Iowa's role players continue to come through

IOWA CITY — Peter Jok is going to get his points and rebounds. Cordell Pemsl and Tyler Cook are going to get their touches. Jordan Bohannon is going to control the offense for the lion's share of the minutes. Nicholas Baer is going to be the first off the bench.

The Iowa men's basketball team has a few very-well-defined roles right now, and those mentioned are the most vital to the Hawkeyes success so far and the rest of the way.

As vital as those guys have been, though, it's the last fraction of the production — the quarter that's come from a rotating cast of Iowa players — that has either put the Hawkeyes over the edge or been the missing piece.

Dom Uhl, Isaiah Moss, Ahmad Wagner, Brady Ellingson, Christian Williams and most recently Ryan Kriener have all taken turns adding that last part of what's powered Iowa to the wins it's gotten. They've not had prominent roles every game, but they've accepted the ones they have and have taken advantage when given a chance.

'The journey, you're always learning what to do, what not to do, and how to get better, and that's our job to break that down as simply as we can and then teach it effectively. Then have them affect change with what they're doing, maybe, incorrectly,' Coach Fran McCaffery said Wednesday. 'When you have character guys, they're going to try to listen and do what you ask them to do. Nobody's fighting us and saying my role should be this. They're all buying in, so we're getting better.'

Moss has been the biggest contributor from the role player group, to be certain. As he worked his way into the starting lineup, his production has been a bit streaky, but his three-game stretch from Michigan to Rutgers — especially his 17 points at Nebraska — offered performances as important as anyone.

Uhl's game against Rutgers — 10 points, eight rebounds and five blocks — was the reason McCaffery said Iowa won. Wagner had a more consistent impact in non-conference, but before getting in foul trouble had nine important points Thursday against Purdue while Pemsl sat with a brief back issue.

Ellingson, with Baer, was one of the few bright spots at Purdue in the Big Ten opener, and backed that up with a couple key buckets down the stretch against Michigan. Williams, whose offensive production still hasn't gotten off the ground, came up the biggest with individual defense against Rutgers.

And then there's Kriener, who had six points in eight minutes on Thursday night — his first game action since the aforementioned conference opener. While Kriener answered questions from media after the game, Cook came in the room and chanted 'MVP, MVP,' over Kriener's answer, getting a big smile from the Spirit Lake product.

Cook said, 'not too many guys can come off the bench and be ready like he was. That was huge for us,' alluding to Kriener's long gap in game time.

'I've just gone to work every day and done all I can. When you get your shot, you've got to make the most of it,' Kriener said Thursday night. 'That's something I've always done.

'We all pride ourselves in practice; going hard and keeping each other accountable. … I think that's really helped us with the learning curve.'

As anyone who's ever played basketball, been around it or coached it knows, every player who laces up wants — somewhere in their heart — to be the star; to be the one everyone relies on. McCaffery knows, as do the rest, that that's not possible.

He was asked Wednesday about Moss understanding that, but his answer might as well have applied to Uhl, Wagner, Ellingson, Williams and Kriener, too.

Getting the bulk of his roster — the guys who play more minutes than stats they collect — to buy in and work hard despite knowing that is the biggest challenge any coach faces. If Iowa is going to get its first true road win Sunday at Northwestern (6:30 p.m. at Welsh-Ryan Arena on BTN), McCaffery will need at least one of those guys to do it again.

There's obviously room to grow, but McCaffery's gotten it from each of those guys in their own way so far — even if he answered the question about Moss specifically.

'As a coach, you've got to understand this. Everybody wants to be the starter. Everybody wants to play. Everybody wants to be a lottery pick,' McCaffery said. 'But there are very few guys that you say, OK, that guy's a lottery pick, and everybody agrees and he plays for four months and he's a lottery pick. You have to work to be who you become. And that's what he's doing, and that's why I really respect him.'

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