Check out the upward statistical trends of Iowa basketball players in the Big Ten

IOWA CITY – Iowa basketball landed in California on Sunday night. Although fires have caused destruction in the Los Angeles area, the Hawkeyes’ games against USC on Tuesday and UCLA on Friday were still set as of Monday afternoon.

There was still some uncertainty about Iowa’s exact plans.

“The plan was to move to a hotel closer to UCLA (after the game against USC),” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said Monday. “The question of whether we will actually play there or not is on hold. Because some events there were canceled. So we’ll probably play that game (against UCLA). Maybe there. Maybe somewhere else. So we can move. Maybe not.”

In a league where away wins are not easy to come by, winning at least one of the two games this week should be considered a successful trip. Anything less wouldn’t be ideal, but it wouldn’t be disastrous either. More than that would mean Iowa is ahead of schedule en route to the NCAA Tournament.

USC offers a realistic chance to go down the right path. The Trojans (10-6, 2-3) haven’t been great this season. They picked up a road win against Illinois despite the Illini being without star Kasparas Jakucionis.

Iowa responded violently after allowing 116 points to Wisconsin in a stunning loss. The Hawkeyes went to overtime to end Nebraska’s six-game winning streak, then abruptly ended Indiana’s five-game winning streak with a decisive win.

But winning on the road is a different story. That will be put to the test this week.

More:Payton Sandfort believes Iowa basketball is capable of great things. The win in Indiana showed why.

Iowa’s two-game winning streak has highlighted some of the encouraging individual storylines coming to light for the Hawkeyes. Take a look at the Big Ten leaderboards and there are a handful of Iowa players who rank near the top in various statistical categories.

If you have enough players who do their jobs excellently, team success usually follows. Iowa experienced this in wins over Nebraska and Indiana.

Here’s a look at some Hawkeyes who have climbed the ladder across the Big Ten landscape.

Note: This ranking is determined by statistics in all games, not just competitions between two league opponents. Big Ten players must also be eligible to be accepted. The rankings refer to the games up to Monday, January 13th.

Points per game: Payton Sandfort, Owen Freeman

Two Hawkeyes rank in the league’s top 11 in points per game – Sandfort is 10th (16.9) and Freeman is right behind him (16.6). Only two other Big Ten teams can make that claim (Rutgers and Northwestern).

The scary thing for the rest of the league is that while Sandfort and Freeman have each scored over 16 points per game this season, they are still capable of more.

Sandfort’s field goal and 3-point percentages are down compared to last season. The fact that he scored a combined 51 points between the 2nd half against Nebraska, overtime against Nebraska and the 2nd half against Indiana shows how good he can be when he’s in rhythm.

Meanwhile, Freeman has left many points on the charity list. He has attempted the second-most free throws on the team this season (53), but is only the seventh-best shooter on percentage (58.5%).

While Sandfort and Freeman have shot the ball at a high rate, as evidenced by their ranking in the league, there is still room for improvement for them.

Field goal percentage: Owen Freeman, Josh Dix

Among those who qualify, Freeman ranks third at 63.1%. A big man of Freeman’s caliber is expected to be efficient because so many of his shots end up at the rim.

That’s why it’s extremely impressive that Dix appears on this list.

Dix, ranked 7th, is shooting 56.1% from the field this season. He is the only guard in the top seven.

Typically, guards take more shots from the perimeter than bigs, highlighting Dix’s high efficiency. He has attempted almost as many 3-pointers as 2-pointers this season, but still has one of the best field goal percentages among those who have had enough attempts to qualify in that category.

Assists per game: Brock Harding

Harding’s 6.1 assists per game ranks fourth in the Big Ten.

Harding is an ideal point guard for Iowa because he is such a willing player. Iowa has plenty of offensive weapons between Sandfort, Freeman, Dix and others that can benefit greatly from an unselfish player who puts them in a position to score.

Harding was exactly that.

His numbers in limited playing time as a freshman suggested that might be the case. Last season, he averaged 2.8 assists per game in under 11 minutes, a rate of 9.7 per 40 minutes. This season, Harding has actually taken a leap in production in a larger role.

Steals per game: Drew Thelwell, Brock Harding

While Iowa’s offensive stats are notable, having players at the top of the defensive categories is particularly relevant given the program’s longstanding struggles on that end of the floor.

Drew Thelwell is second in the Big Ten in steals per game this season (2.3), which is the eye test. Thelwell’s infectious energy has made him a slam-dunk in the transfer portal and he has clearly helped bolster Iowa’s defense.

Thelwell’s performance against Indiana was an example of this. Against the Hoosiers, he had six steals, the most of his career, including five in the first half alone.

The fact that Harding ranks 7th with 1.8 steals per game is a testament to his ability to be effective defensively despite his undersize. At just 6’3″ tall, Harding could be an easy target to exploit defensively, but he has found a way to bother his opponents with his activity level.

Blocks per game: Owen Freeman

Freeman is tied for first in the Big Ten with Yanic Konan Niederhauser of Penn State University with 2.2 blocks per game.

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