The last time Owen Freeman stepped into Vibrant Arena in his hometown of Moline, Illinois, it was for his high school graduation in the spring of 2023. 

Freeman didn’t have to wait very long to make his next appearance, as his Iowa squad made the 50-minute trek to Moline on Friday to take on Washington State. 

Not only was the game significant for Freeman, it was also special for fellow second-year guard Brock Harding, who was teammates with Freeman during their senior year of high school. The tandem led the Maroons to the Class 4A state championship, etching themselves in Illinois high school basketball history. 

Harding turned in a respectable performance, chipping in seven points, two rebounds, and four assists, but it was Freeman who stole the show against the Cougars. 

The 6-foot-10 center was Iowa’s best player right from the opening tip, finishing with 21 points and 11 rebounds, carrying the Hawkeyes to an impressive 76-66 victory. 

As if the chance to play in his hometown wasn’t enough,  it also marked Freeman’s 20th birthday. 

“This is the number one birthday for me,” Freeman said. “This takes the cake for sure.” 

Before the contest even started, it was clear that this game meant something to Freeman. The raucous crowd of nearly 9,000 fans were chanting Freeman’s name during the starting lineups and the sophomore responded to the fans with enthusiastic gestures. 

Once the game tipped off, Freeman was hungry for the ball, and hit pay dirt on his first touch on the inside, using his large frame to bully his way down in the paint for an easy bucket, delighting the hometown Moline crowd. Freeman enthusiastically galloped down the floor in response, pumping the fans up along the way. 

The center continued to get whatever he wanted inside in the first half. forcing Washington State to double team him, to no avail. But his biggest highlights were still to come. 

With under eight minutes to play in the period. Freeman wiggled his way through two Cougar defenders and snatched a wild layup from guard Drew Thelwell and threw it down with emphasis, resulting in a standing ovation from the Hawkeye faithful. 

Despite the incredible play, the officials tacked Freeman with a technical foul for making the “on his head” gesture to the Washington State defenders, much to the dismay of the crowd. 

“I had a little bit too much energy in the first half,” Freeman said. 

The play also resulted in Freeman’s second foul of the half, and head coach Fran McCaffery sat him for the remainder of the half to keep him from picking up another foul. The call also seemed to suck the life out of Vibrant Arena and the Hawkeyes, allowing Washington State to take a three-point lead into the locker room.

After resting for nearly nine minutes, Freeman came back out for the second half with a determined look on his face, and he backed up the expression with a memorable second half. 

The Cougars attempted to distract Freeman in the paint, but he continued to muscle his way through the defenders, scoring easy buckets at the rim.

“I think the T really knocked some sense into him,” McCaffery joked after the game. “But he came back in the second half and dominated.” 

But the rest of Iowa’s offense continued to struggle, leaving the outcome of the game in serious doubt. 

With Washington State maintaining a four-point edge, Freeman shifted the momentum back to the Hawkeyes with an incredible dunk off a beautiful alley-oop pass from fourth-year forward Payton Sandfort, sending the building into a frenzy. 

That’s tuff 😤@payton_20_ x @_OwenFreeman

📺: @BigTenNetwork pic.twitter.com/6nwaO5WWH7

— Iowa Men’s Basketball (@IowaHoops) November 16, 2024

“He [Sandfort] called the play and he threw it up, so I had to go get it,” Freeman said. “So that’s about it. Yeah, we kind of looked at each other after and we were both pretty hyped so it was a lot of fun.” 

“I told him, ‘I’m going to hit you’,” Sandfort added. 

Freeman continued to quell the Cougar defense from there, collecting more crucial baskets and rebounds. Due in part to a strong defensive performance, Iowa built up a four-point advantage with less than a minute to play and looked to close out the game at the charity stripe. 

The Hawkeyes are usually known for being one of the top free-throw shooting squads in the country, but only made 18 of their 27 attempts on the night. With 49 seconds to play, Freeman was fouled on the in-bounds pass, sending him to the line. 

The sophomore entered the contest as only a 62.5 percent foul shooter and struggled at times during the game, but buried both free throws. Game over. 

“I thought he did a heck of a job just impacting the game with his rebound name and his physicality,” Washington State head coach David Riley said. 

Freeman was all smiles after the game, and celebrated with the Iowa fans sitting courtside by giving them high-fives. He also shared a special embrace with Harding before entering his postgame press conference. 

Freeman’s performance was even more impressive considering he was battling an illness that caused him to miss Tuesday’s game against South Dakota.

“He was gassed in practice, so I only thought I could get 18-20 minutes out of him,” McCaffery said.

It may have not been Michael Jordan’s infamous “flu game” from the 1997 NBA Finals, but it was a special performance in front of a place Freeman considers his “home.” 

“The Quad Cities showed out, and it was just an incredible experience,” Freeman said.