IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa men’s basketball team defeated Northwestern, 80-79, on Tuesday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Josh Dix’s three-pointer as the game clock expired won the game for the Hawkeyes, improving their record to 7-1 on the season and 1-0 in Big Ten play.
Iowa came out strong in the first half, establishing a commanding presence on both ends of the court. The Hawkeyes shot an impressive 65.4% from the field, including 54.5% from beyond the arc. The Hawkeyes opened their biggest lead of the game with just over five minutes to go in the first half, leading Northwestern 36-19.
The Hawkeyes’ defense also played a crucial role, forcing eight turnovers and creating 12 points off those turnovers. Dix led the way for the Hawkeyes in the first half with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Payton Sandfort and Owen Freeman each added 10 points in the first 20 minutes. Freeman was a perfect 4-of-4 from the field including 1-of-1 from three in the first half. The Hawkeyes lead for all but 18 seconds in the first half and led Northwestern, 45-34, at the break.
Northwestern’s offense picked it up quickly in the second half, after ending the first half making six consecutive field goals. The Wildcats used an 8-0 run to cut the Hawkeye lead down to just three with just under 13 minutes remaining. Northwestern would go on to take the lead for the first time in the game with 11:30 to play. The Wildcats went on a 13-1 run while the Hawkeyes didn’t make a field goal for nearly five minutes.
Iowa was able to take the lead back with just under 10 minutes remaining before Northwestern took the lead back a couple minutes later. The Hawkeyes trailed the Wildcats, 78-75 with 20 seconds remaining. Brock Harding drove into the lane, made a layup and got fouled. Harding went on to miss the potential game-tying free throw. The Hawkeyes fouled and Northwestern’s Ty Berry went 1-of-2 from the free throw line, giving the Hawkeyes one last opportunity.
Iowa called a timeout with 0.8 seconds left, trailing by two, to draw up a play. Dix caught Harding’s inbound pass and drilled a three-pointer from 26 feet to give Iowa the win.
The Hawkeyes finished with four players in double digits. Dix led all scorers with 22 points, while Sandfort had 20. Owen Freeman finished with 16 points on an efficient 7-of-9 from the field, while Harding rounded out Iowa’s players in double digits with 12 points on 6-of-10 shooting.
The Wildcats were led by Brooks Barnhizer with 21 points and Ty Perry with 20. Berry knocked down 5-of-9 from beyond the arc. Northwestern finished the game shooting 29-of-60 (48.3) from the field and 8-of-21 (38.1) from deep. The Wildcats were an efficient 13-of-16 (81.3) from the charity stripe.
After its stellar first half shooting, Iowa finished the game shooting 30-of-55 (54.5) from the field and 9-of-23 (39.1) from deep. The Hawkeyes struggled at the free throw line finishing 11-of-19 (57.9).
HEAR FROM HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY
“Anytime you run a play there is multiple options. They took away two or three of them. They chased Payton and they were [on] Owen on that back pick, so your last option is Josh. He made it. Not surprised, he’s tremendous.”
“We have to play better and keep being aggressive. We got tentative. The bottom line is at this level you can’t turn the ball over. We do not turn the ball over, and we turned it over tonight. We can’t do that.”
GAME NOTABLES
- Tuesday’s win is Iowa’s first Big Ten opening victory since the 2020-21 season.
- Josh Dix hit a 3-pointer from 26 feet with 0.8 seconds remaining to send Iowa to a 80-79 victory over Northwestern.
- Iowa had four players finish in double digits: Josh Dix 22, Payton Sandfort 20, Owen Freeman 16, Brock Harding 12
- Payton Sandfort scored 20 points on 6-of-14 shooting with four 3-point field goals. He also had seven rebounds and four assists.
- It was Sandfort’s third 20-point game this season and the 21st of his career.
- It was his third game with four 3-pointers this season and his 21st career game with 4+ 3s.
- Dix scored 22 points on 9-of-16 shooting to reach double figures for the second straight game and the fifth time this season. He also had six rebounds.
- It was Dix’s second 20-point game this season and the sixth of his career.
- Freeman finished with 16 points on 7-of-9 shooting.
- He has shot over 60 percent from floor in six games.
- Sophomore Brock Harding reached double digits for a third straight game, finishing with 12 points, eight assists and three steals.
- He has had at least five assists in seven of the team’s eight games and seven or more twice.
- Harding has had three or more steals in four straight games.
- Iowa opened with a 13-3 run, making 5-of-8 shots (and limiting Northwestern to 1-of-9 shooting over the game’s first five minutes).
- Freeman, Sandfort and Dix combined for 30 of Iowa’s first 36 points and 34 of 45 in the first half.
- All three players landed in double figures in the opening 20 minutes.
- Iowa tallied nine threes, making this the sixth game where Iowa has scored eight or more threes this season.
- The Hawkeyes shot 65.4 percent (17-of-26) in the first half.
- It was the second straight half shooting over 65 percent (65.6 vs. USC Upstate).
- Iowa has held all eight opponents under 50 percent shooting this season.
- Iowa has won 13 of the last 15 and 18 of the last 22 meetings over Northwestern, including nine straight from 2018-23.
- The Hawkeyes have won ten straight over the Wildcats inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Northwestern’s last win in Iowa City came in 2012 — a 70-66 triumph.
UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes return to action Saturday, traveling to Ann Arbor to face Michigan in their first true road game of the season. The game will begin at 1 p.m. (CT) and be televised on FS1.
