Iowa Basketball: Jordan Bohannon is starting to heat up
By Joe Kipp
When Jordan Bohannon is on fire, the Iowa Hawkeyes are nearly impossible to stop.
How far will the Iowa basketball team go this season? The conventional answer may lie with Luka Garza’s performance. In theory, that’s absolutely true. But in reality, the Hawkeyes‘ offense thrives when point guard Jordan Bohannon is playing at his best.
After an early-season slump, Bohannon is playing some of the best basketball of his career over the last two weeks. The culmination of Bohannon’s early woes came against No. 1 ranked Gonzaga, which saw him have one of his worst games in a Hawkeye uniform.
Against the Zags, Bohannon missed 3-pointers on back-to-back possessions in the final four minutes which sealed the Hawkeyes’ fate in a 99-88 loss. He finished 1-of-8 shooting, including 0-of-5 from three. His final tally: two points, three assists and a team-high four turnovers.
Since then, Bohannon has found his rhythm. And it’s no coincidence that Iowa, too, has found its rhythm.
Over his last four games, Bohannon is averaging 18.5 points, five rebounds and 6.3 assists. He’s also been hot from downtown, shooting 63.3 percent (19-of-30) from 3-point range. By NBA Jam rules, Bohannon is on fire.
It was Sunday’s performance against Minnesota that really stood out, though. Bohannon posted a career-high 14 assists against the Gophers, the highest total by an Iowa player in 32 years.
Because of his jaw-dropping performance, he was named a co-winner of the Big Ten’s Player of the Week along with Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis. It’s the first time Bohannon has received the Big Ten’s Player of the Week honor.
The Hawkeyes will need Bohannon to continue his impressive form as they enter the second half of the season. As we all know, the Big Ten is ultra competitive this season, and every game is important. Iowa is currently ranked No. 5 in the AP top 25 with an overall record of 11-2 (5-1 in Big Ten play).
