Hawkeyes set for showdown in Champaign
For the first time since March 8, the Hawkeyes and Illini will clash in a ranked matchup at State Farm Center Friday night.
Iowa center Luka Garza attempts to push past Illinois forward Giorgi Bezhanishvili during a men’s basketball game between the Iowa Hawkeyes and the Illinois Fighting Illini on Sunday, February 2, 2020. The Hawkeyes defeated the Fighting Illini 72-65.
January 28, 2021
The last time Iowa men’s basketball played Illinois, the Fighting Illini sent the Hawkeyes back to Iowa City from Champaign as losers after Illini center Kofi Cockburn rejected what would’ve been a game-tying, 15-foot jumper from senior Luka Garza at the buzzer.
At the time, the Hawkeyes were the nation’s No. 18 team, while the Fighting Illini ranked 23rd in the country. The game also proved pivotal for Big Ten Tournament seeding, as Illinois received a top-four seed and a double-bye following their victory.
Unbeknownst to both teams, that game would serve as their last of the 2019-20 season, as the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments were both canceled because COVID-19 had begun to emerge in the U.S.
So, Garza and the Hawkeyes had to deal with the bitter taste of a hard-fought loss to a conference rival all offseason before they would get another opportunity to play in November of 2020.
“Obviously, when your season ends, you always think about the last game because it’s just the last imprint on your mind,” Garza said at a Wednesday teleconference. “Obviously, it was a great game. We kind of got down in a hole a little bit, but we fought back and got ourselves back in the game … It was a tough one. Obviously, it came down to the last shot and me not being able to get a good shot off. You know, we didn’t have that much time. It definitely is something that sticks in your head. What could I have done better? Could I have made a better move or whatever the case may be?”
Shortly after Garza and Hawkeyes realized that game in Champaign was their last of the 2019-20 season, Garza announced that he would test the waters of the NBA Draft on April 10.
Cockburn and his teammate Ayo Donsunmu also decided to undergo the NBA Draft process.
By summer’s end, Donsunmu, Garza, and Cockburn had all withdrawn from the NBA Draft and decided to return to their respective schools to play another season of basketball in the Big Ten Conference.
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Dosunmu and Cockburn announced they were coming back to Illinois on July 31 and Aug. 1, respectively. Shortly thereafter, on Aug. 2, Garza told the Hawkeye faithful and the entire college basketball world that he would play another season in the Black and Gold in 2020-21, officially setting the Hawkeyes and Illini on a collision course yet again.
“I’m a competitor and I want to play against the best,” Garza said. “I’m never going to be sitting there rooting for them to leave so I don’t have to play them. I don’t dodge anybody. I was excited when they both came back. I think it’s good for our league. It’s good to just show everybody why the Big Ten is the best league in the country. I’m definitely excited. It’s a great thing to have these guys back.”
When the Big Ten Conference released its men’s basketball schedule, some were disappointed that the Hawkeyes and Illini were only slated to play once during the regular season. But Garza didn’t sour on it.
“I think you always want to play the best teams in your conference twice,” Garza said. “Especially in the Big Ten race, you want to be able to beat them as many times as you can. When the schedule came out and I was looking at all the games, it wasn’t really a focus of mine that we only play them once. I’m thankful we have the opportunity to play them and everybody’s doing their jobs to be healthy and make sure we’re out there to play.”
Now, the Hawkeyes’ only game against the Fighting Illini during the regular season has finally arrived.
Both teams have stumbled into Friday’s highly anticipated matchup. The Fighting Illini have dropped two of their last three games, falling to No. 19 in the AP Top 25 Poll. Illinois’ highest AP ranking this season was No. 5.
The Hawkeyes fell to Indiana at Carver-Hawkeye Arena, 81-69, on Jan. 21. The Hoosiers are currently unranked, and the Hawkeyes are now the nation’s seventh-best team per the AP – down from their season-high No. 3 rating.
Despite that, the Hawkeyes are expecting a physical game on Friday night, given the chippy nature of both their contests with the Illini last year – the first of which saw the exchange of harsh words and actions, and subsequently, the distribution of multiple technical fouls.
“Every game in our league is intense, physical, a lot of emotion,” Hawkeye head coach Fran McCaffery said. “[We] were two good teams going at it last year. Both games came down to the last 30 seconds. We have respect for them, just knowing who they have. They’ve proven over the last couple years that they’re a team capable of winning at this level.”
For some, getting into the right frame of mind ahead of an intense rivalry game can be difficult. For others, including Hawkeye guard Joe Toussaint, it comes naturally.
“To be honest, I don’t really like anybody, if I’m being honest with you,” Toussaint said. “That’s just how it is in basketball. Off the court, we’re friends, but on the court, I just don’t like anybody at all. So, yeah, I guess you could say I don’t like [the Illini].”
Tipoff between the Hawkeyes and Fighting Illini is scheduled for 8 p.m. at State Farm Center Friday night. The game will be aired on FS1.
