Rookies sound ready to rock and roll for Hawkeyes men’s basketball team

IOWA CITY — You wouldn’t expect a couple guys who led a team to the big-school state boys’ basketball championship to be content riding the bench once they got to their college teams.

Brock Harding and Owen Freeman aren’t saying they’re going to be in Fran McCaffery’s Iowa rotation from the get-go come November, but who’s to say they aren’t?

“That’s my goal,” said the 6-foot-11, 225-pound Freeman before a Hawkeyes practice at Carver-Hawkeye Arena Thursday. Freeman joined Harding in pacing Moline to a 35-3 record and the Illinois Class 4A state title in March.

“Nothing’s set in stone right now, but obviously that’s everyone’s goal. And I’m just trying to put in the work to make sure that happens.”

Harding, a 6-foot-1, 165-pound point guard who was Illinois’ Mr. Basketball last season and scored 28 points in Moline’s 59-42 championship win over Benet Academy, was less committal.

“We’ll kind of see when that time comes,” he said, but he didn’t sound like he lacked confidence. He said his “basketball IQ” is his top asset right now.

“I’ve always kind of had that,” Harding said, “the way I’ve played the game. I’ve always kind of played it right, played the point guard role, and that’s really transitioned well to the college level.”

Harding and Freeman comprise one-half of McCaffery’s four-freshman group. Power forward Ladji Dembele of Newark, N.J., and wing Pryce Sandfort of Waukee are the others.

After four straight seasons of featuring a 20-point-per-game All-American, McCaffery will have a different kind of team in the winter ahead. The scoring is almost certain to be spread around more. It may be one freshman or more who is involved along with returnees Patrick McCaffery and Tony Perkins, and transfer Ben Krikke of Valparaiso.

Iowa has had four freshmen average 10 points or more per game since 2017 in Jordan Bohannon, Luka Garza, Joe Wieskamp and C.J. Fredrick. But seldom have the Hawkeyes had more than one or two freshmen step in and play significant roles in a given season.

“I think it’s uncommon that it’s across the board,” Fran McCaffery said, but suggested his four rookies might be different.

“It’s not that you can’t learn a play. It’s learning the counters and nuances of it. The motion offense is seemingly simple. But if you’re not screening or moving and cutting with a purpose, it doesn’t work.

“These guys have, I think, basketball instincts.”

Dembele is the freshman who comes in with the least publicity, but McCaffery had plenty good to say about him.

“Ladji’s been really impressive so far,” McCaffery said. “He’s probably 260 pounds, but he’s got a really good skill set. He moves it, he can put it on the deck, he can make 3s.

“He has been a phenomenally impressive rebounder, every day since he got here, which is what we need from that position. Most freshmen don’t come in and consistently rebound the way he has.”

The coach will get a chance to observe his freshman and veterans alike soon enough. Iowa will play three games during a 10-day trip to France and Spain next month.

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