Iowa men’s basketball (12-4, 3-2 Big Ten) steamrolled their way to an emphatic 85-60 win vs. Indiana (13-4, 4-2 Big Ten) in front of a packed Carver-Hawkeye Arena crowd on Saturday night.
Offensively, Iowa kept their foot on the gas for most of the contest by shooting an efficient 32-for-59 (54.2%) from the floor, 11-for-24 (45.8%) from deep, and 10-for-18 (55.6%) from the charity stripe.
Even as the “points in the paint” scoring and overall rebounding margin favored Iowa, the true offensive weapon was the Hawkeyes’ ability to get timely three-point baskets kept the Hoosiers out of reach.
On the defensive side of the ball, Iowa forced 16 turnovers in addition to an astonishing 11 steals and six blocks. While the offensive rebounding was equal, at nine a piece, the Hoosiers were primarily a “one-and-done” offense, which was crucial in Iowa’s ability to go on stretch scoring runs.
With another victory under the belt, here are three stars that helped Iowa the most on Saturday.
Payton Sandfort
After erupting in the second half of Tuesday’s win over Nebraska, Sandfort followed up with a complete performance vs. Indiana by scoring a team-leading 23 points off 7-of-12 (58.3%) from the floor, 4-of-9 (44.4%) from deep, and 5-of-5 (100%) from the charity stripe.
Sandfort also recorded six rebounds, three assists, one steal, and one block in his 31 minutes of game action.
For Sandfort and Iowa’s sake, this performance is a relief as the senior forward had been uncharacteristically quiet in the two games prior to his second-half burst against the Cornhuskers.
Sandfort will need to keep this trend going as the team heads out West for its California road trip.
Owen Freeman
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
Freeman was a force again vs. Indiana on Saturday by scoring 16 points on 8-of-13 (61.5%) from the floor to pair with 12 rebounds, four blocks, three steals, and two assists to round out 27 minutes of action.
The performance is Freeman’s third double-double of the season and eighth of his career. His four blocks also gives him 18 total rejections over the past three games.
While this type of performance is nothing out of the ordinary for Freeman, his presence on the defensive side of the ball has allowed for a ferocious Hawkeyes defense to flourish as of late.
Drew Thelwell
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
After missing the previous game with an injury sustained through warmups, Thelwell rejuvenated the Hawkeyes spirit with six steals, three rebounds, and three assists to pair with a 12-point performance on 4-of-7 (57.1%) from the floor and 4-of-9 (44.4%) from the free-throw line.
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 head coach Fran McCaffery.
The Hawkeyes will fly westward for their next matchup on Tuesday vs. USC (10-6, 2-3 Big Ten) from the Galen Center in Los Angeles, Calif.
The game will tip off at 9:30 p.m. CT and air on FS1. Fans can also tune in to the Hawkeyes Radio Network for the game’s radio transcription.
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