If Iowa’s pre-Christmas performance was a preview of things to come, junior forward Alvaro Folgueiras might be on the verge of rediscovering the form that made him the Horizon League Player of the Year last season at Robert Morris.
In Iowa’s 94-39 rout of Bucknell on Dec. 20, Folgueiras came off the bench and delivered his best outing in a Hawkeye uniform, dropping a season-high 17 points - 13 of them in just eight first-half minutes. It was the third time this season he’s led the team in scoring, and it felt like a breakout moment for a player who’s been working to find his rhythm in a new system.
Now, with No. 25 Iowa set to wrap up nonconference play Monday against UMass Lowell in Iowa City, all eyes are on whether Folgueiras can build on that momentum.
When Folgueiras transferred in, there was hope he’d make a similar immediate impact to that of starting guard Bennett Stirtz. Stirtz, who followed head coach Ben McCollum from Drake, has been a steady force - leading Iowa with 16.7 points, 5.0 assists, 1.8 steals, and logging a team-high 36.4 minutes per game.
Folgueiras, meanwhile, has taken a more gradual path. He’s averaging 9.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 19.1 minutes per game in a reserve role.
But don’t let the raw numbers fool you - there are signs that Folgueiras is starting to turn a corner.
Last season, he was a stat-stuffing machine at Robert Morris: 14.1 points, 9.1 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game, while shooting a blistering 54.8% from the field and 41.3% from deep. Those numbers helped lead the Colonials to a Horizon League title and an NCAA tournament berth. And while it’s taken some time to adjust to the Big Ten pace and McCollum’s system, the tools that made him a star are still there.
“I’ve just got to make sure that I know what the coaching staff wants from me,” Folgueiras said. “I’ve been doing a fairly intense job these last few weeks on just keeping it simple.”
That simplicity is starting to pay off. But as McCollum explained, the transition hasn’t been as easy as flipping a switch. Folgueiras missed Iowa’s summer workouts while playing for Spain’s under-20 national team, which meant he arrived behind the curve in terms of system familiarity and workload expectations.
“You have to de-program and re-program, and get him to play the style that we’re at,” McCollum said. “Specific to him, it’s probably the workload that’s the trickiest part.”
Still, with Iowa sitting at 10-2 and undefeated at home (7-0), Monday’s matchup with UMass Lowell offers another opportunity for Folgueiras to carve out a bigger role before the grind of Big Ten play begins.
The River Hawks (5-9) come in struggling on the road, with a 1-8 record away from home and only two wins over Division I opponents. They’re fresh off an 88-76 loss to Boston University on Dec. 21, and while their offense can put up points - averaging 78 per game on 47.5% shooting - their defense has been a major liability.
UMass Lowell is giving up 79.8 points per game and allowing opponents to shoot 45.6% from the field and 35.6% from three. They’ve surrendered 80 or more points seven times this season and hit the century mark twice - against national powers UConn and Wake Forest.
Offensively, they’re led by Texas State transfer Austin Green, who scored 20 in the loss to BU and is averaging 15 points per game while shooting a scorching 63.2% from the field. JJ Massaquoi (10.6 ppg), Darrel Yepdo (10.3), and Xavier Spencer (10.0) round out a balanced scoring attack, but the River Hawks’ inability to get stops has made it tough to string together wins.
Still, head coach Pat Duquette sees progress, even if it hasn’t translated into the win column just yet.
“We still have to keep getting better, but I’m happy with where we’re at,” Duquette said. “I’m just happy that these guys have kept fighting and stayed together.”
This will be the first-ever meeting between Iowa and UMass Lowell - and on paper, it’s a game the Hawkeyes should control. But beyond the scoreboard, the real storyline to watch is whether Folgueiras can continue trending upward. If he’s truly starting to click, Iowa’s already-deep rotation could get even more dangerous heading into conference play.