Iowa Basketball: Why Peter Jok Should Be on Wooden Award Watch List
Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
A look at why Peter Jok needs to be on the Wooden Award Watch List
On Wednesday, the Wooden Award committee released their midseason watch list and Iowa basketball senior Peter Jok was not on the list. Despite Jok being considered one of the best players in the Big Ten this year, four players from the Big Ten made the watch list over Jok.
Iowa’s 11-7 record has certainly held Jok’s great games back from reaching the national spotlight, although it’s almost criminal to consciously keep him off the list. This season, Jok is averaging 22.9 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.1 steals per game through 18 games with the Hawkeyes.
Unsurprisingly, Jok not making the list did not sit well with fans. Jok has been the leader of the Hawkeyes this season, as he’s the lone senior starter among four freshmen, and is the reason Iowa even has a small chance of returning to the NCAA Tournament.
It’s not too late for Jok to make the watch list, though. This is the second, the first being the preseason list, of four watch lists this season. Players can be added or dropped from the list as the season progresses.
February is when the committee releases the third watch list of 20 players before releasing the final ballot in March. It’s not a good sign that Jok didn’t make the list in January, although it’s not uncommon to see a player start to get national recognition later in the season.
Here is why Peter Jok should have been on the watch list.
Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Elite Scorer
Peter Jok started to become a really good scorer at the end of last season, but he’s taken his offensive game to the next level as a senior. He leads all Power Five players with 22.9 points per game and ranks seventh in the nation.
In fact, Jok is averaging 4.3 more points per game than Malcolm Hill, who is second in the Big Ten this year. Also, out of the top 20 scorers in the nation this season, only Kentucky’s Malik Monk is averaging fewer minutes per game than Jok, which is telling of how efficient Jok has been from the field.
He is still an elite three-point shooter with a solid 40.8 three-point percentage, which ranks fifth among players with at least 75 three-point attempts this season in the Big Ten, but Jok has expanded his game. Maybe out of necessity, but Jok attempts 53.3 percent of his shots inside the arc after attempting just attempting 50 percent last season from two-point range.
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It has worked, too, as Jok is shooting career-highs of 45.4 percent from the field and 49.4 percent from two-point range. It’s a testament to how good of a scorer he is since teams look to stop him unlike last year when their main focus was slowing down Jarrod Uthoff.
His ability to score has been exemplified during huge offensive outbursts this season. Jok has scored more than 30 points four times, including 42 against Memphis earlier in the year. He also topped 25 points in eight games this season, including 29 points against 17th ranked Purdue.
Plus, Jok is on pace to break Iowa’s single-season scoring record set by John Johnson who scored 699 points in 1970. He’s on pace to score 732 points even if Iowa loses in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament.
Peter Jok is on pace to have the greatest scoring season in Iowa history with almost no consistent offensive help around him. He’s creating shots for himself, is shooting threes from outside of Iowa City and the only way to slow him down is hope he’s having an off-night.
Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Plays Well Against Great Players
Peter Jok can help his case by performing well against the four players in the Big Ten who are already on the watch list. That said, he has already played against Purdue’s Caleb Swanigan twice and Iowa State’s Monte Morris. In those games, Jok looked like the best player on the floor.
Against Iowa State, Jok recorded 23 points, nine rebounds and two steals while shooting 9-of-17 from the field and 4-of-7 from deep. On the other hand, Morris only had 10 points, five rebounds and five assists while shooting a terrible 4-of-15 from the field and 2-of-6 from three.
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In Iowa’s two games against Purdue, Jok averaged 21 points, six rebounds, five assists and 1.5 steals per game. He also shot 44.1 percent from the field and 35.7 percent from three. Keep in mind that he went off for 29 points on 57.9 percent shooting against an elite defense in Iowa’s upset win over Purdue.
Against Iowa, Caleb Swanigan only recorded one double-double and was held to averages of 14 points and nine rebounds per game on 47.6 percent shooting. Swanigan didn’t dominate either game against a much worse Iowa team, but Jok took the 17th ranked team head-on and controlled the game.
Sure, Jok dropped 42 points against Memphis, 33 points against Omaha, 34 points against Nebraska and 30 points against Seton Hall, but he steps up in big games, as well. He outplayed two players on the watch list, while also guarding Morris on multiple possessions and giving him fits on defense.
No, at 11-7 Iowa might not make the NCAA Tournament, however that has not stopped Jok from being the best player on the court in big games. Playing well against Wisconsin’s Ethan Happ and Nigel Hayes, and Maryland’s Melo Trimble, will help show the committee that Jok produces against good teams, too.
Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Iowa Goes As Far As Peter Jok Takes Them
After starting the season 3-5, Iowa has gone 8-2 with wins over two ranked teams in their past 10 games. They might not be a legitimate contender in the Big Ten this year, but they’re not as bad as many thought they would be after losing to Omaha.
That said, the Hawkeyes will only go as far as Peter Jok takes them in the Big Ten Tournament. Iowa has had huge contributions from freshmen such as Tyler Cook, Cordell Pemsl, Isaiah Moss and Jordan Bohannon this year, but Jok is still the leader.
The Hawkeyes rely on him late in games, as seen recently against Nebraska and Purdue.
Jok fouled out with 47 seconds left in double-overtime against Nebraska with Iowa trailing 91-90 after a Tai Webster made free-throw. The Hawkeyes had scored seven points up to that point in the second overtime, however missed their final two shots and turned the ball over once without Jok. The offense had less flow to it and Iowa had a harder time finding a shot.
Jok’s mere presence made a huge difference late in the game against Purdue. Besides his 17 second half points, he gave Iowa a spark whenever Purdue started to pull away. To start the half with Purdue up nine, Jok scored nine points and assisted on a Dom Uhl dunk to bring Iowa within one point.
Then later in the half with Iowa down 71-68, Jok scored five points and assisted on a Tyler Cook dunk to give the Hawkeyes a 77-76 lead with three minutes to play.
The future is bright for Iowa, but it’s evident that Peter Jok is the present. There are a lot of good players in college basketball this year, but Jok might be the most important. Iowa would not be a .500 team without him.
Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
Jok’s All-Around Game
Many people think that Peter Jok is simply a scorer, but that could not be more wrong. Along with leading the team in scoring, he leads Iowa in rebounding at 6.3 per game and is second in assists and steals per game.
Despite Jok having huge offensive games, Iowa is 0-4 when he scores 30-plus points. Although, the Hawkeyes are 7-1 when he records at least three assists and 6-3 when he shoots 50 percent or better from the field.
Even though Jok is one of the best scorers in the nation, it’s telling that Iowa benefits greatly from him setting up his teammates and attacking the glass. He has three double-doubles with rebounds this season, along with 14 games with at least five rebounds.
Jok is second among Big Ten guards in rebounding this season, ranking 16th in the nation. Only Northwestern guard Sanjay Lumpkin, who averages 6.7 rebounds per game, averages more than Jok this season.
Also, even though Melo Trimble is a point guard, Jok averages just 0.4 fewer assists per game. Trimble is also a very good scorer, but he’s not as efficient as Jok and barely records more assists despite having the ball in his hands a lot more.
Defensively, Jok might not be named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, but he’s lengthy and creates turnovers for Iowa. Sure, he gets beats now and then, but he’s not a liability on that end of the floor and is out there for his elite offense.
Peter Jok will go down as one of the best scorers in Iowa history, but he’s become one of the best all-around players in the nation this year, as well.
