A second chance
In the second half of the Iowa basketball team’s 53-51 win over Northwestern on Wednesday, Dan Bohall made the most of his second chance.
The sophomore from Sioux City recorded a steal and lay-in which gave Iowa a 40-39 lead with 6 minutes, 46 seconds to play and then hit his first 3-pointer in a game since Nov. 30 to help distance the Hawkeyes from the Wildcats.
It was sweet redemption for a player who stumbled after being presented with an earlier opportunity. A former walk-on, Bohall was given a scholarship for the current year in late August, a reward for the work had put into his game since Todd Lickliter arrived on campus.
When Tony Freeman broke a bone in his foot in Iowa’s exhibition game, Bohall benefited and moved into the starting lineup.
Shortly before Freeman returned, Bohall was arrested and pled guilty to charges of public intoxication. He didn’t suit up again for nearly a month, fulfilling conduct requirements set forth by Lickliter and the university’s athletic department. He has seen only a handful of minutes since returning to the team at the start of the Big Ten season.
“I made a mistake. All I wanted was another chance to prove myself,” Bohall said. “Coach told me to go in and see if I could give the team a spark. I did what I could.”
Lickliter said that Bohall and two other players who have seen plenty of time on the Iowa bench, David Palmer and J.R. Angle, have continued to work hard in practice and prepare for whatever opportunity might come their way.
“About four or five days ago, we asked all of our guys to concentrate on communicating and to be sharp and Bohall, Angle and Palmer were the sharpest,” Lickliter said. “They communicated the most and didn’t let circumstances dictate their attitude. It was good to watch guys put the team first and I appreciate that.”
