AMES, Iowa – The University of Iowa men’s basketball team fell to No. 17 Iowa State, 73-53, on Thursday night in an Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series matchup at Hilton Coliseum.
Iowa sank five of its first 10 field goal attempts before finishing 12-of-53 from the field the rest of the way. The Cyclones shot 44 percent for the game and had a 50-32 advantage on the glass to help pull away in their first win in four games against the Hawkeyes.
The defeat marks Iowa’s first three-game losing streak since dropping three games to close out the 2019 regular season.
Iowa State’s Izaiah Brockington dropped 29 points while hitting 11-of-14 shots from the field including three 3-point buckets. Sixth-year senior Jordan Bohannon led the Hawkeyes offensively with 17 points, including 6-of-6 shooting from the free throw line.
Sophomore Keegan Murray, who entered the game as the Big Ten Conference’s leading scorer, was held to just nine points on 4-of-17 shooting. Murray was Iowa’s second-leading scorer and also grabbed a team-high seven rebounds.
QUOTING COACH MCCAFFERY
“I thought they did a really good job defensively being up into our space and being physical. They were really locked in defensively, and I think sometimes when that happens you tend to quit shooting the ball occasionally. In the first half we quit shooting a little. They were decent shots, they weren’t great shots, and I think we needed to be a little more patient, perhaps…
It’s been a tough stretch, but I mean that’s what this is, that’s what this level is. You are going to play some tough road games, you are going to play some tough teams, and you have to grow. It’s a process, it takes time. We were really good some games and we weren’t good tonight.”
OF NOTE
- Iowa State beat Iowa for the first time in four games tonight. The home team has won 16 of the last 19 in the series, dating back to 2004.
- Senior Jordan Bohannon led the team in scoring for the second time this season, netting 17 points, bolstered by a team-best three 3-point field goals made.
- Iowa made a season-best 93.3 percent from the free throw line, missing only one attempt (14-of-15).
- Tonight was Iowa’s third road contest in four games and second time it faced a ranked opponent on the road in three games.
- Iowa remains in the lead of the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series, 9-8, after tonight’s result. The two schools will clash in women’s swimming & diving on Friday in Ames.
UP NEXT
Iowa returns to action after final exams on Saturday, Dec. 18, versus Utah State. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. (CT) at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The game is sold out.