Hawkeyes Fall at No. 7 Michigan State

EAST LANSING, Mich. – The University of Iowa men’s basketball team fell to No. 7 Michigan State, 71-52, on Tuesday night at the Breslin Center in the Big Ten opener. The Hawkeyes move to 7-1 on the season.

The Hawkeye offense struggled in the first 20 minutes, shooting 7-of-21 (33.3) from the field and 3-of-12 from 3-point range. The Iowa defense forced Michigan State into seven first half turnovers, including five in its first 13 possessions.

Senior Brendan Hausen led the way for Iowa in the first half with seven points. At the break, Iowa trailed Michigan State, 35-21.

The Hawkeyes were able to put together multiple runs in the second half, but Michigan State would respond. Iowa was unable to cut into the deficit as it suffered its first defeat of the season.

Senior Bennett Stirtz led the way for Iowa with 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting, while knocking down three 3-pointers. Junior Cam Manyawu led Iowa on the glass with six rebounds.

The Hawkeyes shot 17-of-45 (37.8) from the field and 7-of-23 (30.4) from 3-point range. Iowa converted on 11-of-17 (64.7) from the free throw line.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH BEN MCCOLLUM
“This is going to be good for us. The first game, just understanding the league, understanding how it’s going to be played. Just understanding all those different things and then a good environment for us to be in, which was great for us to learn and grow and get better, and we will get shockingly better.

I think a little bit of it was that Ole Miss game kind of hurt our flow a little bit because they were switching so much and then just couldn’t recover offensively into this game where you have to get to the next action. We just weren’t getting to the next action consistently enough. You can only withstand so much of the offensive rebounding pressure, the post pressure, when you’re not scoring. It kind of overwhelms you. Obviously, the free throws, 25 free throws or what not that will get you too.

I thought we did a great job in transition defensively, which was a big key for us. I thought offensive rebounds were OK for a little bit. I thought we broke a little bit down the stretch. Obviously, the free throw differential is one of those things we’ll have to fix.”

GAME NOTES

• No. 7/8 Michigan State handed Iowa its first loss of the season, 71-52, on Tuesday night at the Breslin Center in both teams’ Big Ten opener.

• Senior Bennett Stirtz was the only Hawkeye in double figures, finishing with 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting with three 3-pointers.  

  • He has been in double figures in seven of the team’s eight games.

• Senior Brendan Hausen scored seven points in seven first-half minutes.

• Junior Cam Manyawu had a team-high six rebounds, leading the team for the second time this season.

• Michigan State went 11-of-12 from the free throw line in the first half and 22-of-25 for the game.

  • It was the first time this season an Iowa opponent had more free throw attempts.

• The Hawkeyes, which entered the game eighth in the country in field goal percentage, was limited to a season low 37.8 clip and a 30.4 mark from long range.  

• The Spartans also won the rebounding battle, 37-18, including 13 on the offensive glass.  

  • MSU had a 21-4 advantage in second-chance points.

• The Spartans used a 17-2 run over a 5 ½ minute stretch in the first half, turning a 9-9 tie into a 27-11 lead at the 5:06 mark. Michigan State never trailed again.

UP NEXT
Iowa returns to action Saturday, hosting Maryland at 3 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The game will be televised on FS1.