Everything seemed to be going well for Iowa on Jan. 17. Guard Luke Recker – former Indiana “Mr. Basketball” and one-time Bob Knight recruit – had just scored 27 points to beat his former team, and the comeback win had cemented Iowa’s place near the top of the Big Ten.
But then disaster struck the Hawkeyes. Shortly after the Indiana win, Iowa trainer John Albright announced that Recker, the Hawkeyes’ leading scorer at 18.1 points per game, had broken his right kneecap and would miss at least six weeks.
When the Wildcats (8-15, 0-10 Big Ten) greet the No. 14 Hawkeyes (17-5, 6-3) at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at Welsh-Ryan Arena, they’ll find a discouraged team with its leading scorer just a cheerleader on the bench. But Recker’s absence doesn’t mean the Hawkeyes are giving up.
“It’s like, ‘Who’s going to step up?'” said NU freshman guard Jitim Young. “And when you have a team like Iowa’s that has a lot of leadership, those types of teams, they step up.
“Then, when you have a young team like us – when our top guys aren’t playing well or are hurt, it’s like we need somebody, but who’s going to take the leadership role? And that’s the thing when you have a veteran team versus a young team.”
The Cats are also dinged up, with top scorer Winston Blake nursing tendinitis in his right big toe. Blake, a swingman, watched Thursday’s practice from the sideline, as he did last Friday before playing Illinois.
But while Blake is available, Recker is out for the rest of the regular season – and that has Iowa scrambling to find a replacement.
Sometimes an injury to a key player can provide a momentary spark, as it did when Minnesota guard J.B. Bickerstaff went down in the first half of Tuesday’s game against NU. Minnesota had fallen behind the Cats early on, and Bickerstaff’s broken leg appeared to spell doom for the Golden Gophers. But as he was wheeled off the floor, Bickerstaff flashed a victory sign, and Minnesota rallied for the win.
“The other night it helped Minnesota. They really rose to the occasion,” said NU coach Bill Carmody, acknowledging that a short-term boost isn’t unusual. “You see that. Probably most coaches say, ‘We have to come together now because we’re all going to have to step up – we’re all going to have to give a little bit extra.’
“Unless it’s like Lou Gehrig, and then it’s short-term and long-term.”
Without Recker, Iowa still has plenty of weapons. Reggie Evans, a junior college transfer in his first year with the Hawkeyes, leads the Big Ten with 12 rebounds a game. He is now Iowa’s top scorer as well, at 15.4 points per game.
Since Recker’s injury, the Hawkeyes have gone 1-1, beating Minnesota and losing to Ohio State. Quite possibly, the short-term boost after Recker’s injury has ended and the long-term difficulties have begun.
“A team wants to prove they are a team and not just one person,” NU center Aaron Jennings said. “You always want to play a team when you’re at your best and they’re at their best. But if their leading scorer is gone, we’re not going to say, ‘Oh, I wish he were there.'”
