By Adam Hensley
The Hawkeyes returned to their winning ways Monday night by defeating Stetson, 95-68, snapping a four-game losing streak.
Isaiah Moss and Cordell Pemsl churned out career nights in the victory.
“A night like this, I just try to come out and do whatever I can to help the team,” Moss said.
Both tied for a game-high in points with 21, career-best for each.
Moss did his damage on the fast break and from beyond the 3-point arc. The redshirt freshman ran the court early and often, as Iowa was able to capitalize on turnovers and find him in transition.
“I think he’s got a better understanding of what he needs to do,” head coach Fran McCaffery said. “I thought he had great decision-making skills tonight: when to go, when not to go, when to shoot, when not to shoot. He played with great confidence.”
Moss, who played 32 minutes, knocked down 5 triples, a career high. He also recorded career bests in rebounds (6) and steals (2).
It seemed as though Pemsl could not miss from down low.
Capitalizing on an obvious size advantage, Pemsl scored the majority of his points while camped in the lane, drawing numerous fouls while hitting his shots.
High-percentage shots are the name of his game.
“I’ve just been taking shots I know I can make,” Pemsl said. “I’ve been working on sealing and getting good positioning. When I’ve gotten the ball, I’ve been effective.”
Effective is an understatement. After his performance against the Hatters, he’s hit 23 of his last 27 attempts.
Jordan Bohannon, who scored at least 20 points in Iowa’s previous two contests, was held to only 2 points against the Hatters. After thriving from downtown in his first two career starts, he failed to connect on a single 3-pointer in Iowa’s win.
Aside from Moss’ touch from deep, 3-pointers were hard to come by (the rest of the team made 1-of-15). Most of the Hawkeyes’ damage came in the paint, where they muscled in for 50 points.
McCaffery tweaked his starting lineup once more. Instead of coming off the bench, sophomore Ahmad Wagner got the starting nod. He scored 8 points and grabbed 6 boards in 13 minutes of play.
Midway through the first half, Wagner soared for an offensive rebound and came down awkwardly on one knee, immediately hitting the deck. He struggled to get up on his own power and had to be helped back to the locker room. He did not return.
“I was really scared because he’s not a drama guy,” McCaffery said. “I think it really scared him because he jumped so high and landed so awkwardly.”
McCaffery believed that the sophomore hyperextended his knee, but did not have a concrete diagnosis. Wagner will be good to go for Thursday’s game against Iowa State, however.
Usual starter Nicholas Baer filled a sixth-man role, providing energy off the bench, especially with a thunderous one-handed throw-down to ignite the Carver crowd.
Peter Jok’s shots had difficulty finding the bottom of the net. Despite never finding a clear rhythm, the senior scored 15 points to go with 8 rebounds and 7 assists. He did not turn the ball over.
“It’s great to see Pete, on a night that he’s not making shots like he normally does, have 7 assists, no turns,” McCaffery said. “That’s big time.”
While Stetson is not the toughest team Iowa has faced this season, it was huge for various players to step up when Jok wasn’t hitting his usual shots.
He’ll need to connect in Iowa’s next game. The Hawkeyes will host Iowa State at 7 p.m. Thursday in the Cy-Hawk Series.
