Iowa freshman Owen Freeman has been a terror all season and has shown the potential to be one of the finest posts in America next season. On Tuesday morning, he was voted Big Ten Freshman of the Year. Freeman will share the award with Indiana’s Mackenzie Mgbako.
Iowa freshman Owen Freeman has been a terror all season and has shown the potential to be one of the finest posts in America next season. On Tuesday morning, he was voted Big Ten Freshman of the Year. He is the first Iowa freshman to win the league honor since Jess Settles did it in 1993. Freeman will split the accolade with Mackenzie Mgbako of Indiana.
Freeman broke into Iowa’s starting lineup in December and has since risen through the ranks thanks to his outstanding two-way play. He finished the season averaging 10.6 points and 6.5 rebounds while blocking nearly two shots per game. He broke the Iowa freshman record for blocks.
“He’s a beast,” Tony Perkins had stated. “I told him every time he was fouled, got a rebound, or made a basket, ‘You are a beast. Act like it. This is the type of player he is. He goes for the ball, can score, make free throws, and slam on someone; he works hard. He also has me here to tell him what a great player he is. “He is a beast.”
“I’ve been saying from the beginning that the thing that makes him unique is that he has a bag,” Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery remarked. “A lot of times you don’t expect that from your 6’10” center of gravity. I’ve been encouraging him all year to be that guy: attack the open floor, spin, shot-fake, rip, and drive. I believe the next phase of his game will be to shoot pull-up jumpers from there.”
Freeman was also named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team, Iowa’s first since 2020 and eighth under Fran McCaffery, while Krikke received the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award.
Freeman has been the Big Ten’s finest rookie, leading the conference in rebounds (203), blocks (56) and double-doubles (5), while finishing second in steals (30), field goal percentage (.636), and third in scoring. Freeman averages 10.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game. He has scored in double digits in 15 games, including two 20-point contests.
Over the course of the season, Freeman received nine Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors, the second-most in Big Ten Conference history.
“His ability to influence the game from both ends was key to our victory. He was blocking shots, rebounding the ball, beginning our break, allowing others to make plays, and he did it all tonight while keeping out of foul trouble, so he’s learning.”
Iowa (18-13) will travel to Minneapolis as the No. 7 seed in the TIAA Big Ten Tournament. The Hawkeyes begin play Thursday against 10th-seeded Ohio State at 5:30 p.m. (CT) at the Target Center. The game will air live on BTN.
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