guard that comes off the bench for the Spiders.

Iowa redshirt senior guard Jordan Bohannon appreciates the Spiders’ experience and knows that’s a big part of what makes Richmond dangerous.

“I have to give a lot of credit to this Richmond team. They have a lot of those guys that brought all these guys back and decided they wanted to do something special this year, and they’re one of the most experienced teams, very skilled. They’re really tough to guard. I can’t say enough good things about that,” Bohannon said.

Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery can’t say enough positive things about Richmond either. He noted that Richmond’s players returning is similar to Bohannon’s return for the Hawkeyes. It’s all about why a player chose to return and make use of the COVID eligibility year to come back.

“I think it says a lot about Chris (Mooney) and how he’s built that program. I will say this. I wish I could come back for a sixth year. It’s something that I think was strange at first for the guy. I remember talking to Jordan about it in the beginning, you know, because he had graduated and he had in his mind kind of moved on. We had senior night and celebrated senior night. Wait a minute, I can come back. How great would that be?

“I think the important thing for him—and I’m sure it’s the same for the Richmond guys—okay, if we’re coming back, we’re coming back for a reason, and I think that’s what we saw. Two teams that won the tournament championship and get to play in this tournament, so I’m happy for all of them,” McCaffery said.

To put Richmond’s experience in perspective, the Spiders’ Gilyard and Golden have both eclipsed the 2,000 career points mark, while Cayo and Sherod have each eclipsed 1,350 career points. Burton is right on the doorstep of being a career 1,000-point scorer with 984 points thus far in his career.

McCaffery was asked if he’d seen a team with that type of experience and scoring balance.

“No, I don’t remember any. There may have been. We did play a number of teams this year that had a lot of seniors. You’re seeing that more and more. Seven of your top nine, eight of your top ten are either red shirt juniors, which makes them four-year players or beyond, but I think the point that you’re making is these guys were all incredibly productive 1,000 point scorers, so that gives them a lot of weapons, and I think that that has been proven, especially when they come down the stretch,” McCaffery said.

Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Josh on Twitter: @JoshOnREF

Iowa Hawkeyes men’s basketball NCAA Tournament history

Fifth-seeded Iowa tips off against No. 12 seed Richmond on Thursday. What does the rest of Iowa’s NCAA Tournament history look like?

Iowa (26-9, 12-8 Big Ten) is back into the NCAA Tournament after punching its ticket with a Big Ten Tournament championship win over Purdue, 75-66. The fifth-seeded Hawkeyes will face No. 12 seed Richmond (23-12, 10-8 Atlantic 10) in the NCAA Tournament’s first round from the KeyBank Center in Buffalo, N.Y.

After winning four games in four days to capture the Big Ten Tournament title, Iowa has emerged as a trendy pick to perhaps come out of the Midwest region and reach the Final Four. As far as those expectations go, Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery knows the Hawkeyes can’t get ahead of themselves.

“The only way we handle that is to specifically focus on the next game and not look too far ahead or not think too much about all of the talk around what’s possible. I think you have to take care of the present. That’s what we’re trying to do,” McCaffery said to reporters ahead of Iowa’s NCAA Tournament date versus Richmond.

With sophomore forward Keegan Murray leading the way, Iowa has a chance to make a serious run in this year’s edition of March Madness. Murray was recently named first-team All-America by the Associated Press after a season in which he has averaged 23.6 points per game.

“For me, it was really just putting my head down and not listening to what anyone had to say about me. I feel like if I listened to other people’s opinions, I wouldn’t be here right now. For me and my brother, we really just worked in silence. We worked out with each other a lot and got each other better, and I think that was one of the key things that allowed me to have my run this year and also last year, my ascension. I just credit the hard work and the people that have been around me and stuck with me,” Murray said of his breakout season.

Iowa certainly hopes it’s a memorable 28th NCAA Tournament appearance. What has the rest of Iowa’s NCAA Tournament history looked like? Here’s the full history.

Iowa vs. Richmond: Stream, injury report, broadcast info for Thursday

Iowa rolls into the NCAA Tournament off a Big Ten Tournament championship. Here’s broadcast info for the Hawkeyes’ date versus Richmond.

Iowa (26-9, 12-8 Big Ten) rolls into the NCAA Tournament after capturing the program’s first Big Ten Tournament title since 2006 after downing Purdue, 75-66, in the championship game. It was the third tournament title in program history and it capped off an incredible run to the crown.

In the process, the Hawkeyes became the only school to win a Big Ten Tournament championship twice by winning four games in four days. Iowa accomplished that same feat in 2001 when it won the tournament title as the league’s No. 6 seed.

Sophomore forward Keegan Murray was named the Big Ten Tournament Most Outstanding Player after averaging 25.7 points per game on 55.8 percent field goal shooting. Murray made 8-of-10 3-point attempts in Iowa’s 80-77 semifinal win over Indiana and finished the tournament shooting a blistering 53.8 percent on 3-pointers.

Murray was joined on the Big Ten’s All-Tournament Team by redshirt senior guard Jordan Bohannon. Bohannon averaged 13 points per game and connected on 43.3 percent of his 3-point tries in the Big Ten Tournament.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever been more proud of a team than this group, how they worked and sacrificed and incredible unselfishness. But I have to say we played a tremendous team today, incredibly well-coached team who had a great year and anything short of the effort that we put forth today, you know, we would not have won. They were committed to the game plan, they were committed to each other, and there’s no better feeling as a coach than to watch them celebrate the way they were able to celebrate after the game for the Big Ten championship,” Iowa head men’s basketball coach Fran McCaffery said after the Hawkeyes’ win over Purdue.

Now, Iowa looks to keep the momentum going as the No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region. The Hawkeyes are set to battle Richmond (23-12, 10-8 Atlantic 10), who earned the No. 12 seed after topping Davidson, 64-62, in the Atlantic 10 Tournament championship game.

Here’s when you should tune in to see the game:

  • Date: March 17
  • Time: 2:10 p.m. CT
  • TV Channel: truTV
  • Live Stream: fuboTV (watch here)

Iowa vs. Richmond injury report:

The great news is that both teams enter the NCAA Tournament with a good bill of health. Neither Iowa or Richmond have any injuries to report according to the USA TODAY Sports injury database.

Players to watch:

Iowa:

  • Sophomore forward, Keegan Murray: 23.6 points per game, 8.6 rebounds per game, 2.0 blocks per game, 55.5 percent field goal shooting, 40.5 percent 3-point shooting
  • Redshirt senior guard, Jordan Bohannon: 11.1 points per game, 1.8 assists per game, 38.9 percent field goal shooting, 38.5 percent 3-point shooting, 88.9 percent free throw shooting
  • Redshirt sophomore forward, Patrick McCaffery: 10.3 points per game, 3.6 rebounds per game, 1.6 assists per game, 42.2 percent field goal shooting, 31.2 percent 3-point shooting
  • Sophomore forward, Kris Murray: 9.9 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 48.6 percent field goal shooting, 40.6 percent 3-point shooting

Richmond:

  • Junior forward, Tyler Burton: 16.3 points per game, 7.7 rebounds per game, 46.7 percent field goal shooting, 37.7 percent 3-point shooting
  • Senior forward, Grant Golden: 14.1 points per game, 6.1 rebounds per game, 2.8 assists per game, 51.5 percent field goal shooting
  • Senior guard, Jacob Gilyard: 13.3 points per game, 3.4 rebounds per game, 5.4 assists per game, 36.4 percent 3-point shooting

Iowa at Michigan State college basketball odds, picks and best bets

Previewing Tuesday’s Iowa Hawkeyes at Michigan State Spartans sports betting odds and lines, with college basketball betting picks and tips.

The Iowa Hawkeyes (19-8, 10-6 Big Ten) travel to the Great Lake State on Tuesday to play the Michigan State Spartans (18-9, 10-6) in the Breslin Center at 7 p.m. ET. We analyze the Iowa-Michigan State odds and betting lines, with college basketball betting advice and tips around this matchup.

The Hawkeyes are No. 17 and the Spartans No. 24 in the USA TODAY Sports men’s basketball coaches poll.

Iowa at Michigan State: Three things you need to know

1. The Spartans have had a bumpy February. Michigan State did smack up Nebraska 86-65 in its last game (Thursday), but is just 2-4 overall this month.

2. Iowa’s 10-6 Big Ten record puts them in a five-way tie for second place in the conference. The Hawkeyes have won back-to-back games, beating No. 23 Ohio State Buckeyes 85-76 Thursday and the Minnesota Golden Gophers 58-55 Feb. 16.

3. The matchup to focus on is Iowa C Luka Garza against Michigan State F Xavier Tillman. Garza has caused matchup nightmares for opponents all season and will need to be the focal point of the Spartans defense. He should be a finalist for Big Ten Player of the Year since he leads the Big Ten in points per game, PER and Win Shares.

Get some action on this game or others by placing a bet at BetMGM.

Iowa at Michigan State: Odds, betting lines and picks

Odds via BetMGM; access USA TODAY Sports’ betting odds for a full list. Lines last updated at 1 p.m. ET.

Prediction

Iowa 80, Michigan State 77

Moneyline (ML)

This is their first meeting of the season, but Michigan State won four straight in the series, three of which by double-digits. However, I give the Hawkeyes a chance to pull off an upset because this Spartans team isn’t as offensively explosive as the previous teams that rolled Iowa. The Hawkeyes have two upperclassmen big men in their starting lineup — Garza and F Ryan Kriener — that both stand taller than any of the Spartans starters. That size advantage could pay dividends for Iowa. Take a flyer on IOWA +310 to win outright.

New to sports betting? Bet $50 to earn a $155 profit if Iowa can score a win.

Against the Spread (ATS)

Iowa has the best ATS in the Big Ten at 16-8-3. Michigan State is near the bottom with a 12-15 ATS record. The Hawkeyes have been a much better ATS vs. good teams than the Spartans; Iowa is 5-2-2 ATS against ranked opponents, while Michigan State is 1-6 ATS. Bet IOWA +7.5 (+100).

Over/Under (O/U)

Let’s go with the OVER 151.5 (-110) since it correlates with our ML and ATS handicaps. Their combined O/U record is 23-29-2, but Iowa has a 9-7 O/U record in Big Ten games. Also, the Hawkeyes are 6-3 O/U against ranked opponents and the Over has cashed in four of their last five games. 

Want some action on this matchup? Place a bet at BetMGM now. For more sports betting picks and tips, visit SportsbookWire.com.

Follow @Geoffery_Clark and @SportsbookWire on Twitter.

Gannett may earn revenue from audience referrals to betting services.  Newsrooms are independent of this relationship and there is no influence on news coverage.

[lawrence-newsletter]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=11866]