Why Utah vs. Iowa matters to both teams’ NCAA hopes – Deseret News

The Utah Runnin’ Utes will have plenty of Quad 1 options when they begin conference play at the end of the month – after being picked to finish last in the Big 12.

Before the non-conference action ends, however, Utah has one last chance to earn a win that could count toward year-end in the Quad 1 category.

That comes Saturday when the Utes face Iowa in a neutral site game at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota (4 p.m. MST, Big Ten Network).

Utah (8-2) is currently No. 59 in the NCAA NET rankings, while Iowa (8-3) is No. 55. A neutral opponent is considered Quad 1 if it is ranked in the top 50, and that actually only matters in March when the NCAA Tournament field is revealed.

So it’s clear that if the Utes can beat the Hawkeyes, there’s a good chance of a Quad 1 win for Utah.

It comes at an optimal time in terms of player availability – it’s the first time Utah will face a higher-ranked opponent that has the full arsenal of available players who have played together for several weeks.

“This is kind of the first big test of all these guys being together again, and so I know these guys are excited,” Utah coach Craig Smith said.

The Utes have already missed two more prime opportunities to pick up wins against potential Quad 1 opponents. Utah lost 78-73 to Mississippi State (No. 20 in the NET) and 72-63 at home to Saint Mary’s (No. 49) earlier this year.

That makes this win almost a must-win for Utah if it wants to build a resume that could help it end its eight-year absence from the NCAA Tournament.

“I will play in front of my family. This is really close to home for me, so obviously it’s really exciting to go back and play in front of people I haven’t seen in a long time,” guard Mason Madsen said.

“It’s our last non-conference chance to capitalize on at least one major Quad 1 game. You can say that stuff doesn’t matter, but obviously it does. If our goal is the NCAA Tournament, I wouldn’t say it’s a must-win game, but it’s up there, it’s close. I think we’re going to approach this with intention and focus, and the next few days of training will really prepare us for that.”

Where Utah and Iowa Rank in National Measures

In addition to the NET rankings, here’s how Utah and Iowa compare in other national college basketball metrics:

How Utah competes against Iowa

The Utes and Hawkeyes met in the NIT last season when Utah beat Iowa 91-82 in the second round of the postseason tournament.

However, that was at the Huntsman Center and Utah has 10 new players on the roster this season.

Fifth-year guard Gabe Madsen is back and scored 31 points, including 7 of 15 from 3-point range, in this win over Iowa. So far in the 2024-25 season, Madsen has scored a team-high 19.8 points per game.

Iowa has several familiar faces filling key roles that were there the last time these two teams met.

The team’s two best scorers are Owen Freeman (17.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game) and Payton Sandfort (16.0 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game).

While Freeman had 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists against Utah last year, Sandfort had 5 points on 1 of 11 shooting.

This year, the Utes have one of the highest-scoring offenses in the country – averaging 86.6 points per game, ranking 14th nationally. Iowa’s is slightly better, as the Hawkeyes are 11th nationally with 87.2 ppg.

“They present a lot of challenges. Fran McCaffrey is a great coach. They are always an extremely productive offensive team that can really score on the ball. They have a lot of speed on their team,” Smith said.

Utah’s scoring defense has the edge – the Utes are allowing 64.0 ppg (31st nationally) while Iowa is giving up 73.3 ppg (233rd).

It competed against relatively similar competition. Seven of Utah’s eight wins have come against Quad 4 opponents, while six of Iowa’s eight wins have come in the same category.

The Hawkeyes showed how dangerous they can be a little over a week ago when Iowa lost 89-80 to No. 3 Iowa State after leading by seven at halftime. Utah will play at Iowa State on January 7th.

“They challenged Iowa State to the end, so it will be a tough environment in a great venue,” Smith said.

What to look for in Utah

There are two storylines to keep an eye on in this case, not only in terms of the immediate impact against Iowa, but also what this could mean for the future as Utah prepares to face the Big 12 on December 31st game to open at Baylor.

Can Utah be better at the free throw line? The Utes are one of the worst free throw teams in the country – shooting just 64.2% from the charity stripe this season, which ranks 329th nationally.

Utah is also coming off its worst performance, shooting 10 of 24 in a 30-point win over Florida A&M.

While that part of its game didn’t cost Utah against the Rattlers – or against the majority of its previously overmatched opponents – the Utes will need to see improvement in that area as Big 12 play gets rolling.

“I know last year was a struggle too,” said Mason Madsen, who transferred to Utah from Boston College this year. “I think free throws are one of those things that can be contagious. It somehow becomes a thing when you make it a thing.

“I think we need to get reps of course, but then it just comes down to getting it done in the games and people forget that you were missing before. It’s just a rhythm thing. And I’m sure we shoot the ball well otherwise, but I’m not worried about the shooters we have on the court.”

How will rotations affect? With so many new players on the roster this season – only four scholarship players returning – Smith has gone through various rotations, especially since the team brought back big men Lawson Lovering and Zach Keller from injury and Caleb Lohner became available after replacing Kyle Whittingham The program began during the football season.

Against Florida A&M, Smith moved 6-foot-10 winger Mike Sharavjamts from his starting role to one of the first players off the bench.

That paid off as Sharavjamts, who had played just 11 minutes in the team’s last two games, scored 15 points on 6 of 7 shooting and had four assists, two rebounds and a steal in 17 minutes.

Meanwhile, striker Keanu Dawes has seen his minutes decline in recent weeks, with Lovering, Keller and Lohner now available. After averaging 20.8 minutes, 10.1 points and 8.3 rebounds in the team’s first six games, Dawes averaged 4.6 minutes, 1.5 points and 0.5 rebounds in the four contests since then and did not play against Radford.

He had a little more game against Florida A&M, scoring 4 points and adding a rebound and an assist in 11 minutes.

Saturday’s game will be the last opportunity to try out the rotations in a live game before the league begins – and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see one or two more tweaks made to see how the player groupings perform together.

“You feel like you’re starting to gain some identity, and we’re going to need that when we play a good team on a neutral court in Iowa,” Smith said.