1997-98

OVERALL

HOME

AWAY

NEUTRAL

BIG 10 CONF.

PLACE

CONF. TOURNEY

POST-

SEASON

  20-11

 

 

 

  9-7

5T

 

 

HIGHLIGHTS:                 Coaches:

 

 

ROSTER:

No. Name Position Ht. Wt. Year Hometown High School
3 * Jason Bauer G 6-4 185 Jr. Hudson, IA Hudson
42 *** Ryan Bowen F 6-7 215 Sr. Ft. Madison, IA Ft. Madison
23 Ricky Davis F 6-5 195 Fr. Davenport, IA North
15 Marcelo Gomes F 6-7 205 Fr.-RS San Antonio, TX Cornerstone Christian
55 ** Greg Helmers C 6-9 230 Jr. Palmer, IA Pomeroy-Palmer
44 ** J.R. Koch F 6-9 210 Jr. Morton, IL Morton
24 * Ryan Luehrsmann G 6-1 165 So. Cedar Rapids, IA Washington
32 ** Kent McCausland G 6-2 180 Jr. Waterloo, IA West
45 * Darryl Moore F 6-2 182 Sr. Chicago, IL DuSable
20 Dean Oliver G 5-11 172 Fr. Mason City, IA Mason City
13 * Guy Rucker C 6-9 235 So. Inkster, MI John Glenn
4 *** Jess Settles F 6-7 220 Sr. Winfield, IA Winfield-Mt. Union
25 * Vernon Simmons F 6-6 205 Sr. Simi Valley, CA LA Valley JC

*

Varsity letters

#

Walk-on

Cpt

Captain

PRESEASON OUTLOOK:

 

Despite the fact that four starters return for an Iowa basketball team that won 22 games in 1997, matching or improving that 22-10 overall record will be a tough challenge for Coach Tom Davis and his Hawkeyes.

The task will be tougher because of the fact that experience is the rule rather than the exception in the Big Ten in 1998. Three teams return all five starters, Iowa is one of three teams that has four starters returning and five teams return three starters.

In addition, Illinois, Penn State and Wisconsin, like Iowa, all return talented veterans who missed the 1997 season due to injuries. In total, 43 of the normal 55 starters for Big Ten teams in 1997 return for the upcoming season.

At the end of the 1997 season, Minnesota, Illinois and Wisconsin were all seeded higher than the Hawkeyes in the NCAA Tournament, while Iowa Purdue and Indiana all received an eight seed. All five of the above mentioned opponents were ahead of the Hawkeyes in the final RPI ratings.

"We can't be rated ahead of those teams when you factor in the returning talent," said Iowa Coach Tom Davis. "Purdue and Indiana return five starters, and Michigan returns four. Minnesota has a veteran team that returns all but two starters from its Final Four team. Wisconsin returns four starters and Illinois three, and both of those teams have veteran players returning who missed last season."

Penn State returns three starters in addition to all-Big Ten guard Dan Earl, Ohio State has five returning starters and a new coach, Northwestern has three starters and a new coach and Michigan State returns three starters from a team that was playing as well as anybody late in the season.

Iowa, which tied for second in the Big Ten race last season with Purdue, is the only team that must replace the 1997 Big Ten scoring champion and the league leader in assists in each of the past two seasons.

That would be guard Andre Woolridge, who became the first player ever to lead the Big Ten in both scoring and assists in the same season. Woolridge led the league in both categories for the entire season and in Big Ten games only.

As the only senior on the team a year ago, Woolridge took the young Hawkeyes under his wing and led them to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Replacing his numbers on the court, and his leadership off the court, will be a major task.

"Certainly the loss of Andre will affect our team next season," admits Davis. "How much, I don't know. He made everyone better by what he did for us. Yet at the same time, with a good off-season of work, we have several players who can improve on their numbers from this past season."

Helping to offset the loss of Woolridge will be the anticipated return of forward Jess Settles. The 6-7 senior played in only three games a year ago due to injury and returns for a fifth season. Settles earned first team all-Big Ten honors in 1996 when he led Iowa in both scoring (15.1) and rebounding (7.5). Settles has been in the starting line-up since his freshman season when he was the Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

Iowa returns four players who started the final eight games last season, plus forward J.R. Koch, who started 24 of 32 games. The returning starters include senior forwards Ryan Bowen and Darryl Moore, junior guard Kent McCausland and sophomore center Guy Rucker.

Bowen ranked among Big Ten leaders in rebounding with an average of 9.1 per games last season and averaged 11.8 points while shooting 55.3% from the field. Bowen scored and rebounded in double figures 10 times while earning third team all-conference honors.

McCausland led the nation and set an Iowa single season record by hitting 52.2% from three-point range last season while starting 25 of the 29 games he played. The Waterloo native averaged 8.6 points and just over three rebounds per outing.

As a redshirt freshman Rucker started slowly and improved his numbers as the season progressed, developing into one of the top big men in the league by the end of the season. Rucker averaged 10.6 points and 5.7 rebounds while shooting 51.8% from the field and he ranked among Big Ten leaders with 39 blocked shots.

Moore was one of the top stories in the Big Ten a year ago, advancing from a unknown walk-on at the start of the season to a starting forward who had 10 rebounds in a second round loss to national runner-up Kentucky. Moore started 13 games, averaging 5.2 points and 4.6 rebounds.

Koch started 24 games as a sophomore, gaining valuable experience early in his career. Koch averaged eight points and 4.3 rebounds, showing he can be a factor inside with 25 blocked shots and a factor on the perimeter with 18 three-point baskets.

Additional returning players include sophomore guard Ryan Luehrsmann, junior guard Jason Bauer, senior forward Vernon Simmons, junior center Alvin Robinson and senior center Greg Helmers.

Luehrsmann came on late in the season, averaging 3.5 points while playing both guard spots. Bauer is another walk-on who played in 31 games and started six times. Simmons and Robinson saw limited action in the rotation while Helmers missed the majority of the season after knee surgery early in the year.

Iowa's depth will be aided by the addition of three players. Forward Marcelo Gomes (6-7, 205) was redshirted last season and could help along the front line.

Two former Iowa preps, guard Dean Oliver and forward Ricky Davis, join the program after earning all-state honors as preps. Oliver (6-0), Iowa's Mr. Basketball as a senior, led Mason City to back-to-back state titles. Davis (6-6) was a standout throughout his prep career at Davenport North. Both are highly regarded by all of the national recruiting services and one service lists Iowa as having the best two-man recruiting class in the nation.

"With our returning veterans and the athletic talent of our newcomers, we have the capability of some very good dimensions for next season," concluded Davis. "But trying to predict how everyone will fit together is tougher each season. Replacing a very important position, which the point guard is for us, will fall on some young players, and you can't anticipate how different players will respond to that challenge."

The numbers would seem to favor Iowa as far as combining an experienced group of returning players with a talented group of newcomers. However, as mentioned above, the majority of the teams in the league can make the same claim. Because of that, it isn't hard to forecast the Big Ten as a very balanced, very talented conference in 1997-98.

"I think we'll be a pretty good team, but the league is going to be better," said Davis in looking at the league prior to the 1997 season. That same comment is appropriate when speaking of the upcoming season as every team in the Big Ten has reason to be optimistic when looking towards the 1997-98 season.

The 1998 Big Ten schedule will have a new look, with teams playing a 16-game conference schedule prior to the inaugural post-season conference tournament at the end of the year. Iowa plays four conference teams just once, playing Penn State and Wisconsin only on the road and Purdue and Michigan only in Iowa City.

In non-conference action Iowa opens the season at home vs. Chicago State and also hosts North Texas, Long Island, Drake and Bucknell. Rice, Weber State and Mt. St. Mary's visit for the Super Chevy Shootout. Iowa plays at Northern Iowa, Iowa State and Missouri and will take part in the eight-team San Juan Christmas Shootout.

Source: Hawkeyebasketball.com

 

RETURNEES (Stats):

PLAYER

POS.

G/GS

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GI

MI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TOTALS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PLAYER LOSSES (' Stats):

PLAYER

POS.

G/GS

MIN.

PPG

RPG

GI

MI

STATUS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

TOTALS

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

SEASON SUMMARY:

Iowa posted a 20-11 overall mark in 1997-98, becoming one of just two Big Ten teams to win 20 games in each of the last four seasons. Iowa ended the season with a first round loss to Georgia in the National Invitation Tournament.
The Hawkeyes posted a 9-7 Big Ten record to earn a fifth place finish, giving Iowa nine first division finishes and nine 20-win seasons in 12 years under Coach Tom Davis.
Iowa won its final two games of the regular season and four of its last five, before ending the season with a loss to Michigan in the Big Ten Tournament and a loss to Georgia in the first round of the NIT. Iowa's margin of victory in its last four wins was 16.2 points in wins over Ohio State, Purdue, Northwestern and Indiana. Six of Iowa's 10 regular-season losses came at the hands of teams ranked in the top 25 at the end of the regular season and nine of 11 losses came to teams invited to the NCAA Tournament.
Iowa started fast winning its first six games and 13 of its first 14 games. The Hawkeyes defeated Iowa State 60-59 in Ames, winning at ISU for the second straight time. Iowa then won the San Juan Christmas Shootout, defeating Southern Mississippi and St. Bonaventure in the final two rounds. Iowa won its own Super Chevy Shootout early in the season, defeating Rice and Weber State. The Hawkeyes concluded non-conference play with an overtime loss at Missouri in mid-January.
Five of Iowa's losses came to the top four teams in the Big Ten, while three losses in the middle of the season by two points or less proved costly before Iowa was able to re-group. A 19-point win over 5th ranked Purdue and the second win of the season over Indiana highlighted the final portion of the regular season. The Hawkeyes were 3-6 vs. NCAA teams and 4-4 vs. NIT participants.

 

IN THE RANKINGS
Iowa was ranked in the top 25 until the final two weeks of the 1997-98 season, by both the Associated Press and in the CNN/USA Today poll. Iowa was ranked as high as 10th in both polls during this season.
Purdue, which was ranked in the top 25 each week during the season, was the only Big Ten team to appear in the rankings more often than Iowa.

 

THREE STARTERS ARE GONE
Iowa lost six players from its 1998 squad, including senior forwards Ryan Bowen and Darryl Moore, and Ricky Davis, who was an NBA first round draft choice following his freshman season. Bowen started all but one game and averaged 14.4 points and 8.7 rebounds per game. He was selected in the second round of the NBA Draft. Bowen set school records for career field goal percentage (.595) and career steals (208) and in 1997 set a single-season record with 79 steals. Bowen ranks 28th on Iowa's career scoring list with 1,090 points. Moore started 20 of 31 games, averaging 7.1 points and five rebounds per game. He signed a professional contract to continue his basketball career in Poland. Davis led the team in scoring at 15 points per game and was third in rebounding at 4.8 per game. Additional 1998 seniors included Greg Helmers, Jess Settles and Vernon Simmons and gray team members Brian Haberer, Kerry Koberg and Scott Rabenold.

IOWA IN POST-SEASON PLAY
Iowa made its 20th post-season appearance, including its second trip to the National Invitation Tournament. Iowa is 2-2 in the NIT and the Hawkeyes hold a 24-20 record in 18 NCAA Tournament appearances. Iowa has been invited to a post-season tournament 10 times (eight NCAAs, two NITs) in 12 seasons under Coach Tom Davis.

Source: Hawkeyebasketball.com

1998  FINAL TEAM STATISTICS:  

Player G-GS FG-FGA PCT 3FG-FGA PCT FT-FTA PCT REB AVG PF/D AST TO BK ST PTS AVG MIN
Davis 31/26 173-371 .466 28-91 .308 90-129 .698 148 4.8 54/2 74 104 10 38 464 15.0 26.6
Bowen 31/30 164-272 .603 8-15 .533 111-161 .689 271 8.7 72/2 48 45 41 79 447 14.4 27.5
McCausland 31/18 96-212 .453 74-161 .460 32-35 .914 67 2.2 46/0 42 49 1 20 298 9.6 23.8
Oliver 31/30 79-211 .374 20-63 .317 96-126 .762 78 2.5 75/1 131 72 1 42 274 8.8 25.1
Moore 31/20 88-176 .500 9-20 .450 36-59 .610 154 5.0 55/2 46 46 5 35 221 7.1 22.5
Koch 31/3 75-125 .600 16-34 .471 48-66 .727 102 3.3 59/1 21 45 28 13 214 6.9 16.1
Rucker 31/20 88-180 .489 0-0 .000 30-45 .667 101 3.3 29/0 26 47 20 9 206 6.6 17.1
Galloway 31/5 43-103 .417 28-73 .384 16-21 .762 57 1.8 36/1 27 18 2 17 130 4.2 12.5
Luehrsmann 31/3 40-113 .354 23-59 .390 22-36 .611 60 1.9 43/0 115 47 3 41 125 4.0 18.7
Rabenold 14/0 7-13 .538 5-9 .556 9-11 .818 5 0.4 2/0 2 3 0 2 28 2.0 2.5
Helmers 12/0 6-8 .750 1-1 1.000 8-8 1.000 13 1.1 4/0 6 2 0 4 21 1.8 5.8
Simmons 11/0 7-10 .700 1-2 .500 1-4 .250 5 0.5 1/0 2 4 0 1 16 1.5 3.3
Haberer 4/0 2-4 .500 2-3 . 667 0-0 .000 3 0.8 0/0 0 0 0 0 6 1.5 3.0
Bauer 23/0 6-11 .545 1-2 .500 5-7 .714 15 0.7 11/0 17 13 1 12 18 0.8 4.3
Koberg 13/0 2-8 .250 2-7 .286 3-4 .750 9 0.7 5/0 1 1 0 0 9 0.7 2.6
Gomes 5/0 1-5 .200 0-0 .000 1-3 .333 9 1.8 3/0 0 3 2 1 3 0.6 2.6
Gray Team 11/0 1-6 .167 0-3 .000 4-6 .667 7 0.6 3/0 8 10 0 1 6 0.5 4.1
Team 82 5
Iowa 31 878-1828 .480 218-543 .401 512-721 .710 1186 38.3 498/9 566 514 114 315 2486 80.2 ---
Opponents 31 776-1805 .430 204-603 .338 335-512 .654 1010 32.6 645/4 453 555 105 258 2091 67.5 ---

Deadball Rebounds: Iowa: 96, Opponents 73
Score by Period 1 2 OT Total
Iowa 1248 1229 9 2486
Opponents 996 1085 10 2091

  Source:  

GAME-BY-GAME

11/14 * Chicago State W 105-60
11/16 * North Texas W 112-64
11/29 * Long Island W 101-69
12/2 * Drake W 90-60
Super Chevy Shootout
12/5 * Rice W 81-52
12/6 * Weber State W 81-56
 
12/9 Northern Iowa L 78-84
12/13 Iowa State W 60-59
San Juan Christmas Shootout
12/21 Puerto Rico-Mayaguez W 96-37
12/22 Southern Mississippi W 82-58
12/23 St. Bonaventure W 81-67
 
12/28 * Bucknell W 91-52
12/31 Indiana W 89-76
1/3 * Northwestern W 91-57
1/8 * Illinois L 64-76
1/14 Ohio State W 61-46
1/18 Minnesota W 82-69
1/21 * Michigan State L 57-78
1/24 Missouri# L 79-80
1/28 Penn State L 65-67
2/1 * Michigan L 66-80
2/3 Wisconsin W 79-76
2/7 Michigan State L 64-75
2/12 * Minnesota L 71-73
2/14 * Ohio State W 82-70
2/18 * Purdue W 88-69
2/22 Illinois L 72-79
2/25 Northwestern W 75-55
2/28 * Indiana W 84-70
Big Ten Post-season Tournament
3/6 Michigan L 66-77
National Invitation Tournament
3/11 * Georgia L 93-100

 

 

BIG 10 CONFERENCE:

FINAL BIG TEN STANDINGS
Big Ten All Games
Team W-L PCT. W-L Pct.
Illinois 13-3 .813 22-10 .688
Michigan State 13-3 .813 23-7 .797
Purdue 12-4 .750 28-7 .800
Michigan 11-5 .688 25-9 .735
Iowa 9-7 .563 20-11 .645
Indiana 9-7 .563 20-12 .625
Penn State 8-8 .500 16-12 .571
Minnesota 6-10 .375 16-15 .516
Northwestern 3-13 .188 10-17 .370
Wisconsin 3-13 .188 12-19 .389
Ohio State 1-15 .063 8-22 .267