Fran McCaffery opens up on what it means to see Iowa players earn All-Big Ten honors

Iowa took home a fair few honors from the 2023 Big Ten awards, and head coach Fran McCaffery was excited to speak on his player’s behalf regarding their positive contributions to his team this season.

“I think it’s a great feeling as a coach to have your players recognized on a national level in such a prestigious league. You look at the list of players, there are so many good players, and to have our guys recognized, certainly, it’s well-deserved,” McCaffery said ahead of the Big Ten Tournament. “I think as coaches, we know how hard they work and prepare, and you want to know that at the end of it all, there’s some recognition when you accomplish some things that those guys did. To have so many guys recognized is also a great feeling.”

Overall, six players were honored in the Big Ten’s postseason awards. junior F Kris Murray was the only Hawkeye to make the All-Big Ten First Team by both the media and coaches. Senior F Filip Rebraca was a third-team selection, while senior Connor McCaffery and junior Tony Perkins were honorable mentions.

Sophomore Payton Sandfort earned Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year honors and junior Patrick McCaffrey the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award for the second straight season.

“I think you look at Kris, he decided to come back. He probably would have gone in the second round, and he came back to make a statement. It’s hard to be first-team all-league in this conference, and he did that. So really proud of him,” Fran McCaffery said. “I think Filip, being third-team, is certainly well deserved. His consistency this year was spectacular, as he figured out the conference after going through it for one year. 

“Then for Connor and Tony, just proud of those two guys, how they fought all year long. To see them get recognized and appreciated for all the things they do to help us win, and certainly Payton, I felt like he would be the guy that would win that award. … Then for Patrick to be recognized again in terms of sportsmanship is also a testament to his character and everything he’s been through. So very happy for him. It’s a great time; we recognize these guys and then go back to work.”

With awards in the rearview, Iowa awaits the winner of Wednesday’s first-round matchup between Ohio State and Wisconsin. The Hawkeyes will tip off against the winner Thursday afternoon roughly 25 minutes following the conclusion of Rutgers vs. Maryland.