Iowa uses balanced scoring, sharp shooting to down Rutgers

Payton Sandfort scored a season-high 24 points, Ben Krikke had 19 points and 10 rebounds and Iowa got its first conference win of the season, 86-77 over visiting Rutgers, on Saturday in Iowa City.

Iowa (9-6, 1-3 Big Ten) also received 15 points from Owen Freeman and Tony Perkins. The Hawkeyes shot 53.6 percent from the field in the second half to pull away.

Iowa shot 46 percent overall and 50 percent (7 of 14) on 3-pointers while holding Rutgers to 39.4 percent overall and 31.6 percent from long range, respectively.

Mawot Mag carried the Scarlet Knights (8-6, 0-3) with career highs of 24 points and 10 rebounds. Austin Williams scored 14 points and Jamichael Davis had 10.

Iowa rattled off 11 straight points early in the game to capitalize on Rutgers' slow start. The Scarlet Knights opened 1-for-15 from the floor and didn't make their second field goal till 8 1/2 minutes in.

Seven players scored for Iowa in the first half, including 10 points apiece from Sandfort and Krikke. The Hawkeyes led by as many as 16 points before Rutgers went on a late 11-2 surge. Mag knocked down a 3-pointer with 22 seconds left before beating the buzzer with another to cut the halftime deficit to 41-34.

That gave Mag 13 points at the half to lead all scorers.

Sandfort poured in eight points, including two 3-pointers, early in the second half for a 51-38 Iowa lead. Mag had a 3-pointer and a fastbreak dunk 14 seconds apart to respond.

But the Hawkeyes were too much, and they led by eight to 14 points most of the rest of the way. Freeman hit layups through contact twice in a short span, and his dunk made it 70-59 with 8:42 left.

A 7-0 run pushed Iowa's advantage to 80-63, and the Hawkeyes led by 18 before Rutgers made the final score more respectable.

—Field Level Media