Hoosiers hold off Hawkeyes with “Ware-thereall”

The Indiana Hoosiers held off the Iowa Hawkeyes 74-68 Tuesday Night in Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. The Hoosiers snap a four-game losing streak to the Hawkeyes since 2002. Indiana Head Coach Mike Woodson gets his first win against Iowa as Head Coach as the Hoosiers lead the all-time series 107-82. The Hoosiers are 13-8 overall and 5-5 in the Big Ten and host Penn State on Saturday at Noon. Iowa falls to 12-9 overall and 4-6 in the Big Ten and will host Ohio State on Friday Night.  The game featured 7 ties and 6 lead changes as Indiana led for 35:13 and Iowa led for 2:06 with the teams tied for 2:42. In the it was an 8-0 Indiana run in the final 1:26 that sealed the win for the Hoosiers.

Kel’el Ware led the Hoosiers with 23 points, 10 rebounds and 3 blocks after missing the last two games with a lower body injury. The seven-foot sophomore has eight double-doubles on the season and his return was a big lift for the Hoosiers. Senior and Bloomington South Grad Anthony Leal scored a career high 13 points. Leal finished 3-4 from three-point range including back-to-back three pointers as part of an 11-0 run in the first half that got the crowd into the game. The Hometown hero finished 4-6 from the field, 2-2 free throw line, 7 rebounds, an assist and a block. Leal has not always gotten the playing time that he deserves but when his named is called he is always ready. “It’s really not that hard to stay ready” Leal said after the game.

Freshman Mackenize Mgbako finished with 11 points. Coach Mike Woodson has looked for Leal to bring the leadership that has been needed with a team full of newcomers. “I gave him the game ball after the game, I thought he was huge” Woodson said after the game.

Malik Reneau played 3 minutes and finished with 2 points. The Sophomore from Miami went down at 17:27 mark with injury to his left leg and missed the rest of the game. Reneau came out on crutches and then went back to the locker room. With 2:12 left in the game Xavier Johnson was going for a dunk when he came down on hard on his wrist and was helped to the locker room. Johnson played 32 minutes and scored 9 points. The Hoosiers finished 26-57 from the field for 46%, 8-22 from the field for 36% and 14-22 from free throw line for 63%. The Hoosiers pulled down 45 rebounds, dished out 18 assists, 8 blocks, 3 steals and committed 11 turnovers.

The Hawkeyes were led by 26 points from Payton Sandfort, Indianapolis native Tony Perkins added 22 points and Josh Dix chipped in 10 points. Leading scorer Ben Krikke was held to 2 points. Freshman Owen Freeman had 4 points and 2 rebounds. Brock Harding scored 4 points off the bench. Iowa was 25-63 from the field for 35%, 6-22 from three-point range for 27% and 16-19 from the field for 84%. Iowa had 32 rebounds, 10 assists, 9 steals, 3 blocks and committed only 3 turnovers.

The Hoosiers went up 30-15 with 8:03 left in the first half after an 11-0 run. Payton Sparks had a big-time block as Indiana led 33-19 with 3:47 left before the break. Iowa outscored Indiana 9-6 in the final 3:27 in the first half as the Hoosiers led 39-28 going into the locker room. In the second half Iowa pulled within two 49-47 with 11:03 left in the game. The Hoosiers got sloppy with handling the basketball as Iowa took the lead 54-53 with 7:56 left. Iowa led by two 68-66 on a Payton Sandfort jumper with 1:42 left. Freshman Gabe Cupps gave Indiana the lead on a three pointer with 1:26 left to lead 69-68. Trey Galloway made a free throw with 1:11 to give the Hoosiers a two-point lead. Kel’el Ware had a dunk off Hoosier miss and Anthony Leal sealed the win with two free throws with 12 seconds left.

 The Hoosiers have been bitten by the injury bug all season with Ware returning tonight this was the first time since the start of the season that the Hoosiers had a healthy team and everyone available but with injuries to Renea and Johnson time will tell if Indiana is to play shorthanded without two starters and the extent of Ware’s foot setback from tonight’s game.

(The following is credit sourced to the University of Iowa Athletics)

Game Notables

• Iowa erased a 17-point (39-22) first half deficit and a 12-point deficit in the second half (44-32) to tie the game at 49 with 10:37 to play.
  • There were seven ties and six lead changes in the game.
• The Hawkeyes trailed 39-28 at the half despite enduring a nearly eight-minute scoring drought (1-of-14 FG) in the first half.
  • Indiana went on a 12-0 run midway through the half, turning a 19-15 lead to 31-15.  Iowa trailed by as many as 17 (39-22).
• It is the Hawkeyes’ second game decided by seven or fewer points this season (0-2).
• Junior Payton Sandfort and senior Tony Perkins combined to score 48 of Iowa’s 68 points.
• Sandfort recorded his second straight 20 point game, finishing with 26 points on 7-of-16 shooting, including five 3-pointers.  He also had a team-high eight rebounds.
  • Sandfort scored 14 points with three 3-pointers in the first half (he scored 35 and made nine 3s over his last two halves (at Michigan, vs. Indiana).
  • It is Sandfort’s fifth 20-point game this season and the 12th of his career.
    • It is the second time in his career he has scored 20 or more in consecutive games.
  • He has made five or more 3-pointers in four games this season, at least four in eight games and three or more in 12 contests.
• Perkins had his fourth straight 20 point game, finishing with 22 points on 9-of-18 shooting.  He also had four rebounds, three assists, three steals and two blocks.
  • The last Hawkeye to post four consecutive 20-point games was Keegan Murray in the 2021-22 season.
  • It was Perkins’ ninth game with three or more steals.
• Sophomore Josh Dix scored 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting.  It was his fourth game in double figures this season.
• The Hawkeyes shot a season-low 35.4 from the field and were out-rebounded, 45-32.
• Iowa finished the game with three turnovers – tied for the fewest turnovers in a game in the Fran McCaffery era.

Up Next

Iowa returns home Friday, hosting Ohio State at 6 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena.