Hawkeyes Defeat SEMO, 106-75

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa men’s basketball team defeated Southeast Missouri State, 106-75, on Saturday night on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa improves to 8-3 on the season.

Sophomore Payton Sandfort scored 17 of 19 straight Iowa points down the stretch in the first half to secure a, 58-41, Iowa lead heading into the break. It was all Hawkeyes from there, as Iowa shot 58 percent (38-of-66) from the floor and won on the boards, 47-30, to cruise to the 31-point victory.

Sandfort finished with a career-high 24 points and seven rebounds, shooting 9-of-13 from the floor including a pair of deep 3-pointers. Sandfort also added two assists on the contest while shooting 4-of-4 from the charity stripe.

“I can’t explain it,” said Sandfort after the game. “It has been a really tough stretch, but I am really proud of myself. I think I’ve really found myself during the stretch both on and off the court. A lot of rough nights, but I just continue to put in the work, and that’s not going to stop. Regardless of the outcome, I am not going to change who I am or what I do.”

Fifth-year Filip Rebraca was the game’s leading scorer, piling on a career-high 30 points on 12-of-13 shooting on the floor. Rebraca added another career best with six assists to go along with nine rebounds, one block and one steal against the Redhawks.

Redshirt junior Patrick McCaffery finished with 20 points, eight rebounds, one assist and a steal in the contest. 54 Iowa points came in the paint, while the Hawkeyes combined for eight threes and 37 bench points on the contest.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY
“[Sandfort] was really close. He has been playing really well, working hard, staying after it, staying positive. The thing that I told him was, sometimes guys that are good shooters, they have a bad day as a shooter. Payton Sandfort is a really good basketball player. He gets a tip-in and-one. He gets a drive left, finish and-one. Pull-up. Three. Seven rebounds. Two assists. I mean, just a complete game. He was active defensively. He can play multiple positions. I thought the best thing about the whole night was how his teammates responded to him, because they love him. I love him. He’s tremendous, and you are going to see a lot more of that…

The focal point of the game plan was to go inside with [Rebraca]. The thing about him that I was most impressed with, more than the 30 [points] and nine [rebounds], was the six assists. We did that a lot in the Iowa State game, playing through him, because he can dribble, pass and shoot.”

HAWKEYE NOTABLES

• Fran McCaffery won his 250th career game as head coach of the Hawkeyes. He is second in all-time victories at Iowa behind Tom Davis (271).
• Iowa had three players score 20+ points (Filip Rebraca, 30; Payton Sandfort, 24; Patrick McCaffery, 20). The last time Iowa had three players score 20+ points in a game was Jan. 17, 2020 versus Michigan (Luka Garza, Joe Wieskamp, CJ Fredrick).
• Iowa reached the century mark for the third time this season (North Carolina A&T; Omaha).
• Senior Filip Rebraca registered personal bests in points (30) and assists (6). Rebraca missed only one field goal attempt (12-of-13). He has tallied 20+ points twice in the last three games (22 versus Iowa State). Rebraca also snagged a game-best nine rebounds.
• Sophomore Payton Sandfort tallied a career-high 24 points, reaching his season high in the first half (17 points). Sandfort also cleared a season-best seven rebounds.
• Redshirt junior Patrick McCaffery posted 20 points and grabbed a career-best eight rebounds.
• Starter Kris Murray (19.4 ppg & 10.1 rpg) missed his third straight game due to injury.
• Iowa scored 58 first-half points, the most the Hawkeyes have scored in a first half this season.
• Iowa (22) made 15 more free throws than Southeast Missouri State (7).
• Payton Sandfort and Filip Rebraca combined to shoot 15-of-18 (.833) from the field in the first half. Rebraca (9) and Patrick McCaffery (8) combined for Iowa’s first 17 points of the game.
• Seven of Iowa’s eight wins this season have come by 16 points or more.
• Iowa has won 83 of its last 88 nonconference home games dating back to 2012, including all six this season.
• Iowa improved to 8-0 this season when leading at halftime.
• The Hawkeyes improved to 2-0 all-time against Southeast Missouri State.

UP NEXT
Iowa (8-3) will close out nonconference play on Wednesday, Dec. 21, against Eastern Illinois (3-9). Tipoff is scheduled for 7:01 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City. Tickets are available for purchase at hawkeyesports.com/tickets.