Ohio State Gets Big Win vs. Iowa
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IOWA CITY, Iowa No. 7 Ohio State spent part of its time before its game at No. 8 Iowa stuck in the snow.
A blizzard that shut down several highways in the state hit as the Buckeyes were heading to the arena for a late-morning shootaround, and when the team left to head back to its hotel, the bus couldn't get up the hill outside of the arena.
"We had to call the plow people to come in and plow for us," Ohio State guard Duane Washington Jr. said. "It was just kind of a wrench in the road that was going to make us go even harder."
The Buckeyes found themselves stuck offensively for a stretch in the second half against the Hawkeyes. But they found another gear, rallying from an 11-point deficit to beat Iowa 89-85 on Thursday night.
Washington, E.J. Liddell, and Kyle Young each had 16 points as the Buckeyes (15-4, 9-4 Big Ten) moved into a tie for second place in the Big Ten with Illinois, one game behind Michigan.
The Buckeyes scored 38 points in the final 14:29, but it was that 45-minute wait in the snow that Washington said might have made the difference.
"We talked about who the top 10 shooting guards were in the NBA," Washington said. "And it was a great conversation. I think we built up that animosity for the game."
"They had a good time with it," Ohio State coach Chris Holtmann said. "Duane leads the charge there in the back of the bus with those kinds of discussions.
"I think, maybe, this group has a really special way about them. Perhaps in some ways that galvanized us."
The Buckeyes needed something when Iowa went up 61-50, and they responded with a 17-5 run to take the lead.
Ohio State held Iowa to one field goal over the final 4:16. The Buckeyes were the ones with the big shots.
Justin Ahrens had three 3-pointers in a span of two minutes late in the game after going scoreless to that point, his last one coming at the 2:39 mark to put Ohio State up 88-81.
The Buckeyes held Iowa's Luka Garza, the nation's leading scorer at 26.5 points per game, to 16 points. Garza had five second-half points, making 2 of 8 shots.
Jack Nunge and Jordan Bohannon each scored 18 points for Iowa (13-5, 7-4). Joe Wieskamp had 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Justice Sueing had 12 points and 11 rebounds for the Buckeyes.
The game featured 18 lead changes and five ties.
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Cincinnati 63, Temple 60
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Utah 73, Arizona 58
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Rutgers 76, Minnesota 72
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