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 FAST BREAKSophomore Matt Gatens is one loss from ending half his Iowa career. He will start for the 64th consecutive game and end the season as the team's leading scorer this year. He embodies qualities that people want in an Iowa player -- tough, hard-nosed, consistent, willing to do what it takes to win and he's a darn good player, too. Unfortunately, his career hasn't panned out the way he envisioned.Gatens was an energetic player at Iowa City High, which hed ... continue reading

INDIANAPOLIS — Iowa’s men’s basketball team played itself into irrelevancy this year with a school-record 21 losses and season-ending blowouts at Wisconsin and Minnesota.That aside, Iowa still has a chance to reach its ultimate goal of an NCAA Tournament berth. The likelihood is small and the task is large, but the opportunity is there.“If you play better than the other team, then you’ve got a chance to move on,” Iowa freshman Eric May said. “It’s not a series. You’ve just ... continue reading

IOWA CITY — Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter doesn’t expect any of his current players with eligibility to leave the squad after the season, but it wouldn’t surprise him, either.“Ultimately it’s on the individual whether they decide to persevere and endure it and continue to invest with the vision that we have or not,” Lickliter said Tuesday during a news conference. “I don’t foresee any of these guys not doing that, but I said this a while back, I’ve been in ... continue reading

Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter was asked today about how he believes his team performed and his overall coaching performance. Here's what he said:

With all the losing and negativity surrounding the Iowa men's basketball program, it's easy to forget that just 15 months ago, the Hawkeyes didn't look too bad.In hindsight (or maybe in comparison to the current situation), they looked fairly impressive. They started just one senior, center Cyrus Tate, and had a mixture of youth and experience.The Hawkeyes started 5-0 and ended their non-conference portion of that season 10-3. Iowa beat Kansas State (yes, THAT Kansas State) with a basket at ... continue reading

Northern Iowa seniors Jordan Eglseder and Adam Koch joined Iowa State's Craig Brackins on the USBWA's District VI team, which was announced this morning.District VI includes the states of Iowa, Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota and North Dakota. The teams were chosen by members of the United States Basketball Writers Association.Eglseder and Koch paced UNI to its second straight Missouri Valley Conference title. Eglseder, who hails from Bellevue,  averaged a team-high 12 points and 7.3 rebounds a game . ... continue reading

MINNEAPOLIS — Iowa’s recent road performances have amounted to nothing less than road kill on the Big Ten basketball superhighway.Iowa’s average margin of defeat is 25.5 points in its last four league road games, including a 35-point loss at Minnesota on Sunday. Outside of its victory at Indiana, Iowa has lost all but one game by 10 or more points away from Carver-Hawkeye Arena this year.The Hawkeyes have lost its last two road games by a combined 62 points at ... continue reading

MINNEAPOLIS — The worst season in Iowa basketball history now has produced its two worst losses to longtime Big Ten rivals in consecutive games.Minnesota blasted and demoralized the Hawkeyes in every phase last night, rolling to an 88-53 blitzkrieg at Williams Arena. The 35-point margin of victory was the most for the Gophers in the 186-game series history spanning 108 years.Iowa’s loss comes four days after Wisconsin ripped the Hawkeyes by 27 points, the largest margin of victory for the ... continue reading

Former Iowa guard Anthony Tucker apparently has committed to Division II power Winona (Minn.) State next year, according to GoldenSports.net.Tucker averaged 11.9 points a game, second-most for Iowa, before he was suspended in December for a public intoxication ticket. He returned to the team but did not play. He left the program in February.Tucker, a Minnesota native, does not have to sit out a year and is eligible right away.Most people around Iowa really like Iowa Central guard Kurt Alexander, ... continue reading

When journalists report news, we often must decide what information to include in a story/blog/column and filter out the rest. That includes facts and quotes.For the six-part series on Iowa basketball that concluded today, there were thousands of words that never were posted on GazetteOnline or written for The Gazette. But some of the quotes that landed on the cutting room floor are relevant even without a specific filter.Iowa Athletics Director Gary Barta hired Coach Todd Lickliter in 2007. The program ... continue reading

Iowa basketball's recent woes are well-documented, but many of the issues have roots in the past.The Gazette, GazetteOnline.com and KCRG are running a series detailing the downfall of a proud basketball program. Here's a quick and easy place to find the links to stories, video and live chat replays.PART I: Iowa men's basketball at all-time lowsPART II: Iowa's steady decline since DavisPART III: Some think losing LaFrentz started a downward coaching cyclePART IV: Is Iowa a football school?PART V: Attendance ... continue reading

Millions of dollars, thousands of fans and a number of jobs are on the line next year for Iowa men’s basketball.Iowa’s 20th loss Wednesday set a season record with two games left. Another losing season likely triggers the end of Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter’s tenure. A severance package would cost Iowa $600,000 for each year left on Lickliter’s seven-year contract. That’s $2.4 million after this year, $1.8 million after 2011.But Iowa administrators and coaches say the future shows a glimmer ... continue reading

From ESPN:ESPN has reached a new multiyear pact with the Gator Bowl and has agreed to extensions with the Capital One Bowl and Outback Bowl. All three post-season college football games will air annually in the early window of Jan. 1 as part of a “roadblock” of bowls matching a team from the SEC against one from the Big Ten across ABC, ESPN and ESPN2.As a result of the agreements, ESPN will receive exclusive rights to televise the Gator Bowl ... continue reading

Iowa basketball's recent woes are well-documented, but many of the issues have roots in the past.The Gazette, GazetteOnline.com and KCRG are running a series detailing the downfall of a proud basketball program. Here's a quick and easy place to find the links to stories, video and live chat replays.PART I: Iowa men's basketball at all-time lowsPART II: Iowa's steady decline since DavisPART III: Some think losing LaFrentz started a downward coaching cyclePART IV: Is Iowa a football school?PART V: Attendance ... continue reading

Former Linn-Mar prep Jason Bohannon completed his home career at Wisconsin's Kohl Center tonight against Iowa. He finished with 11 points and a careeer-high nine rebounds in a 67-40 win over Iowa.Before the game he was honored as one of two Wisconsin seniors in the team's home finale. It was emotional for the family, including his father, Gordy Bohannon, who played quarterback for Iowa in the 1982 Rose Bowl.“He’s just such a phenomenal kid to raise and such a great role ... continue reading

Iowa basketball's recent woes are well-documented, but many of the issues have roots in the past.The Gazette, GazetteOnline.com and KCRG are running a series detailing the downfall of a proud basketball program. Here's a quick and easy place to find the links to stories, video and live chat replays.PART I: Iowa men's basketball at all-time lowsPART II: Iowa's steady decline since DavisPART III: Some think losing LaFrentz started a downward coaching cyclePART IV: Is Iowa a football school?PART V: Attendance ... continue reading

Nine days removed from his Iowa coaching career, Steve Alford conducted an interview on Fox Sports Net in 2007 and paused during a commercial break.The reporter whispered to Alford, “Is Iowa really a football school?” Alford, who had just accepted the New Mexico coaching job, replied, “Oh yeah, big time.”Iowa has carried the football school stigma for years, and officials acknowledged it when they hired Todd Lickliter to replace Alford. A 2007 internal memo, which was obtained by The Gazette ... continue reading

Iowa will increase public ticket prices by $3 per game for the 2010 football season.Public season tickets will increase $3 per game to $360 with an average cost of $51.40. Faculty and staff tickets increase by $2 per game to $290, while students' tickets also increased $2 to $168. Iowa sold around 53,000 football season tickets last year.Iowa finished 11-2 overall and No. 7 in the final Associated Press and USA Today/Coaches polls. Iowa won its first major bowl game since ... continue reading

IOWA CITY — Iowa and Wisconsin could have the most equal rivalry in NCAA sports.The Hawkeyes lead the football series 42-41-2, and Iowa leads the men’s basketball series 77-74 entering Wednesday's game in Madison.In football, the Big Ten guarantees Iowa and Wisconsin will compete annually as part of a guaranteed rivalry. No such guarantee exists for home-and-home play in basketball, and some coaches want that changed.“Would I like to see it? Absolutely,” Wisconsin Coach Bo Ryan said. “I would love ... continue reading

Raef LaFrentz left his mark on the University of Iowa basketball program without playing one second for the Hawkeyes.In 1993, LaFrentz, then a senior at MFL/Mar-Mac, chose Kansas over Iowa in a move that shook the foundation of Iowa basketball. Here was a small-town Iowa boy, considered the nation’s top power forward prospect, spurning the home-state Hawkeyes for a national power.“In my heart, I feel that I will be more able to reach my goals at the University of Kansas,” ... continue reading

IOWA CITY — Tom Davis’ basketball coaching tenure at the University of Iowa ended with the indignity of a shove on basketball’s biggest stage.In spring 1998, former athletics director Bob Bowlsby told Davis the school would honor the final year of his contract but not extend it. Davis, Iowa’s all-time wins leader, was shocked when he learned the 1998-99 season would be his last.“Oh yeah, very much. Very much,” Davis said. “I couldn’t believe it, to tell you the truth.”Davis ... continue reading

IOWA CITY — Iowa’s men’s basketball team put any negative energy surrounding the program on a shelf and placed Indiana right next to it tonight.The Hawkeyes made virtually all the hustle plays and dominated the Hoosiers 73-57 in the team’s home finale at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The win moved Iowa (10-19 overall, 4-12 Big Ten) into sole possession of ninth place in the Big Ten.“Obviously, for all of us, it was a great win,” Iowa junior Jarryd Cole said.The win staved ... continue reading

IOWA CITY — Empty brown seats outnumber fans more than 2-to-1 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena during men’s basketball games this season.Profits for the University of Iowa program have fallen steadily the past five years. Should Iowa lose its home finale today against Indiana, the Hawkeyes will set a season record with 20 losses.Iowa fans may wonder how one of the nation’s best and most profitable basketball programs sunk from sellout games and annual postseason competitions to record-setting losses and drops in ... continue reading

A five-part series exploring the decline of Iowa basketball and its future will run in The Gazette and GazetteOnline.com beginning Sunday. KCRG also will air a story Sunday night.The first story, which will first run on A1 of The Sunday Gazette and also appear on GazetteOnline.com is an overview of where the program stands, its problems with attendance and how far it has fallen. Here's a sample:"There’s several layers to it, but right at the top, obviously, I’m not at all happy with ... continue reading

EVANSTON, Ill. — Iowa’s men’s basketball team extended its nine-day layoff into an extra layover last night at Northwestern.Iowa had no offensive flow and no answer for John Shurna in a 74-57 loss to the Wildcats. Iowa (9-19, 3-12 Big Ten) tied the school record for most losses in the season, which was set two years ago. Conversely, Northwestern (18-10, 7-9) set its school record for wins in a season.The Wildcats scored on multiple backdoor cuts and shot 58.3 percent ... continue reading