Iowa 58, Purdue 48

This. Changes. Everything.

Iowa’s freshman point guard, Mike Gesell, who has grown a lot and skillfully run the offense this season, is out for two weeks with a “stress reaction” in his right foot. I knew nothing about it until I sat down in the arena tonight and did not see Gesell warming up. After a few minutes my dad nudged me and pointed to the Hawkeye bench, where Gesell was seated and wearing a suit.

Whoa.

After the collapse at Nebraska on Saturday, I expected the Hawks to take it to the Boilermakers and get back on track for a post-season push. Three more wins — against Purdue, Illinois, and Nebraska — were possible. When I saw Gesell wearing a suit, and heard he would miss the next two weeks, three wins was looking iffy. It becomes two at most. The Hawks eeked one out tonight and I think revenge served with pride is on the menu against the Cornhuskers. But that game against the Illini depends on which Illinois team shows up: the one that lost to Northwestern, or the one that beat Gonzaga and Indiana?

Things just became very interesting — and painful to watch. The Hawks seemed stuck in neutral tonight. There was no rhythm, no execution. It was sloppy and uncoordinated. I expected fellow freshman point guard Anthony Clemmons to step up, and he delivered on defense. But Clemmons is not the point man for this team right now. It was up to Devyn Marble to reprise his role as point guard. He did well, but tonight reminded me a lot of the previous two season when the team did not have a strong, go-to PG. Unlike last year, the Hawks do not have anyone close to a Matt Gatens, who was automatic at the free throw line and killer behind the arc.