CJ Fredrick didn’t play in Iowa’s Sunday showdown against Indiana. It was the third time in four games that the guard didn’t step on the floor because of a lower leg injury.

And for the third time in four games, the Hawkeyes lost.

Fredrick has missed time recently due to a lower leg injury, and it appears to have cost Iowa its place atop the B1G standings. In fact, the Hawkeyes are losers of four of their last five games, with Fredrick missing 3.5 of those contests.

On Jan. 21, Fredrick suffered an injury against Indiana, playing in just the first half of that game. The Hawkeyes owned a 37-31 lead at halftime before falling 81-69 to the Hoosiers at home. His departure appeared to have an impact on Iowa’s chemistry the rest of the game.

Iowa then dropped an 80-75 contest to Illinois on the road without Fredrick in the lineup. The guard returned for the Hawkeyes’ game against Michigan State, playing 12 minutes in the contest. Iowa won the game 84-78.

Fredrick then missed the next two games against Ohio State and Indiana. The Hawkeyes dropped both, falling 89-85 to the Buckeyes and 67-65 to the Hoosiers.

This season, Fredrick is averaging 8.7 points, 2.3 assists and 1.1 rebounds in 24.6 minutes per game for the Hawkeyes. He’s also considered one of the team’s top defenders. Without him on the floor, Iowa isn’t the same team.

We’ve seen it from the Hawkeyes over the last two weeks.