Iowa defense suffocates Nebraska attacks, knocks off Huskers Tuesday night

Iowa’s stifling defense held the No. 9 ranked Nebraska men’s basketball squad in check, knocking off the Huskers, 57-52, on Tuesday night in Iowa City. The Huskers dropped to 22-4 overall and 11-4 in Big Ten action. Iowa improved to 19-7 and 9-6 in conference games.

The first half was low-scoring between the top two defenses in the Big Ten conference.

Iowa transfer and leading scorer for the Huskers this season Pryce Sandfort scored five points on a layup and corner three. Hawkeye fans didn’t offer Sandfort a warm welcome. They booed him during lineup introductions and every time he touched the ball.

With eight minutes down, NU held a small 12-9 advantage.

But a Big Red scoring drought would follow. Nebraska didn’t make a shot from the floor for more than seven minutes. A handful of free throws kept the visitors in the game before the Huskers got the wheels churning a bit. Braden Frager made two shots near the rim, and Sam Hoiberg swooped in for a smooth reverse layup, giving their team a 21-19 lead.

Iowa quickly struck back.

The Hawkeyes made shots from different spots on the floor during a 14-2 run. Free throws, a layup and threes from Alvaro Folgueiras and leading scorer Bennett Stirtz provided Iowa a 33-23 lead.

Hoiberg quickly responded, driving downhill for a layup with about 40 seconds left in the half. The fast possession gave his team one more shot attempt before halftime. It was junior Cale Jacobsen making a big three at the buzzer to cut the score to 33-28 at the intermission.

One of few weaknesses for NU this season flared up again. The Big Red was outrebounded 19-5 before the break. Sandfort led the Huskers with seven points at the half. Stirtz had 13 points in the first 20 minutes.

Within the first 11 seconds of the second half, Iowa’s Cooper Koch hit a three, pushing the lead to eight. Nebraska answered with a 6-0 run, thanks to a putback shot from Rienk Mast and a fastbreak score from Berke Büyüktuncel. That made it 36-34 Iowa.

Later, Sandfort knocked down a triple to tie the game at 39. A left-handed layup from Rienk Mast gave the Huskers their first lead of the final half. The teams traded baskets to the game tied at 43.

Then, Stirtz took over.

The Southwest Missouri State and Drake transfer poured in seven straight Hawkeye points to lead 50-45 going into the final media with 3:32 remaining. That included a step-back three, which made the Carver-Hawkeye arena crowd erupt.

NU used its second successful coaches’ challenge of the night to convert two Sandfort three throws. That brought the score to 50-47.

With just three seconds remaining on the shot clock, Stirtz drew a shooting foul on a three. He made all of those free throws to claim a 53-47 edge with 36 seconds remaining.

Jamarques Lawrence responded with a clutch three-pointer, cutting the lead to three. The Big Red fouled Cooper Koch who made both of his free throws. 55-50.

Mast couldn’t hit an open three from the left wing. Iowa nabbed the rebound and the win.

Strirtz finished with 25 points. Sandfort was the only Nebraska player in double figure scoring with 13. The Hawkeyes ended the night with a 37-24 advantage in rebounding.

Up next, NU will host Penn State on Saturday.