IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa men’s basketball team fell to Michigan, 84-79, on Thursday night on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.
Sophomore Keegan Murray scored a team-high 23 points, bringing his season total to 17 games of 20 points or greater. Murray posted a team-high seven rebounds to go along with four blocks, one assist, and one steal against the Wolverines.
Senior Filip Rebraca was Iowa’s second-leading scorer, putting up 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting from the field. Rebraca also hauled in six rebounds and three assists in the contest.
Iowa took a 39-37 lead into halftime on a fade-away buzzer-beater from Murray facilitated by a full-court assist from senior Connor McCaffery as time expired. The hotly contested game saw 11 lead changes, but Michigan retained a 12-point advantage with three minutes remaining in regulation.
The Hawkeyes mounted a valiant comeback that cut the score to three points with 51 seconds to play, sprung by five consecutive fastbreak scores, four of which came off layups from sophomore Patrick McCaffery. The Hawkeyes climbed to within two points with six seconds remaining, but it would not prove to be enough as the Wolverines held on for the four-point win.
The Wolverines edged Iowa 40-37 on the glass, though the Hawkeyes own offensive rebounds, 13-10, and outscored Michigan, 14-10, on second-chance points. Iowa finished 44 percent (31-of-70) shooting from the field.
QUOTING HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY
“I thought our defense needed to be better tonight. They have length and their bigs are good passers. Diabate is a pro but we can’t let him go 12-for-15. I’m proud of our guys’ effort. We missed some easy ones tonight but we kept coming against a good team. We will practice at noon tomorrow, get on a plane and go play Ohio State. Saturday is another opportunity for us.”
NOTABLES
- The reigning Naismith Trophy National Player of the Week, Keegan Murray, netted a team-best 23 points tonight. He has scored 20+ points a Big Ten-best 17 times.
UP NEXT
Iowa (17-8, 7-7) next hits the hardwood on Saturday at No. 18 Ohio State (16-6, 9-4). Tipoff is scheduled for 1:37 p.m. (CT) at Value City Arena in Columbus, Ohio. The game will be televised on FOX.