The Iowa men's basketball squad will begin the season on Monday, October 30 as they take on Division II Quincy in an exhibition contest in Carver-Hawkeye Arena (7 PM CT, BTN+).
With the season right around the corner, let's take a look at Fran McCaffery's backcourt and what it will provide this season.
What's gone?
The Hawkeyes lost two heavy contributors to backcourt play over the 2023 offseason, with sixth-year senior Connor McCaffery graduating and Ahron Ulis departing to Nebraska via the transfer portal.
Though McCaffery didn't contribute a significant portion to the team on the stat sheet with just 6.5 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists (team leader) per game, Iowa will significantly miss his leadership and experience. His defensive presence and spot in the rotation will also be felt, as he played the third-most minutes per game for the Hawks last season (963 minutes).
Ulis wasn't exactly a stat-stuffer, either, as he averaged only 6.1 points, 1.6 rebounds and just over two assists per game last season. Though he entered the Iowa basketball program as a four-star prospect with loads of potential, Ulis was never able to consistently produce at a high level for the Hawkeyes.
Ulis was also one of the players charged in the gambling investigation involving several Iowa student-athletes. It's unclear how much Ulis might see the floor this season for the Cornhuskers, though he is still listed on their 2023-2024 roster.
Tony Perkins
6'4" -- 205 lbs -- Senior -- Indianapolis, Indiana
2022-23 Production Per Game: 12.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 2.8 assists
2022-23 Shooting Percentages: FG 44% | 3PT 33.3% | FT 76.3%
The only player returning with more than 725 minutes played from the 2022-23 season is combo guard Tony Perkins. With that level of experience, Coach McCaffery expects leadership from him this season:
"I expect a lot from Tony," he said. "I think he expects a lot from himself. ... Tony, Payton (Sandfort) and Patrick (McCaffery) [are going to lead us this year]. They're our three veteran guys. So that's what I need Tony to do, especially if he's going to play some at the point."
Perkins also discussed his leadership style. "Whenever [the young guys] have questions, they're down about something, or can't figure something out within basketball, I'm there," Perkins said. "I want to be there to help and guide them."
As noted by McCaffery, Perkins will be expected to play both on and off ball for the Hawkeyes this season. He'll also be expected to take up the reins on the scoring end once again this season after averaging 12.3 points per contest last season -- which makes him the leading returner scorer for Iowa entering this season.
Iowa has had a 20+ ppg scorer in each of the last four seasons (Luka Garza in 2019-20 and 2020-21, Keegan Murray in 2021-22, and Kris Murray in 2022-23) -- could Perkins extend that streak to five season in a row?
"Depending on the minutes that they get and how much we go to our bench with our young guys, that will obviously determine whether or not they can be 20-point scorers, but they're capable of it," McCaffery said of Perkins, Sandfort, and his son Patrick.
Over his three seasons at Iowa, Perkins has seen his production and responsibilities continue to grow, and his scoring will likely see an uptick and his leadership role will expand this season. Though I don't expect Perkins to be First Team All-Big Ten, add a deadly three-point shot, or lead the conference in steals, we'll see more of who Perkins is -- a reliable starting guard that can score and make some exciting plays throughout the season.
Dasonte Bowen
6'2" -- 183 lbs -- Sophomore -- Boston, Massachusetts
2022-23 Production Per Game: 3.1 points, 0.9 rebounds, 1 assist
2022-23 Shooting Percentages: FG 47.5% | 3PT 36.4% | FT 67.9%
Back for his second year with the program, many expect Dasonte Bowen, a sophomore guard from Boston, Massachusetts, to take a step forward in 2023-24. Though he grew as a basketball player last year and continues to grow this season, McCaffery believes he could've handled Bowen's minutes better in 2022-23.
"He deserved to play more and should have played more," McCaffery said. "With Dasonte, we played him at both [the one and the two]. Sometimes when you bring a guy in you only play him at one spot, he develops in that spot."
"For him, we were moving him back and forth because he can score and he can distribute. I think the growth part of his game is he's moving the ball. He's getting rid of the ball more to our shooters, to our guys in the post, on the break, and he's been really good. So I've been impressed with him."
More of a true point guard than Perkins or Josh Dix, expect Bowen to play the majority of his minutes this season at the one. We'll be looking for him to show off that growth in passing ability as well as a more aggressive play style, attacking the rim when it's open. With McCaffery affording Bowen a longer leash this season, Bowen may be in line to make a sophomore leap.
Josh Dix
6'5" -- 200 lbs -- Sophomore -- Council Bluffs, Iowa
2022-23 Production Per Game: 2 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.9 assists
2022-23 Shooting Percentages: FG 40.4% | 3PT 40% | FT 66.7%
Dix is the player in the backcourt mix most known for his shooting, but he will be expected to take on a larger role in his second year with the program -- both with and without the ball. As he said about Bowen, McCaffery also believes that he should have played the Council Bluffs native more during his freshman season.
"Yeah, he said that, but it's all good," Dix said at men's basketball media day. "That was last year, so I think this year I've got to run away with the opportunity to do whatever the team needs me to do."
Though Dix consistently emphasizes that he wants to do what is best for the team, he also sees himself contributing in more ways than one this coming season.
"I want to be a knock-down shooter, but I want to expand my role," he said. "I feel like last year I was kind of known as a shooter, but I think I can do more. Defensively, I like to take on the challenge of guarding one of the other team's best players, so that's kind of what I see for myself. I think defensively I can guard one through three, so I'll take on that role. Then, on the offensive side, I can play one through three as well."
Wanting to be known as more than a knock-down shooter isn't necessarily a bad thing, but "only" being a knock-down shooter isn't a bad thing itself, either.
As a team, Iowa ranked 100th in free throw shooting percentage, 127th in field goal percentage, 137th in effective field goal percentage and 178th nationally in three-point percentage. It wouldn't hurt to have a guy with the ace shooter label to boost those numbers.
If he can and does grow into more of an expanded role where he contributes in more ways than just shooting, great. But if he develops into a can't-miss shooter, that may be even better for this Iowa team in 2023-24.
Brock Harding
6'0" -- 162 lbs -- Freshman -- Moline, Illinois
The lone true freshman in the group, Brock Harding, a former three-star recruit out of Moline, Illinois, is one of four freshman brought in this season and expected to contribute to the program right away.
"There are few players that are as good as he is with the ball in his hands," McCaffery said at media day. "He just makes plays for people, consistently. And he keeps the aggressiveness that we want offensively all the time. He keeps coming at you, and he keeps attacking you. His decision-making is really good, typically."
"The other thing is he can score," added McCaffery. "A lot of really creative guys off the bounce, they can't shoot the ball outside. They can't hit the pull-up and they can't hit a 3. He can. He understands if we're running sets, if we're running motion. He understands time and score. And it's not often easy for a young guy to be a leader. He just has innate leadership ability."
Standing at just 6'0" and 162 pounds, Harding will be more of a true point guard than anyone else listed, simply because of his size. But as McCaffery said, Harding isn't afraid to score the basketball when the opportunity is provided to him.
Even with three older players in the lineup that can handle the point guard position, Harding may be in line to play 12-15 minutes a game as a true freshman for the Hawkeyes.
The Walk-Ons
Walk-on guards Carter Kingsbury (redshirt sophomore) and Luc Laketa (junior) will be joined in the backcourt by two new additions, Spencer Hutchison and Jovone Cater. Hutchison joins the roster as a redshirt freshman out of Dallas, Texas and Cater as a senior from Far Rockaway, New York. Neither of the new additions have previous college basketball experience.
Though none of the quartet of walk-ons should be expected to see meaningful minutes at during the season, having depth on the bench in case of injury certainly doesn't hurt -- just ask the Iowa football team.
