IOWA CITY, Iowa -- After losing four senior starters, Iowa is in the midst of a major rebuild this season.The recent performances of its freshmen suggest that those efforts might not take very long.The Hawkeyes (5-5) have had serious struggles so far, most notably losing to Nebraska-Omaha at home. But that adversity has revealed reasons for optimism, because their freshmen have shown serious promise so far.Newcomers Cordell Pemsl, Isaiah Moss, Jordan Bohannon and Tyler Cook have all become major contributors. Pemsl, Moss and Bohannon started in last weeks upset of then-No. 25 Iowa State, and Cook (13.7 points, 5.3 rebounds per game) was a starter before a broken right finger set him back.Iowa plays Northern Iowa (5-4) on Saturday as part of an annual doubleheader in Des Moines.Getting them to understand how to prepare and how to work and how to put it together (is the challenge) because from the very beginning theyve been really good most of the time, Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.The Hawkeyes were concerned about their interior play after center Adam Woodburys graduation. The 6-foot-8 Pemsl looks like he might be able to fix that problem.Pemsl was somewhat overlooked during the recruiting process because of shoulder and knee injuries. But he still led Dubuque (Wahlert) Iowa in scoring and rebounding in all four of his high school seasons -- and hes put up some impressive stats in his collegiate debut.Pemsl is one of just seven Division I players in the last 20 years to hit at least 75 percent of his shots in his first 10 games, which McCaffery said is a product of advanced shot selection. Pemsl (42 of 56 shooting) also averaging 17 points a game since taking the injured Cooks spot in the starting lineup, with 4.9 rebounds and roughly a block a game as well.Little things thatll help my game, help me get easy and efficient shots, Pemsl said when asked about his recent scoring binge. His teammates know that they can count on me to turn around and score or find them with a kick out.Bohannon is the youngest of four brothers to play Division I ball, including Zach (Wisconsin) and Matt (Northern Iowa).Although Bohannon was Iowas Mr. Basketball in 2016, he was expected to be Iowas backup point guard as a freshman. But like Pemsl, Bohannon jumped into the starting lineup four games ago and hasnt looked back, averaging over 13 points and 5.5 assists as a starter.Weve all prepared ourselves t