CHICAGO – Iowa will have to beat a physical and hungry Ohio State team today in its BIG 10 Tournament opener in order to advance to play Michigan State tomorrow.
Ohio State out-played Wisconsin on Wednesday in an opening round game. The Buckeyes appeared hungry and aggressive versus the more-timid Badgers. Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery was seated courtside to scout out his Hawkeyes’ next opponent. He’s been preparing his team all week ever since the Hawkeyes came out flat in their last regular season game and were thumped at home by Nebraska.
Iowa was socked by Ohio State 93-77 back in January in a road game. However, Iowa turned the tables on Ohio State in February and won 92-75 at home. Iowa is 2-2 all-time versus Ohio State in the BIG 10 Tournament – so this is a big rubber match. Win or lose, Iowa will be in the NCAA Tournament. A few wins could improve their seed, however. Today’s game starts at 1:30 PM, televised on the BIG 10 Network.
This year marks the second straight year Iowa will be the No. 5 seed at the B1G Tournament. The Hawkeyes won their third tournament title winning four games in four days in 2022. Iowa defeated Purdue 75-66.
Iowa had six players recognized with postseason Big Ten honors: Kris Murray (first team), Filip Rebraca (third team), Tony Perkins (honorable mention), Connor McCaffery (honorable mention), Payton Sandfort (Sixth Man of the Year), and Patrick McCaffery (sportsmanship).