BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (AP) — Bennett Stirtz scored 27 points, Tavion Banks added a career-high 26, and Iowa defeated Indiana 74-57 on Saturday, snapping a three-game losing streak.
The Hawkeyes (13-5, 3-4 Big Ten) never trailed and a 14-5 run gave them their first double-digit lead, 24-13. Neither team missed a shot in one stretch from 9:45 to 5:30 in the first half, leaving Iowa with a 30-23 lead. Indiana was held to five points over the final 4 1/2 minutes and Iowa led 38-28 at the break.
Indiana closed to within 49-45 in the second half, but soon thereafter Stirtz dropped a couple of 3s and Banks had a three-point play followed by a midrange jumper to put Iowa in command 62-48 with seven minutes remaining. The Hawkeyes’ next six points came at the free-throw line and Banks followed with a layup for a 70-50 lead with four minutes remaining.
The Hawkeyes made 21 of 23 free throws, with Banks going 9 for 9 and Stirtz making 10 of 11.
Tayton Conerway scored 16 and Sam Alexis 13 for Indiana (12-6, 3-4). The Hoosiers’ Lamar Wilkerson, who was leading the Big Ten with 26.0 points per game in conference play, was held to nine points on 3-for-10 shooting.
The Hawkeyes have won six of the last seven meetings between the longtime Big Ten rivals.
On Wednesday, Banks pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct in a deal with prosecutors that included a dismissal of his public intoxication charge related to a bar fight last October.
The matchup featured the previous two coaches at Drake — Iowa’s Ben McCollum and Indiana’s Darian DeVries.
Up next
Iowa: The Hawkeyes return home to play Rutgers on Tuesday.
Indiana: The Hoosiers play at Michigan on Tuesday.
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