Despite Iowa basketball’s (13-5, 3-4 Big Ten) convincing 74-57 win at Indiana on Saturday, the Hawkeyes fell just outside the top 25 in the latest USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll.
In its two games last week, Iowa finished 1-1 with a hard-fought, entertaining 79-72 defeat at No. 4 Purdue. Iowa followed that up with its bounce-back win at Indiana.
In those games, the Hawkeyes were led by senior guard Bennett Stirtz (23.0 points, 4.5 assists, 3.0 rebounds per game) and senior forward Tavion Banks (17.5 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists per game).
Banks dropped a season-high 26 points on 8-for-12 shooting, 1-for-2 from 3-point range, and a perfect 9-for-9 at the free-throw line against the Hoosiers.
Unfortunately, the 17-point win at Assembly Hall was not enough to convince the coaches to keep the Hawkeyes inside the poll. However, Iowa is not far from rejoining the top 25, as it leads the receiving votes category with 52 points.
Five Big Ten squads crack the top 25 this week, including four inside the top 10 nationally. Michigan leads the way at No. 2, followed by Purdue at No. 4, Nebraska at No. 7, Michigan State at No. 10, and Illinois at No. 11. The only other conference member joining Iowa in the receiving votes category is Wisconsin (20 points).
Given that Iowa is on the fringes of the Top 25, the Hawkeyes could move back into the grouping with a home win over Rutgers (9-9, 2-5 Big Ten) on Jan. 20. That game against the Scarlet Knights from Carver-Hawkeye Arena is Iowa’s lone contest this week and is slated for a 7:30 p.m. CT start on BTN.
Here’s a look at the full USA TODAY Sports Men’s Basketball Coaches Poll:
Schools Dropped Out
No. 23 Iowa; No. 24 Utah State;
Others Receiving Votes
Iowa 52; Wisconsin 20; Miami (OH) 19; Utah State 14; Villanova 10; Tennessee 10; Saint Mary’s 9; Miami (FL) 8; Texas A&M 5; Kentucky 5; SMU 4; Seton Hall 2; UCF 1; George Mason 1;
Contact/Follow us @HawkeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Iowa news, notes, and opinions. Follow Scout on X: @SpringgateNews
This article originally appeared on Hawkeyes Wire: Iowa basketball slips out of USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll rankings
Reporting by Scout Springgate, Hawkeyes Wire / Hawkeyes Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
