Iowa basketball’s offensive shortcomings are among pressing issues in two-game slide

AMES — Payton Sandfort, offering a candid reflection following Iowa’s blowout loss to Iowa State on Thursday, delivered an apt summary of a brutal night.

“Right now, it really sucks,” Sandfort said. “I know people are probably pissed. I’m pissed.”

The junior from Waukee also offered some defiance.

“But,” Sandfort said, “you keep fighting.”

The Hawkeyes got hit with another harsh dose of reality on Thursday. Iowa was dominated in the Cy-Hawk rivalry matchup at Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones (7-2) defeated the Hawkeyes, 90-65.

Iowa suffered back-to-back losses for the first time this season. The Hawkeyes were dismantled by Purdue on Monday, 87-68, trailing by as many as 35 points in the second half. Thursday’s result marked consecutive blowout losses.

The Hawkeyes (5-4) have some serious soul-searching to do and that, among many things, includes getting their offense back on track.

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out right now,” sophomore Dasonte Bowen said of Iowa’s offense. “We’re trying to get back to scoring at a high clip against tough opponents.”

The Hawkeyes’ fast-paced, free-flowing offense has delivered success under Iowa coach Fran McCaffery for years. Iowa isn’t built to beat teams with defense, a facet of the Hawkeyes’ game that has been known as a weakness.

But at times this season, Iowa has looked lost at times offensively against higher-level opponents. Iowa has struggled to shoot the ball and has looked disjointed on that side of the court. The Hawkeyes shot 35.8% from the field in a loss to Oklahoma on Nov. 23. They shot 38.5% vs. Purdue.

On Thursday, Iowa’s offense had shortcomings yet again. Uncharacteristically, Iowa committed 19 turnovers, which led to 25 Iowa State points. The Hawkeyes shot 38.6% from the field and 30.8% from 3-point range. Sandfort was one of the few bright spots with 14 points.

“It was kinda like the other night (against Purdue),” McCaffery said. “We didn’t get enough movement, whether it be ball movement, people movement. You’ve got to give your opponent credit defensively. … We have to do more screening, more cutting, more penetration.”

Diagnosing Iowa’s offensive issues is not single-pronged. Sandfort pointed to the fact that Iowa got down early. Iowa made a slight change to its starting five for the first time this season, with sophomore Josh Dix making the first start of his college career. It didn’t go well. Dix committed two fouls and two turnovers in less than four minutes. By the first media timeout, Iowa State led 12-6.

“Honestly, I think we’re getting down so bad in the games that it’s hard to shoot when you’re down,” Sandfort said. “And everyone is screaming at you. We got to come out with more fight. Make it a more back-and-forth game and then I think the offense will click.”

The Hawkeyes have enjoyed the luxury of having an alpha scorer in recent years, from Luka Garza to Keegan Murray to Kris Murray. Entering this season, there was optimism that someone could emerge as that lead scorer to carry the load, such as returners Sandfort, Patrick McCaffery and Tony Perkins or transfer Ben Krikke. Or maybe Iowa could be a more balanced scoring group than in seasons past.

But so far this season, it’s unclear what Iowa’s formula is for success offensively. Those veterans have shown flashes of what they can do, but it hasn’t been on a consistent basis. The growing pains of that transition have been evident, including on Thursday. Perkins had six points on 2-for-7 shooting and McCaffery didn’t score.

Iowa got some contributions elsewhere. Dasonte Bowen had 13 points. Freshman Owen Freeman had 11. But it wasn’t nearly enough firepower to make up for the lost ground from the veterans.

“Those guys, yeah, they need to be better than they were tonight,” Fran McCaffery said of Perkins, Sandfort and Patrick McCaffery, though he noted Sandfort made some important shots. “And they will be.”

Iowa State manhandled Iowa in the paint, outscoring the Hawkeyes 46-18. Iowa tried to adjust at halftime, putting Freeman and Krikke on the court to start the second half. But that didn’t do a whole lot of good. If Iowa is going to get beat in the paint, it needs to make up for that gap with its versatility. But for the second consecutive game, it didn’t happen.

Getting right on offense is also a result of defense. Iowa didn’t get enough stops, which prevented its transition offense from making an impact. Iowa State shot 53.3% from the field and 47.1% from deep.

“We got to buy in a little more on the defensive end, so then we kinda get in the flow of transition, where we thrive and now we’re getting layups and the threes are starting to fall,” Bowen said. “And that’s kinda where we’re at our best.”

Even with the last two results, there still have been reasons for optimism, such as the play of Krikke and emergence of Freeman, plus other members of Iowa’s young core. Iowa went on the road against Creighton and put up a strong fight. But there have been far too many stretches when the Hawkeyes have looked flat or disconnected. Iowa has a long way to go, perhaps more than was expected.

If there are positive threads to pull at, one is that it’s early December. Iowa has plenty of time to get back on track. Another positive: The team has played in some incredibly tough road environments (Creighton, Purdue, Iowa State), and those experiences could help a team with some young pieces mature.

But that means that Iowa actually has to show growth. If not, the Hawkeyes could be in for a long season. Iowa’s matchup with Michigan on Sunday is a chance to stop the nosedive it has taken over the last two games.

“Continue to encourage each other,” Sandfort said of how Iowa can stick together. “There’s a lot of stuff that goes on through life. Some people are dealing with that right now. That’s all part of it. So we gotta keep loving each other, keep encouraging each other. It really sucks right now, but we’re going to respond.”