Iowa
Iowa opens $31 million wrestling facility for men’s and women’s programs
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See inside Iowa men’s and women’s wrestling’s new practice facility
See inside Iowa men’s and women’s wrestling’s new practice facility
Iowa Athletics
IOWA CITY – Following a historic day in 2015 at Kinnick Stadium, when the Iowa wrestling program upended the No. 1-ranked Oklahoma State in front of the largest crowd for a collegiate wrestling dual ever, Tom Brands went out to a tailgate at the football practice facility for the upcoming Minnesota-Iowa football game.
A man named Bob Nicolls approached him. They chatted briefly, trading comments as people do at a tailgate. Nicolls was insistent that he could be of help, as a Hawkeye wrestling fan since his days as a freshman and then as a real-estate businessman in operating Monarch Investments. He approached Iowa wrestling’s director of operations at the time, Luke Eustice.
“Let me know if you need anything,” Nicolls told Eustice.
Eustice passed that message to Brands. Not long after, Brands gave Nicolls a call. He and Eustice were headed to Colorado in a car, driving hundreds of miles to have a visit at 7 a.m. the next morning.
After that meet-up, Brands and Eustice walked out of Nicolls’ office in Colorado with a $50,000 check for the Hawkeye Wrestling Club and a $1,000,000 commitment to helping build a new practice facility for Iowa. The Iowa wrestling room was named after Bob and his wife, Kathy Nicolls. That commitment later expanded to $3,000,000.
The facility itself, which was officially unveiled Thursday, is named the Goschke Family Wrestling Training Center, after Doug and Ann Goschke. When Brands met with the Goschke family at their home to discuss the project, he remembers their family dog dashing over the kitchen table and sitting on his lap.
It’s little stories like that of Brands meeting passionate Hawkeye wrestling fans that led to this $31 million facility for the Hawkeyes, all of which has been privately funded.
“In this endeavor, I’ve made a lot of friends,” Brands said. “I’m a pretty gracious person when it comes to being thankful and showing gratitude, so they got me as a friend whether they want to or not.”
‘We have to continue to lead.’
Before you can even reach the main doors, you have to pass the Dan Gable statue with his fist raised high, moved from his original location by the northwest entrance and directly above where the Dan Gable Wrestling Complex was.
Upon entry, you’re greeted with what is dubbed a “Hall of Champions” with team and individual trophies. Also on the first floor are coach and staff offices. Those offices have windows that look down onto the wrestling mats on the lower level.
The first level also includes individual men’s and women’s lounges that house areas to relax, but also nutrition stations and other amenities to promote physical and mental well-being.
On the lower level is where much of the competing is set to occur. Upon going downstairs, the floor opens up to a six-mat-wide wrestling room. Ropes dangle from the ceiling along with televisions plastered on the wall.
The most important feature of that wrestling room, Brands said, may be the layout. Adjacent to the mats and directly underneath where the mats lie is the strength and training center. Athletic training areas to treat injuries and fatigue are accessible right off the mats, as well as bikes with tablets stationed around the outskirts of the mats.
Brands said that was a part of the old facility, an idea introduced by Dan Gable. Brands added the additional athletic training portion to that flow. The idea centers around being able to move from one workout to the next with no delay. Having the athletic training space close by requires and reminds athletes to check in when needed.
Brands and the staff received pushback for trying to implement that once again in the new facility, but that was a deal breaker.
“Notice the flow, it’s by design,” Brands said. “It will get better with time. We will learn how to use it better. We will put more powerful and more credentialed athletes in this space and win championships.”
Down on the lower level are also men’s and women’s locker rooms and individual ice bath and sauna areas. Prior to this facility opening, the women were required to share locker-room space with the opposing teams in Carver-Hawkeye Arena since the previous facility did not have space.
“This personal space allows us to mentally and physically prepare for the battles ahead,” Iowa women’s wrestler Nyla Valencia said. “It ensures we can focus entirely on our performance and well-being.”
From that floor, Hawkeye wrestlers will be able to prepare and race down the tunnel to Carver-Hawkeye Arena for matches.
With the price tag large and a 38,000 square-foot building to build in, the Hawkeyes’ programs have the nation’s premier wrestling facility. That comes at a time when the inevitability of revenue-sharing has prevented other programs from moving forward with projects of their own and will continue to do so in the future.
Iowa is not interested in being in an arms race with other programs, Brands said. This was another step for the men’s program to return to a championship level after missing out on a team trophy this past season, and just as important, a place the women’s program can continue to dominate as it did in its inaugural season.
“We have to continue to lead,” Brands said. “I don’t think we’re in a race to put great facilities in the ground to be ahead of the competition. You look at what’s necessary. We still have a lot of work to do. Our donors dug deep, they stepped up. Now, we got to perform.”
Eli McKown covers high school sports and wrestling for the Des Moines Register. Contact him at Emckown@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @EMcKown23
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Iowa
Pittsburgh Steelers Becoming Possible Suitor for Iowa Hawkeyes Star
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The Iowa Hawkeyes have a few key players heading off into the 2025 NFL Draft. Headlined by running back Kaleb Johnson, fans will have more players to continue rooting on at the professional level.
Johnson saw his draft stock skyrocket throughout the 2024 season. He is now in a position where he should end up being a second round lock, if not ending up being selected late in the first round.
Plenty of teams around the league need help at running back. Fans are now anxious to see where he ends up going.
An intriguing name has been brought up as a potential suitor. That team is the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Adam Hulse of SportsKeeda has named the Steelers as one of the top landing spots for Johnson in the draft.
“The Pittsburgh Steelers are currently considering what to do with both of their running backs, Najee Harris and Jaylen Warren, pending free agents,” Hulse wrote. “It’s unclear if they will bring either of them back, but it’s unlikely that they will re-sign both. They could pivot to the 2025 NFL draft to address the position, so Johnson makes a ton of sense for them.”
During the 2024 college football season, Johnson was the main driving force of the Hawkeyes’ offense. He carried the football 240 times for 1,537 yards and 21 touchdowns. Those numbers average out to an elite 6.4 yards per carry. He also chipped in 22 catches for 188 yards and two more scores.
Those numbers would look awfully good in the Pittsburgh backfield. Johnson could end up becoming a long-term workhorse for whoever ends up landing him.
No one knows who the Steelers’ quarterback will be in 2025. Justin Fields and Russell Wilson are two options, with Aaron Rodgers being a name that has been connected quite a bit to Pittsburgh as well.
Whoever ends up being the quarterback, the presence of Johnson could help take a lot of pressure off of the passing game.
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Iowa
Cryer’s 28 leads No. 5 Houston past No. 8 ISU
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HOUSTON — L.J. Cryer scored 28 points, Milos Uzan added 19 points and No. 5 Houston held on to beat No. 8 Iowa State 68-59 on Saturday.
Cryer and Uzan combined to shoot 18 of 27, including 8 of 12 on 3-pointers. Emanuel Sharp added 11 points for Houston (23-4, 15-1 Big 12), which won its sixth straight.
Milan Momcilovic scored all 16 of his points in the second half to lead a furious rally for the Cyclones (21-6, 11-5). Nate Heise added 12 points, and Tamin Lipsey scored 11.
Trailing by 16 midway through the second half, the Cyclones used an 18-3 run to cut the lead to 48-47 on a 3-pointer by Heise with eight minutes remaining. Houston responded with four straight points to push the lead back to five.
The Cyclones struggled offensively at times without their two leading scorers — Keshon Gilbert was out with a muscle strain and Curtis Jones missed the game due to illness — but they did well defensively forcing Houston into a season-high 17 turnovers.
Houston shot 53% and went 10 of 17 from distance, while Iowa State shot 39%, including 8 of 20 behind the arc.
With the win, the Cougars inched closer to a second straight Big 12 regular-season title. They currently lead second-place Arizona by 2 ½ games with four games left. Houston is 30-4 in the Big 12 in its two seasons in the league.
Houston travels to No. 9 Texas Tech on Monday while Iowa State takes on Oklahoma State in Stillwater on Tuesday.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
Iowa
Washington Men’s Basketball at Iowa: Game Preview & How to Watch
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How to Watch (and bet)
Date: Saturday, 2/22/25
Tip-Off Time: 1:00 pm PT
TV: FS1
Streaming: Foxsportsgo.com
Radio: Huskies Gameday App, Sports Radio KJR
Location: Iowa City, IA
Betting Line: Washington Huskies +7
Iowa Hawkeyes 2024-25 Statistics:
Record: 14-12 (5-10)
Points For per Game: 83.9 ppg (7nd)
Points Against per Game: 79.5 ppg (334th)
Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 118.9 (28th)
Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 106.6 (154th)
Strength of Schedule: 45th
Iowa Key Players:
G- Brock Harding, So. 6’0, 165: 8.6 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 5.5 apg, 43.7% FG, 36.4% 3pt, 76.3% FT
Harding is a poor man’s Braden Smith. They’re basically the same size. Harding is 4th in B1G play compared to Smith’s 1st. Their steal rate and 3-pt percentage for the season are close to identical with Harding coming in a little worse. The big differences are that Harding’s numbers have dropped off since hitting conference season and he doesn’t take nearly as many shots as Smith. Still, he’s a good pass-first point guard and can make you pay from deep if you leave him alone.
G- Josh Dix, Jr. 6’6, 210: 14.2 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.8 apg, 52.1% FG, 42.7% 3pt, 78.9% FT
Every team would love to have a shooter like Dix. He has made at least 40% of his outside shots every year of his career and is at 44% in B1G play despite going 5/17 over their past 3 games. He doesn’t do the little stuff as his defensive numbers are lacking but he also doesn’t turn the ball over and doesn’t commit fouls so he’s a clear net positive with his offensive contributions.
F- Pryce Sandfort, So. 6’7, 210: 8.6 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 1.3 apg, 47.3% FG, 38.1% 3pt, 60.6% FT
Pryce is the younger of the Sandfort brothers but is essentially the 6th man for this Iowa squad, finishing games but not getting the start. His shooting splits are very similar to Josh Dix above except Pryce takes way more 3-pointers than 2-pointers which lowers his overall field goal percentage but both are over 60% in effective field goal percentage.
F- Payton Sandfort, Sr. 6’8, 215: 16.3 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 3.0 apg, 41.0% FG, 34.8% 3pt, 87.5% FT
Sandfort the elder, Payton, is the star of the team although his numbers have basically plateaued from last year. His 3-point shooting has dipped below 35% this season but he is an elite free throw shooter at 91% in conference play. The majority of his shots come from 3 so he is more of a pure shooter than a driver but he can still do both at 6’8 and should be an intriguing matchup for Osobor/Harris.
C- Ladji Dembele, So. 6’8, 255: 4.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 0.2 bpg, 46.2% FG, 39.2% 3pt, 61.5% FT
Dembele has taken over the starting center role after an injury to Owen Freeman. Iowa will mix a few different players in at this spot but Dembele has gotten the starts recently. He’s almost a non-entity as a shot blocker and defensive rebounder but does well on the offensive glass and can space the floor.
The Outlook
Iowa hasn’t finished outside the top-60 at KenPom or won fewer than 19 games since 2018 but they’re in serious danger of doing both right now at 14-12 and 66th in the rankings. It didn’t help that they lost star center Owen Freeman for the season due to a finger injury a few weeks ago. Freeman was averaging 17 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 blocks per game for Iowa and they are just 1-4 since he went down.
His rim protection was sorely needed because Iowa is one of the most all-offense, no-defense teams in the country. You have to respect it though when a team has a clear identity even if it presents plenty of problems. They are either fantastic or awful in just about every major statistical category.
Iowa loves to race up and down the floor and are content to try to outscore you in a shootout. The offense is absolutely dynamite. They rank 11th in average possession length so they push the ball as quickly as possible. Yet they rank top-30 nationally in 2-point %, 3-point %, and turnover % on offense. So they go quickly, they make shots from everywhere on the floor, and they don’t turn the ball over. That’s generally a pretty good combination.
The offense still isn’t perfect though. Almost everyone on the team is a good shooter but they rely almost entirely on jump shots. The Hawkeyes rank 343rd in free throw rate and also somehow aren’t very good when they do get to the line at 69.3% (272nd nationally). If Iowa’s 3-point shot isn’t falling on any given night then they probably aren’t going to win.
That’s in part because the defense is often a sieve. Iowa will often run a full-court press off of makes which is something UW traditionally hasn’t handled very well. They need to try something though because conventional defense doesn’t work for Iowa. Opponents shoot 56% on 2-point shots against Iowa which is 340th nationally. The Hawkeyes have the worst defense in B1G conference play and it isn’t remotely close, finishing 18th in opponent 2-pt%, 3-pt %, and defensive rebounding rate. Teams make all their shots against Iowa and if they don’t make the shot somehow then they usually get the rebound.
The only reason Iowa’s defense is semi-functional is that somehow they never commit fouls. Iowa is 356th in free throws on offense and 357th on defense. Refs just never call fouls during any of their games. Against Oregon on Thursday night, Iowa had their first foul of the half called against them with 4 minutes left in the game and their head coach reacted like he’d been told his family was being evicted.
That presents an interesting contrast for Washington. The Huskies just lost versus Rutgers in part because of a very one-sided whistle (click the link for a fact-based display of that). Washington had both Great Osobor and Franck Kepnang unavailable for long stretches due to foul trouble and had both Osobor and Mason foul out. That shouldn’t happen against Iowa but Osobor likely is not going to be able to draw fouls to bail him out if he gets into trouble.
I called Rutgers a must-win for Washington’s chances of making the Big Ten tournament. It wasn’t quite a must-win but the odds went down dramatically. This one though drops the odds down to low single-digits if the Huskies can’t pull off the road upset.
Washington is currently one game below Iowa in the conference standings at 17th (Iowa is 15th). Only the top-15 teams qualify. A win here puts the Huskies tied with Iowa and in possession of the tiebreaker. The Hawkeyes will be underdogs in all their remaining games including 3 on the road plus a home game against Michigan State. Washington is also a projected underdog in the rest of their games but at least has multiple home games against middle-of-the-pack B1G teams.
The most realistic scenario for UW squeaking in is this:
-UW beats Iowa on the road and then Indiana at home to finish 6-14.
-Iowa’s only remaining win comes at Northwestern to finish 6-14 (losses at Illinois, at NW, at Nebraska, vs. Michigan St).
-Northwestern’s only remaining win comes at Minnesota to finish 6-14 (losses vs. Iowa, vs. UCLA, at Maryland)
-Penn State goes no better than 2-2 down the stretch to finish 6-14 or worse (losses vs. Maryland, at Wisconsin)
That would put Washington in a tie for 15th place against only teams they’ve beaten. A loss to Iowa puts them further behind and eliminates a tiebreaker win.
The Huskies have won every other game for the last month. That pattern would suggest a win. Washington managed to squeak out last second finishes against Minnesota and Penn State on the road before doing the opposite in Hec Ed against Rutgers. I just don’t think UW will be able to run with Iowa heading out on the road following the OT let down on Wednesday night.
Prediction
Washington Huskies– 72, Iowa Hawkeyes- 80
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