Expectations?

Amahawk

Senior
May 1, 2002
3,460
824
113
The last couple of seasons, Iowa did not advance too far in the NCAA tournament. Two final fours with Clark raised expectations for the program with many fans. Did Iowa catch lightning in a bottle for a few seasons with Clark and now it is time to retrn to reality?
 
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Jonesy5960

Heisman
Feb 1, 2023
5,983
12,338
113
The last 2 seasons were young and lacking in perimeter talent. That's been rectified and I see this as a Big10 contender and Elite 8 as the floor. Whether they can go there or beyond depends on health and how well they can gel as a unit, but I think fans should be really excited about the possibilities. If Jan can keep this group together I think they are competing for a championship over the next few years.
 

Scott559

Heisman
Mar 16, 2010
3,283
10,835
113
Reality is reality, Iowa did not advance to the sweet 16, In the tournament they shot the ball about as poorly as any Iowa WBB team I have watched. I think they already had a solid roster, I think between another year of experience and some key portal additions this coming years team will have a nice bump in the talent level and more importantly will be a more versatile team on the offensive end. I expect growing pains early on but believe they have a roster built more for post season success.
 

hawkod

All-Conference
Iowa Swarm member
Apr 5, 2007
523
1,584
93
Reality is reality, Iowa did not advance to the sweet 16, In the tournament they shot the ball about as poorly as any Iowa WBB team I have watched. I think they already had a solid roster, I think between another year of experience and some key portal additions this coming years team will have a nice bump in the talent level and more importantly will be a more versatile team on the offensive end. I expect growing pains early on but believe they have a roster built more for post season success.
Exactly on the early growing pains potentially. NASA is working hard to develop the technology to measure the moaning and groaning we'll hear from the casual fans as they stumble some the 1st 2 months of the season. After that this will be a better team than last year even though the record won't reflect it....lots of talent in the Big 10. I'd be shocked if they don't roll through the first weekend in March Madness.
 

Legend12

Heisman
Dec 16, 2022
9,999
32,985
113
The last 2 seasons were young and lacking in perimeter talent. That's been rectified and I see this as a Big10 contender and Elite 8 as the floor. Whether they can go there or beyond depends on health and how well they can gel as a unit, but I think fans should be really excited about the possibilities. If Jan can keep this group together I think they are competing for a championship over the next few years.

E8 as the floor is CRAZY talk.
 

Anon1750875978

Heisman
Dec 26, 2018
7,950
13,716
113
The last 2 seasons were young and lacking in perimeter talent. That's been rectified and I see this as a Big10 contender and Elite 8 as the floor. Whether they can go there or beyond depends on health and how well they can gel as a unit, but I think fans should be really excited about the possibilities. If Jan can keep this group together I think they are competing for a championship over the next few years.
Elite 8 as the floor?????

A team that can't win more than one game in two consecutive years and Elite 8 is the floor???

I'll have what you're drinking.🤣🤣🤣
 

citizenHawk1

Senior
Jul 10, 2025
394
999
93
Anyone's guess if all the talent can come together and shine as a team. If they can, it's going to be a fun year, but if it's a struggle to find their flow every game becomes tough.

Big Ten is loaded with talent as all the teams get better with portal era rosters. Not even the same game to get there like Iowa did in '23, '24.

All these teams could make noise:
USC, Michigan, OSU, UCLA, Minnesota, Washington, Illinois. And you know the others will be right there.

I expect growing pains through the tough early schedule. If they can make it a game vs. UConn, I'll be excited.

Already excited to be back to the "winning" offense. Team needs to hit 3s this year.
 

Kceasthawk@77

All-American
Feb 2, 2005
3,054
5,579
113
To be fair, 6/11 on this roster weren’t on the team last year and 9/11 weren’t on the team two years ago.
Very true, which means it may very well take some time to work all these new pieces into a cohesive unit. Hopefully by January we'll see this really come together.
 

Anon1750875978

Heisman
Dec 26, 2018
7,950
13,716
113
To be fair, 6/11 on this roster weren’t on the team last year and 9/11 weren’t on the team two years ago.
Agree, but realistically, Iowa will be somewhere 5/6 ranked in the B1G preseason. USC/UCLA/Michigan/Minny/Maryland...
Saying Elite 8 is the floor is kinda laughable.

I get the optimism angle, but reality can be completely different.
 

KyleHuesmann

Heisman
Staff member
Dec 9, 2022
15,921
46,697
113
Agree, but realistically, Iowa will be somewhere 5/6 ranked in the B1G preseason. USC/UCLA/Michigan/Minny/Maryland...
Saying Elite 8 is the floor is kinda laughable.

I get the optimism angle, but reality can be completely different.
I don't see any scenario where Iowa is voted lower than fourth in the preseason Big Ten rankings. Possibly even third behind USC and Michigan.