March 28, 2024

It's too bad there won't be a true 'state champion'

Now that Iowa State and Northern Iowa have firmly entrenched themselves as clearly the two best Division I basketball teams in the state, it would be nice to see the two schools square off.

Iowa trailed ISU by just five at halftime in Iowa City and led UNI by six at the break in Des Moines, but both schools pounded the Hawkeyes into submission in the final half.

But who is the best team in the state? Who is the true mythical state champion? Honestly, we’ll never know. And it’s unfortunate.

I miss the days of watching the four Division I basketball teams face off against each other on someone’s homecourt.

We get the Big 4 Classic at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines now. And while that’s a fun event, it’s just not the same thing.

I commend the athletic directors from all four schools for finding a way to play each other, even if Iowa and Iowa State don’t play both Drake and UNI in the same year. And I was happy when the schools decided to continue the “Classic” for at least two more seasons.

But if anyone caught the Iowa-Drake women’s basketball game on Sunday or even saw the final box score, you’ll understand that that is what’s missing from the men’s games.

Iowa went into the Knapp Center to face the Bulldogs and former Hawkeye and current Drake coach Jennie Baranczyk nearly got her first win against her alma mater.

A back and forth affair featured a 43-point game from Drake star Lizzy Wendell, a school record 10 3-pointers from Iowa guard Melissa Dixon and a game-winning shot with 3 seconds to play from Hawkeye All-American point guard Samantha Logic.

The exciting college basketball game also featured 198 points as No. 23 Iowa survived the upset-minded Bulldogs, 100-98.

What’s missing from the men’s game is the chance for the smaller school to knock off the big dogs in front of their home fans.

Yes, UNI finally gave the Missouri Valley Conference representatives their first win over the big boys since starting the Big 4 Classic, but playing in the Knapp Center and the McLeod Center brings more excitement to the series.

I come from an old school background.

I grew up watching Tom Davis and the Hawkeyes on KDSM Fox 17 and Johnny Orr and the Cyclones on ABC-5.

I was a basketball junky, and I don’t remember a single game not being televised locally.

Now, we have to pay to watch some games on our computers and we have the major programs scared of traveling to Des Moines or Cedar Falls because they can’t afford to drop non-conference games.

Take me back to the 1990s please.

It was so much easier and more fun being a fan back then.