The Iowa Hawkeyes fell short on Thursday night, losing to Michigan State 91-84 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Iowa took a ten point lead into halftime, but their defense crumbled in the second half, allowing the Spartans to leave Iowa City with a win.
This marks the Hawkeyes' third straight loss and their eighth loss in their last ten games, as they sputter down the stretch.
After being down early in the first half, the Hawkeyes used a 22-2 run to go up by 14 points at the nine-minute mark of the game. Michigan State could not buy a bucket during that stretch, and went nearly four minutes without scoring.
Sparty pushed hard to end the first half, cutting the lead to seven, as Iowa took a 37-30 lead into the break. Iowa would quickly push the lead to ten to start the second half, but that is as high as it would get.
The Hawkeyes would allow the Spartans to shoot 61 percent from the field in the second half, as their ten-point lead fell apart. Michigan State used a quick 11-0 run to go in front 59-58 and never looked back.
The Spartans outscored Iowa 61-47 in the second half, to push their win total to 25 for the season, and take the regular season Big Ten title. The Hawkeyes were paced by Josh Dix, who finished the game with 18 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. Jase Richardson led the Spartans with 22 points.
The "Fran Fade" continues to be in full effect as the Hawkeyes struggle mightily down the stretch. Their offense is streaky, and they cannot put together a full game on defense. They have dropped to 16th place in the standings, and are in danger of missing the Big 10 Tournament.
You have to place this at the feet of Fran McCaffery. After the Spartans shot 40 percent from the floor and 20 percent from three in the first half, McCaffery employed a zone defense for much of the second half. This allowed Michigan State to get back into the game, and ultimately win.
These late-game crumbles are becoming too common for an Iowa Men's Basketball team that had high hopes going into the season.
The Hawkeye's final game of the regular season takes place in Lincoln, Nebraska, versus the Nebraska Cornhuskers on Sunday, March 9. It is a must-win for the Hawkeyes in what could be a season-ending matchup against rival Nebraska.