After suffering another loss against Virginia Tech in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge, Iowa will come back home to open Big Ten play against Penn State in Carver-Hawkeye on Saturday.
The Hawkeyes played a solid game in the first half against the Hokies, and the game was tied at 38 at the break. The second half, however, was a different story.
After shooting better than 50 percent from the field in the first half, Iowa only made 18.9 percent of its shots in the second. The Hawkeyes also went just 1-of-12 from deep in the latter part of the game.
The Hawkeyes will be forced to turn their attention to the Nittany Lions with a lack of guard depth, as they have had all season.
With backup point guard Connor McCaffery sidelined with mono, shooting guard Brady Ellingson has shifted into the role.
McCaffery spent two days in the hospital with the case and has lost quite a bit of weight, leaving him behind physically.
The situation isn’t ideal for head coach Fran McCaffery, who has been impressed with Ellingson’s play at the 2.
With the move, Ellingson’s stats haven’t jumped off the page.
The junior from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, is averaging 2.9 points a game in 13.6 minutes per game. He has been a playmaker in his limited playing time, with 1.6 assists each game.
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“It puts Brady in a tough spot,” Fran McCaffery said. “He’s been solid, but he was really playing well as a shooting guard and hasn’t had the opportunity to do that yet. I feel bad for him.”
Even though the younger McCaffery is out, Iowa recently got a big-time player back. Nicholas Baer returned from injury to play his first game of the season against the Hokies.
In his first game back, he racked up 5 points on 2-of-9 shooting and 4 rebounds in 22 minutes of action.
Baer, the reigning Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year, will play a huge role for the Hawkeyes as the season progresses.
In fact, he played a big role even when he was out. McCaffery praised his leadership when he was forced off the court with the injury.
“He was one of our leaders last year, too, he and [Peter Jok], so we need his leadership,” the eight-year Hawkeye coach said. “He’s really good in practice, in the locker room, on the road, and I thought he was really good down in the Caymans even though he wasn’t playing. But having him back on the floor is obviously better. He can impact the game more and utilize his leadership on the floor better.”
Penn State is a solid team and will enter Carver-Hawkeye with a 6-2 record with losses to No. 9 Texas A&M and NC State.
The Nittany Lions boast one of the top scorers in the Big Ten in sophomore guard Tony Carr.
The season is still relatively young, but the sophomore guard has been electric, ranking second in the conference with 21.3 points a game.
Carr is also shooting 57.7 percent from deep to add to his arsenal of moves on the offensive end, and his 4.3 assists per game ranks fifth in the Big Ten.
Mike Watkins could also pose a threat, as he is very capable of taking advantage of rebounding woes. The 6-9 forward has grabbed 14 boards in a game twice this season and has been incredibly efficient from the floor, shooting 67.4 percent.
