MADISON, Wis. — The University of Iowa men’s basketball team fell, 87-78, to No. 23 Wisconsin on Thursday night at the Kohl Center.
Sophomore Keegan Murray poured in a game-leading 27 points for an NCAA-best eighth game of 25 or more points on the season. Murray also led the Hawkeyes with three blocks to go along with five rebounds, one steal, and 2-of-4 shooting from behind the 3-point arc. Murray combined for 62 points this week in two games against Maryland and Wisconsin.
Still, Murray’s efforts would not be enough for the Hawkeyes to pull out the road victory. The Badgers jumped out to hot start in the first half, as Wisconsin guard Johnny Davis posted 19 points and seven rebounds in the first 20 minutes to help establish a 45-32 advantage at the break.
Wisconsin finished with a 43-26 rebounding advantage en route to the nine-point win. The Badgers led for nearly 38 minutes of game action.
Redshirt sophomore Patrick McCaffery was Iowa’s leading rebounder with seven boards. McCaffery put up 10 points, three assists, and a block on the evening.
Sixth-year senior Jordan Bohannon and sophomore Kris Murray each scored 12 points. Bohnnaon knocked down a game-high three 3-point shots to go along with three assists. Murray grabbed three rebounds, two assists, two blocks, and two steals while shooting 5-of-10 from the field.
QUOTING COACH MCCAFFERY
“There were some good things. You don’t think about that when you are down 18 or 19 at one point, but what we have to be able to do is learn from it. We can’t miss 31 shots and get six back, we have got to get more. We have to execute a little bit better, but there were some good things and we can build from it.”
Notables
- The nation’s leading scorer and reigning Big Ten Player of the Week, Keegan Murray, posted team bests in points (27) and blocked shots (3). Murray has tallied 20+ points 11 times, including five straight, and 25+ points an NCAA-best eight times this season.
- Jordan Bohannon became the NCAA all-time leader in career games played. Tonight was game No. 158 for the sixth year senior. He had 12 points, all in the second half, and three assists tonight.
- Tonight was the only regular season meeting between the two teams.
- Tonight was Iowa’s third game against a ranked opponent this season, all coming on the road (No. 2 Purdue; No. 17 Iowa State; No. 23 Wisconsin).
UP NEXT
Iowa returns to action on Thursday, Jan. 13 versus Indiana. Tipoff for the only regular season meeting between the two teams is scheduled for 8:07 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are available for purchase at hawkeyesports.com/tickets.