Iowa basketball: No Sweet 16 appearances in 10 tournaments for Fran

Controversial Iowa basketball head coach Fran McCaffery has been around for quite some time but has yet to make a Sweet 16.

Iowa basketball head coach Fran McCaffery has spent 27 years in the NCAA ranks, 4 as a player and 23 as a coach. Yet, despite his impressive longevity, he has yet to make an ever-elusive Sweet 16 appearance. If we’re being honest, he’s struggled to get out of the first round even, but it’s not for a lack of trying.

Fran has taken four different NCAA programs (Lehigh, UNC-Greensboro, Sienna, and Iowa) to the NCAA Tournament a combined eight times (not including this year’s appearance by the Iowa basketball team), and he also went twice as a player (but we’re not going to touch on that much here). In those eight trips as a coach, his teams have gone 4-4 in their first-round games.

The four times they did win, they went on to get smoked in the second round by their opponent. His two times in the second round with the Iowa basketball team, the Hawks lost by 19 points to 2 seeds. Meanwhile, with Sienna, the Saints lost by 7 to 1 seeded Louisville by 7 points and by 12 to 12 seed Villanova in 2008.

So what does this mean for the Iowa basketball team this year?

Well, not only would it be a monumental moment for the Iowa basketball program if they were to make it to the Sweet 16 considering it’s been 20 years, but it would be a monumental moment for head coach Fran McCaffery as well.

It also means he has had quite a few experiences to pull from leading into this moment. He understands the nerves and excitement that goes into this game while also understanding sometimes less is more when it comes to prep. As Fran said in his press conference today:

"Your preparation is very similar, very business-like — grind, watching film, get on the court in practice. This time of year I think if you’re going two and a half hours in practice, you’re crazy. So we scaled back practice time, make sure we have fresh legs, but at the same time focus on the interesting or specific things that we have to do for that game."

Slotted as the 10 seed this year, the road will not be easy with what is essentially an away game versus Cincinnati tomorrow followed by a matchup with a strong Tennessee team on Sunday.

There is a chance though. The Iowa basketball team has the pieces in place to win both of these games, but will they withstand the pressure and excitement of the 2019 NCAA Tournament?

We find out tomorrow.