Boarding rebound train has been huge in Iowa men’s basketball taking off

Last Dec. 6 in Iowa City, Illinois out-rebounded Iowa by the whopping count of 52-23. Illini junior center Kofi Cockburn nearly out-boarded the Hawkeyes by himself, with 18.

That Iowa lost by just 87-83 was semi-amazing, but Iowa had just four turnovers to Illinois’ 18. However, the rebounding gap looked like a problem area that would hinder the Hawkeyes all season.

The game before, Iowa got out-boarded 36-25 in a 77-70 loss at Purdue. The game after Illinois, Iowa State had 50 rebounds to Iowa’s 32 in the Cyclones’ 73-53 win.

On Jan. 6, Wisconsin had a 43-26 rebounding advantage over the Hawkeyes in its 87-78 win. On Jan. 19, Rutgers out-rebounded Iowa by 11 in its 48-46 win. On Jan. 31, Penn State had 10 more boards than Iowa in its 90-86 overtime victory.

But this is March, and look what’s happened. One of the many keys in No. 24 Iowa winning its last five games, and going 8-1 since the start of February, is rebounding. After being out-rebounded by 7.2 per game over its first 10 Big Ten games, Iowa is +4.3 over the last nine.

From what Hawkeyes Coach Fran McCaffery said Saturday, the cure wasn’t complicated.

“Just a little more attention to detail, playing with a little more physicality,” McCaffery said.

“It’s really a mindset that you have to have and have to develop that.”

Iowa has averaged 2.6 more offensive rebounds per game than its foes in winning eight of nine. That says — and who would have believed it three months ago? — the Hawkeyes have become a decent-to-good rebounding team. Its offensive paces is a factor, yes, but Iowa actually has more offensive rebounds in Big Ten games than anyone else.

It probably must be good on the boards Sunday night when they get their rematch with No. 20 Illinois on Senior Night at State Farm Center. The 7-foot Cockburn remains a Jamaican force. He averages 21 points, and leads the Big Ten in rebounding with 10.5 per game.

It’s uncertain if starting forward Patrick McCaffery (10.5 points per game) can help Iowa’s cause in Champaign. After missing a game with a hip ailment, he came back to play 18 minutes in his team’s 82-71 win at Michigan Thursday. But he played just the first 4:41 of the second half. His coach said Saturday it was “hard to say” if McCafrery will play Sunday.

“He’s hurting a little bit,” Fran McCaffery said. “He did not come out of (the Michigan game) like we had hoped.”

On the Illini side, senior guard Jacob Grandison is questionable because of a shoulder injury he suffered Thursday in a win over Penn State. He averages 10.3 points and had 21 at Iowa.

A victory at Illinois would not only be perhaps Iowa’s win of the season, but it would give it assurance of no worse than a tie for fourth in the league standings and the No. 4 seeding in the Big Ten tournament.

At No. 4, Iowa wouldn’t play until Friday and would need three wins to capture the title. If the Hawkeyes lose, they would begin tourney play Thursday in Indianapolis.

A double-bye, Fran McCaffery said, “obviously gives you a better chance to win the whole thing. And that’s what everybody’s aspiring to do.”

If Nebraska were to get a huge upset win at Wisconsin Sunday afternoon, the Badgers would slip to 15-5 in the Big Ten. Illinois could then tie the Badgers for the regular-season championship with a win over the Hawkeyes.

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