By JOHN BOHNENKAMP

One of Fran McCaffery’s favorite teams to coach won just seven games.

McCaffery’s UNC-Greensboro team in the 2002-03 season went 7-22. The team went through a 10-game losing streak in December and early January, and closed the season losing eight of its last nine games.

Yet how his team played was what impressed McCaffery the most

“We had probably the second best point guard in the league, (and he) broke his leg,” McCaffery said Monday. “My starting center was out most of the year with a knee issue. I had a walk-on playing point guard, and those kids just battled for me. And I remember my athletic director said, ‘That was your best coaching job ever.’ He said, “When you look at it, and see 7-22, you were awful. But we were 20 baskets from 20 wins. Think about that.’ And those kids just kept battling for me. We had some heartbreaking losses, tip-ins at the buzzer, things like that.”

McCaffery is in his 29th season as a head coach, and as he said on Monday, he’s seen it all. So going through a season like this one at Iowa isn’t anything new.

“I can tell you, whether it be as an assistant or as a head coach, I’ve been here before,” he said. “You just approach everything as business as usual.”

Iowa is 15-12 overall, and tied for 13th in the Big Ten with a 6-10 record. The Hawkeyes have won just three of their last 11 games, but the last five games in that stretch have come without sophomore Owen Freeman, who is tied for the team lead in scoring and is Iowa’s leading rebounder.

Freeman is done for the season after undergoing surgery on his hand. Freshman Cooper Koch, who was a big part of the team’s rotation in the nonconference season, is out for the rest of the season with lingering health issues from the offseason. Point guard Drew Thelwell, who has made 15 starts this season, missed two games and has seen limited time in two others because of an ankle injury and is questionable for Tuesday’s game at Illinois. 

It’s been a season in which injuries and illness have affected the team up and down the roster. Only four players — Payton Sandfort, Pryce Sandfort, Brock Harding and Ladji Dembele — have played in every game.

Much like that UNC-Greensboro team, McCaffery has liked this team’s approach.

Business as usual, as he said.

“Who do we have?” McCaffery said. “What do we have? Who are we playing? How do we get this group ready to play? How do we continue to recruit and work hard on the recruiting trail? We still have recruits visiting — we had a couple really good ones here on Saturday.

“That’s essentially what culture is. It’s not finger pointing and blaming. ‘It’s not my fault. It’s his fault.’ And this team has remained together in that respect, most importantly, with each other. They love each other, they compete with each other, they support each other. They accept starting, coming off the bench, playing, not playing as much, ‘Whatever you need me to do, coach,’ and that’s what makes this business fun.”

McCaffery pointed to Illinois (17-11, 9-8), a team that has lost its last three games, including Saturday’s 110-67 loss to Duke at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Illini have been ranked as high as 13th in the Associated Press poll, but has had its own issues with injuries and illness.

“They have a really good team,” McCaffery said. “They’ve gone through a tough stretch with sickness. They’re getting healthy at the right time. … Everybody’s in the same boat. There’s not any team in the country that doesn’t have some adversity right now. So we just deal with it.”

The Hawkeyes are coming off Saturday’s 85-79 home win over Washington, a game in which they trailed by as much as 12 points before rallying.

“Obviously we keep grinding as a staff and preparation, but it really comes down to a group of young guys that want to compete, want to stay together, realize how close we are and what we’re capable of,” McCaffery said. “And that’s the journey, that’s the challenge, that’s what this level is, and that’s what they wanted to be a part of you know

“When you’re winning, everything’s great, it’s easy. So when you have to really, really work hard to win and to stay in the fight, that’s the true essence of character.”

Photo: Iowa’s Riley Mulvey (on floor) is congratulated by teammate Carter Kingsbury after drawing an offensive foul in Saturday’s win over Washington. (Keith Gillett/Icon Sportswire)