Iowa Basketball: Takeaways from blowout win over Iowa State

Iowa basketball defeated rival Iowa State on Friday night by a final score of 105-77. Takeaways and observations from the Hawkeyes’ blowout victory.

The No. 3 Iowa Hawkeyes hit the century mark for the second time this season in a 105-77 rout of the Iowa State Cyclones at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Friday night.

The Hawkeyes defeated the Cyclones for the third straight season, including four of their last five. They now lead the all-time series with a record of 47-27.

Iowa came in averaging 98 points per game but scored a season-high 105 points after a second half outpouring from center Luka Garza. Iowa State had no answer for the Hawkeyes’ star.

Here are the biggest takeaways and observations from the win:

• Another game, another impressive performance from Luka Garza. He couldn’t miss in the second half, scoring 21 straight points for Iowa at one point. Garza finished with 34 points on 13-of-14 shooting. He was 6-of-7 from 3-point range. “I’ve never hit that many 3s in a game in my career,” said Garza after the game. He only played 17 minutes.
• Iowa was cold from beyond the arc in the first half (3-of-15), a big reason Iowa State was able to keep it close for a while. Eventually, the Hawkeyes regressed to the mean, finishing 11-of-29 from three (38 percent). They entered shooting around 40 percent.
• Another milestone for Garza on Friday: he passed BJ Armstrong for fifth on Iowa’s all-time scoring list.
• Players to have multiple games in a season with 30 points on 90 percent shooting in the last 25 seasons: JJ Hickson (2007-08), Carlos Boozer (2001-02) and Luka Garza (2020-21).
• According to ESPN Stats and Info, Garza’s 34 points against the Cyclones is the most by a Division 1 player who played less than 20 minutes in a game over the last 25 seasons.
• The Hawkeyes proved once again they can survive without Garza. Iowa ended the first half on a 23-9 run with their star player on the bench. Jack Nunge provided the spark needed with Garza in foul trouble. Nunge finished with 15 points on 6-of-7 shooting with eight rebounds in the first half.
• Speaking of Nunge, the sophomore big man is quickly playing his way into the conversation for the Big Ten’s Sixth Man of the Year award. He finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds off the bench.
• Far too many times in the first half we saw Iowa players just standing around watching on defense.
• It’s easy to pick on the Hawkeyes for lackluster effort on the defensive end, but if they continue to put up 97 points or more every game, does it even matter?
• Iowa covered the spread (-13.5) and the total went over (159.5).
• All but three players on Iowa’s roster scored on Friday night.

Up next: the Hawkeyes host Northern Illinois (0-4) on Sunday at 1:00 pm CT. TV info has not yet been announced.