Hawkeyes Handle Hoosiers, 85-60

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa men’s basketball team defeated Indiana, 85-60, on Saturday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes pick up back-to-back Big Ten wins to move to 12-4 on the season and 3-2 in the Big Ten.

The first half was a game of runs, featuring multiple runs throughout the first 20 minutes. Indiana jumped out to a 4-0 lead before the Hawkeyes responded with a 15-0 run to take a 15-4 advantage just over five minutes into the half. The Iowa defense was in full force, forcing seven Indiana turnovers in its first 10 possessions.

The Hoosiers would respond with an 11-1 run to take the lead back, 24-23, as they made five straight field goals. The Hawkeyes wasted little time to come up with a run of their own, going on a 16-0 run over five minutes as they pushed their advantage to 13 points.

At the break, Iowa led Indiana 43-33. Sophomore Owen Freeman led the way with 10 points and eight rebounds. Iowa shot 13-of-31 (58.1%) from the field and 5-of-11 (45.5%) from beyond the arc as the defense forced 12 first-half turnovers.

The second half was all Hawkeyes as Iowa outscored Indiana, 42-27, in the second 20 minutes. The Hawkeyes were led by senior Payton Sandfort who led all scorers with 23 points -- with 21 coming in the second half. Freeman added 16 points to go along with 12 rebounds, his eighth double-double of his career and his third this season.

Sophomore Josh Dix scored 12 points on 4-of-7 shooting while graduate Drew Thelwell matched Dix with 12 points. Thelwell had a career high with six steals. Sophomore Brock Harding rounded out the Hawkeyes in double digits with 10 points as he dished out 10 assists, marking the third double-double of his career and second this season.

Iowa finished the game shooting 32-of-59 (54.2 percent) from the field and 11-of-24 (45.8 percebt) from 3-point range. Iowa struggled at the free throw line, shooting 10-of-18 (55.6 percent). The Iowa defense held Indiana to 24-of-59 (40.7%) from the field and 4-of-16 (25%) from deep. In the second half, the Hoosiers were held to 11-of-34 from the field (32.4%) and just 1-of-8 (12.5%) from beyond the arc.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY
"[Defense] was really good. It was connected. If you are going to play zone, which we played a good portion of the game, you have to communicate, recognize actions, get over, get back, and get up. Because not everybody runs traditional zone offense anymore, it’s more like motion. There are still ball screens, there is going to be overloads at some point, first possession of the second half screen across on the baseline, but if everybody is communicating you can contest. The key to it all was not so much the activity or the defense, it was rebounding. We did a really good job. We out-rebounded a team that is typically really good on the glass.”

GAME NOTES

• The Hawkeyes improved to 12-4 overall and 3-2 in Big Ten play with a 85-60 victory over Indiana on Saturday night inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. 
  • Iowa has won three straight over Indiana in Iowa City.
  • The Hawkeyes snapped the Hoosiers five game winning streak and handed IU just its second loss in its last 11 games.
• Iowa’s 25 point victory over the Hoosiers is the largest in the series since 1996 (76-50).  
• The Hawkeyes have scored 80 or more points in 10 consecutive games dating back to Nov. 26. It is the longest stretch for the program since scoring 80+ in 13 straight games during the 1988-89 season.
• Iowa had five players finish in double figures: Payton Sandfort 23, Owen Freeman 16, Josh Dix 12, Drew Thelwell 12, Brock Harding 10.
• Freeman notched his third double-double of the season, finishing with 16 points, 12 rebounds, four blocks and three steals. He was 8-of-13 from the field. 
  • It is Freeman’s eighth career double-double.
  • Freeman has had 3+ blocks in eight games and 18 over his last six contests.
• Payton Sandfort scored 23 points, making 7-of-12 field goals, including four 3-pointers. 
  • He scored 21 points in the second half a game after scoring 27 in the final 20 minutes (30 in second half and OT) in the win over Nebraska on Jan. 7.
  • It is Sandfort’s second straight 20-point contest and his team-best sixth of the season. He has 24 career 20-point games. 
  • Sandfort has made four or more 3-pointers in 24 career games.
• Thelwell had 12 points, making 4-of-7 field goals.  He finished with a career-high six steals, including five in the first half.  
  • His six steals are the most by a Hawkeye since Joe Toussaint in 2021 and are tied for the second-most in a game under Fran McCaffery.
  • It was Thelwell’s second game with five or more steals.
• Harding notched his second double-double of the season, finishing with 10 points and 10 assists.  
  • It is his third career game with 10 or more assists.
• Iowa finished with a 26-2 advantage in fastbreak points.
• The Hawkeyes made 11 3-pointers, finishing 11-of-24.  Iowa has made 10+ 3s in nine games this season.
• Iowa shot 54.2 percent from the floor (32-of-59). The Hawkeyes are undefeated (8-0) when shooting at least 50 percent.
• Iowa improves to 10-1 at home this season.
• Iowa had a 15-0 run early in first half and a 16-0 run late; the Hawkeyes led 43-33 at the break. 
  • Iowa shot 58.1 percent in the first half (18-of-31) with five 3-pointers.
• The Hawkeyes out rebounded the Hoosiers 37-31. 
  • It is the first time this season Iowa has won the rebounding battle in Big Ten play.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes return to action Tuesday, traveling to Los Angeles to face USC.  The game will begin at 9:30 p.m. (CT) and be televised on FS1.