2011-12 ITH Season Preview: Iowa Hawkeyes

With the college basketball season inching closer, we’ll be taking a long look at the conference at large as well as Indiana’s roster over the next few weeks. Today, we continue our team previews with a look at the Iowa Hawkeyes. A new era began last winter in Iowa City as Fran McCaffery was tasked with turning around a program run into the Big Ten cellar by Todd Lickliter. As most pundits predicted, it was a tough debut season for McCaffery and the Hawkeyes: Iowa finished 11-20 overall and 4-14 in the conference. But even in the midst of a major rebuilding overhaul, there were positive signs in year one of the McCaffery era. Iowa avoided finishing last in the league by beating Indiana twice and Michigan State and Purdue at home. Three of their conference losses were by just three points, including two in overtime. And guard Bryce Cartwright and big man Melsahn Basabe quietly put together stellar seasons. Add it all up and the Hawkeyes could be a surprise in a league with plenty of ...