Men’s basketball plans to shut down Buckeyes

Iowa shut Kaleb Wesson down in its last game against Ohio State, and it will look to its defense inside to do it again.

Iowa forward Ryan Kriener watches as Minnesota guard Amir Coffey shoots the ball during the men’s basketball game vs. Minnesota at Williams Arena on Sunday, January 27, 2019.

Pete Ruden, Sports Editor
February 26, 2019

One thing has been clear in Iowa basketball’s last five games: The Hawkeyes don’t get frustrated when a close contest goes into crunch time.

After all, Iowa’s past five games have been decided by a combined 15 points, with two wins coming on buzzer beaters and another coming in overtime.

But when the Hawkeyes travel to Columbus to take on Ohio State today, it might not be a bad idea for the Hawkeyes to get off to a fast start to avoid increasing the blood pressure of their fans even more. No matter how the wins come, though, the Hawkeyes enjoy the run.

“Obviously, we would like to win by more than a couple points every once in a while, but this is what we love to do,” Iowa forward Tyler Cook said. “This is why we play the game of basketball, so I love every second of it.”

Iowa can get out to that fast start by converting when it gets opportunities and limiting Kaleb Wesson in the paint, which it did when it beat then-No. 16 Ohio State on Jan. 12.

In the 72-62 Buckeye loss, Wesson scored just 2 points on 1-of-5 shooting, far below his season average, now 14.4.

Katina Zentz
Iowa forward Tyler Cook holds the ball back from Indiana forward Evan Fitzner during the men’s basketball game vs. Indiana at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday, February 22, 2019. The Hawkeyes defeated the Hoosiers 76-70.

Whether it’s been Wesson, Northwestern’s Dererk Pardon, or Penn State’s Lamar Stevens, the Hawkeyes have found a way to shut down some of the conference’s best big men. A big reason for that is the play of Ryan Kriener, who has been a defensive staple in the paint while also contributing on the offensive end.

“Everyone’s got a role, and you can either complain about your role, or you can embrace it and try to be the best you can be, and that’s something I really try to do,” Kriener said. “Whatever the team needs me to do, I’ve always said from the first day I got here, I’m just trying to do what I got to do to win.”

That’s been apparent in Iowa’s turnaround this season. While Kriener hasn’t necessarily been the star of the improved Hawkeye squad, he has provided quality minutes in his time on the floor, especially when Luka Garza and Cook get into foul trouble.

In Iowa’s 76-70 overtime win over Indiana on Feb. 22, Kriener dropped 8 points and pulled down 3 rebounds, playing an important stretch when Garza went to the bench with 9:44 remaining in the first half after picking up two fouls.

“Kriener was great, wasn’t he?” Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery marveled after the Hawkeyes’ victory over the Hoosiers.

The Buckeyes have been on a bit of a skid recently, losing three of their last four. In Ohio State’s one victory — a 63-49 win over Northwestern on Feb. 20 — Wesson dropped 22 points and grabbed 8 boards.

Now hitting the road, the attention will turn to Kriener to keep him at bay. And maybe Iowa can build a lead and relieve some stress for its fans.

“My Grandma texted me after all the close ones and said, ‘You guys need to win by more,’ because she’s got a speedy heart, and she doesn’t like those,” Kriener said. “They’re fun for us. They’re not so much fun for Grandma.”