INDIANAPOLIS – The fifth-seeded University of Iowa men’s basketball team defeated No. 12 seed Northwestern in dominating fashion, 112-76, on Thursday in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament at Gainbridge Fieldhouse.
Iowa crushed the conference tournament 3-point record, draining 19 shots from behind the arc en route to the 36-point victory. Ten different Hawkeyes hit 3s, as Iowa shot 65.5 percent (19-of-29) from 3-point land.
The Hawkeyes also set a new Big Ten Tournament scoring mark, besting the previous record set by Maryland in 2016 by 15 points. All 14 players who entered the game for Iowa scored as the Hawkeyes shot 61.4 percent overall from the floor.
Iowa was dominant from the jump, shooting 67.6 percent (35-37) including 11 3-pointers. The Hawkeyes would carry a 64-48 lead into the half, eventually winning the game wire-to-wire.
“Early on I feel like we are moving the ball really well, especially at the start of the games,” said sophomore Keegan Murray. “That has fed into guys getting easy looks, and we are getting the stops we need.”
Murray led the game in scoring with 26 points in 25 minutes of action. The unanimous first-team All-Big Ten honoree shot 11-of-16 on the day and hit all three of his 3-point attempts. Murray also hauled in eight rebounds, two assists, and a steal against Northwestern.
Sixth-year senior Jordan Bohannon was 5-of-8 from behind the arc en route to 17 points and freshman Payton Sandfort was Iowa’s third leading scorer with 13 points, including three triples of his own.
Senior Filip Rebraca and redshirt sophomore Patrick McCaffery were also among the five Iowa players to reach double figures, scoring 10 points apiece. Rebraca was just one rebound shy of a double-double, adding nine points, four assists, and two blocks to his stat line.
The Hawkeyes dominated the glass, out-rebounding Northwestern, 45-18, for an advantage of 27 rebounds. Iowa also won the fastbreak scoring battle, 25-5, and totaled 25 assists. Iowa’s 36-point margin of victory marks a new Big Ten Tournament record.
QUOTING HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY
“We can’t play much better than we played tonight, obviously. Everything was clicking. Our offense was really good. I thought early on our rebounding, especially on the offensive glass, was crucial. Coming into the game we recognized that when we played Northwestern 10 days ago, they were not right. They had guys with the flu, so you kind of throw that game out. We watched a ton of their games. I have so much respect for [Coach Chris Collins] and his program. They really have played so well against so many teams and have a substantial number of wins. We felt like we needed to play with that effort tonight in order to win. We got a lot of great play from a lot of different people.”
NOTABLES
- Iowa recorded its eighth straight victory over Northwestern.
- The Hawkeyes have won nine of its last 11 games – winning all nine by double figures – dating back to Feb. 6.
- The Hawkeyes drained 11 of its Big Ten Tournament single-game record 19 3-pointers in the first half. Ten different Hawkeyes made at least one 3-pointer today.
- Iowa broke four Big Ten Tournament single game records today: total points (112); 3-pointers made (19); field goals made (43); and margin of victory (36).
- Iowa broke/tied eight team records in a Big Ten Tournament game today: total points (112); points in a half (64); field goals (43); 3-pointers made (19); 3-point attempts (29); field goal percentage (.614); 3-point field goal percentage (.655); and assists (25).
- Iowa’s 25 assists today are its most against a Big Ten opponent and second highest total this season (28 versus Alabama State).
- Iowa, the Big Ten’s top scoring offense, scored a season-best 112 points today, eclipsing the century mark for the fifth time this season.
- Jordan Bohannon sank a game-best five triples today, one shy of the school record in a Big Ten Tournament game (6 by Bohannon in 2017 and Jeff Horner in 2006). Bohannon now has 445 career 3-pointers, the second most by a player from a major conference in NCAA history (457 by Duke’s J.J. Reddick).
- All-American Keegan Murray became just the third Hawkeye — and first underclassman — to surpass 700 points in a single-season (724). Murray led all scorers with 26 points and grabbed eight rebounds in only 21 minutes. He has totaled 25 points or more 14 times this year, the most of any player from a major conference.
- Keegan Murray made 11 field goals to tie Dean Oliver’s single-game Iowa Big Ten Tournament record set in 2000.
- Iowa tallied 64 first-half points today, the most the Hawkeyes scored in a half (first or second) this season and most in a half against a Big Ten opponent since 2010. The 64 first-half points are the most by a Hawkeye team in a half in a Big Ten Tournament game (61 vs. Illinois in 2018).
- The Hawkeyes improved to 19-0 this season when outrebounding their opponents and 12-0 when shooting 50 percent or better from the field.
- The Hawkeyes had scoring runs 13-0 and 11-0 in the second half, marking their 25th and 26th scoring run of 10-0 or more this season.
- For the first time this season all 14 Hawkeyes who played scored at least two points.
- Iowa led by 33 at halftime today (64-31) is its largest halftime advantage this season, besting a 29-point halftime cushion versus Western Michigan on Nov. 22, 2021.
- The Hawkeyes improved to 3-1 against Northwestern in Big Ten Tournament games.
- Iowa will play in a Big Ten Quarterfinals game for the second straight season.
- Today was Fran McCaffery’s 400th game as Iowa’s head coach.
- Iowa won its first game as a No. 5 seed in a Big Ten Tournament game (1-4).
UP NEXT
No. 24 Iowa (23-9, 12-8) will face Rutgers (18-12, 12-8) in the Big Ten Tournament Quarterfinals on Friday at approximately 1 p.m. (CT) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.