Basketball: Hawkeyes heading north to close the regular season

IOWA CITY - If Iowa's freshmen needed a Big Ten wake-up call, they got one against Minnesota two months ago.

Minnesota harassed Iowa's guards with a pressure defense that forced an unbelievable amount of turnovers. By the first media timeout, Iowa had six turnovers and trailed 17-4. It got worse.

Iowa had 18 first-half turnovers, and Minnesota had 49 points at halftime. Four Iowa starters had three turnovers and the other had two. Minnesota scored 31 points off Iowa turnovers and outscored the Hawkeyes 19-0 in fast-break points, all before the second half.

“We just obviously played very poorly against them,” said Iowa freshman point guard Cully Payne. “We just try to not to panic.

That game we panicked, everyone did, right when they put it on.”

The game didn't get much easier in the second half. Iowa finished with a season-high 25 turnovers, which turned into 45 Gophers points. Iowa still lost by only 12 points.

“If it was a welcome, it wasn't a very pleasing welcome,” Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter said. “It wasn't very hospitable. They really jumped us.”

Iowa since has improved against the press, and the players are eager to show the Gophers. Iowa sophomore Matt Gatens said the game showed the team's freshmen how tough Big Ten competition is, and what it will take to be competitive.

“I think it opened up a lot of eyes about how this league is and how these young guys got to see it firsthand,” Gatens said. “We struggled terribly against it.”

“Last time we couldn't even get over the half-court,” Iowa sophomore Aaron Fuller said. “I feel like this time around we'll be a little bit more prepared for them.”