Iowa's Nicholas Baer earns basketball scholarship

IOWA CITY — Nicholas Baer's two-year development from high school center to Big Ten-caliber forward has helped save his family a great deal of money.

Baer, a current 6-foot-7 red-shirt freshman from Bettendorf, has earned a men's basketball scholarship, Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery announced on Thursday. Iowa had two scholarships available after freshmen Andrew Fleming and Brandon Hutton elected to transfer last week. Baer's performance this year almost forced McCaffery's hand.

'When we invited Nicholas to walk-on two years ago, I had a strong suspicion that this day would come,' McCaffery said in a statement. 'I didn't give him a scholarship, he earned one and that's the greatest compliment that you can give to him. He just wanted a chance and felt like he would take it from there and he did.

'He really worked hard his red-shirt year to figure out what he needed to do to be successful at this level. Nicholas was a terrific player for us in a lot of different ways this past season. He impacts the game with his energy, basketball instincts, shooting, rebounding, defense, and he doesn't make mistakes. He's everything you want on the floor, especially with the way we play. I'm excited about having him in our program for the next three years.'

Baer, an academic all-Big Ten selection, developed into a complimentary piece off the bench for Iowa and was known for his scrappiness on each possession. He played in all 33 games, averaging 4.8 points and 2.6 rebounds. His 14.5 minutes per game ranked seventh on the team.

McCaffery's move hardly is surprising, based on the coach's comments after Iowa beat Drake on Dec. 19. Baer scored 13 points, grabbed seven rebounds and blocked six shots in the victory. McCaffery addressed Baer's scholarship situation after that game.

'Obviously, we're going to have to give him a scholarship at some point,' McCaffery said. 'That's safe to say.'

Baer reached double figures five times last season. Against eventual national champion Villanova in an NCAA tournament second-round game, Baer scored 15 points, grabbed four offensive rebounds and two steals in 25 minutes.

At Bettendorf High School, Baer averaged 15.2 points and 9.1 rebounds as a senior. But with a slender frame — he played at 198 pounds this year — Baer couldn't play center in the Big Ten. So rather than attend a lower-level or division program, Baer walked on at Iowa. He red-shirted and worked on his perimeter shot. He ended the season knocking down 26 3-pointers at a 39.4 percent clip.

'All I ever wanted to do was come to University of Iowa,' Baer said after the Villanova loss. 'I grew up in Bettendorf, Iowa, where there's Tiger Hawk bumper stickers on just about every car. Coach McCaffery gave me an opportunity to walk on here and gave me the opportunity to play here, which is all I ever wanted was to wear a Hawkeye jersey. So I can't thank Coach McCaffery enough for giving me the opportunity to achieve my dream.'

Iowa now has one available scholarship for the upcoming 2016-17 season. Baer is eligible to play three seasons. With four seniors graduating and shooting guard Peter Jok vying for a shot at the NBA, Baer has a chance to to move into the starting lineup next year.

'The only thing that is separating him from really, really good is about 15 pounds,' McCaffery said after the Villanova game. 'I'm sure he'll be that much stronger next year and he'll get after it in the weight room. He can dribble, pass and shoot, he defends, he's got instincts, he's tenacious, he's got basketball IQ. He's got tremendous character.'

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