Hugh Jackman tells Iowa men's basketball to 'crush it' ahead of the NCAA Tournament

Actor Hugh Jackman may have played Wolverine in the “X-Men” series, but he wasn't above giving flowers to the Hawkeye state.

"Connor, Patrick, Fran, go get them today. Have the best time, the Iowa Hawkeyes," Jackman said in a video posted to Twitter on Sunday, shouting out the University of Iowa men's basketball team.

Jackman is currently on Broadway playing professor Harold Hill, the con man at the center of "The Music Man." The classic musical was created by Mason City's Meredith Willson and received a Tony Award for Best musical in 1958.

Remy Auberjonois is Iowa basketball coach Fran McCaffery's brother-in-law

The current iteration of the show has a deeper Iowa connection. Actor Remy Auberjonois — who plays Charlie Cowell — is Iowa men's basketball coach Fran McCaffery's brother-in-law.

The Connor and Patrick that Jackman mentions in the video are McCaffery's sons and are players on the team. The video concludes with Jackman saying, "Guys, crush it. Have the time of your life and enjoy every second, but most of all, crush it."

The Iowa Hawkeyes men's basketball team won their first Big 10 Tournament title in 16 years, defeating the Purdue Boilermakers 75-66 on Sunday. The team punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament, facing the Richmond Spiders on Thursday at 2:10 p.m.

More: Leistikow: A true team effort delivers Iowa basketball's first Big Ten Tournament title in 16 years

Isaac Hamlet covers arts, entertainment and culture at the Des Moines Register. Reach him at ihamlet@gannett.com or 319-600-2124, or follow him on Twitter @IsaacHamlet.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Hugh Jackman gives Iowa basketball a shoutout before NCAA Tournament