Minnesota halts Iowa's win streak in Big Ten rivalry

Dawson Garcia scored 20 points and grabbed six rebounds and Minnesota escaped with a 72-67 win over Iowa in a Big Ten Conference matchup Tuesday night in Iowa City.

Femi Odukale added 18 points and eight rebounds for Minnesota (10-9, 2-6), which has won back-to-back conference games after dropping its first six. Mike Mitchell Jr. and Frank Mitchell finished with eight points apiece.

Payton Sandfort scored 21 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for Iowa (12-7, 3-5), which lost its third in a row. Owen Freeman also scored 21 points and Seydou Traore finished with 11.

Minnesota beat Iowa on the road for the first time since 2015. The Hawkeyes had won the teams' previous six matchups.

Garcia refused to let the losing streak continue. He made a layup off an Odukale feed to put Minnesota on top 61-46 with 6:59 to go, then followed up with a pair of free throws.

Iowa scored the next six points to pull within 63-52 with 5:05 to play. Brock Harding made a dunk to finish the run, which prompted a timeout by Golden Gophers coach Ben Johnson.

The Hawkeyes used a 9-0 run to pull within 67-63 with 1:20 remaining. Payton Sandfort and Freeman each hit a layup, Harding drained a 3-pointer and Freeman sank another layup during the run.

Odukale and Frank Mitchell made two free throws apiece in the final minute to help Minnesota stave off Iowa's comeback attempt.

Minnesota led 32-28 at the half.

The Golden Gophers seized a 21-10 lead in the first 11-plus minutes. Trey Edmonds made a jump shot, Garcia drilled a 3-pointer and Frank Mitchell hit a jump shot to finish off the early scoring binge.

Iowa scored 18 of the final 29 points of the first half to pull within four.

The game was delayed in the second half after a male cheerleader for Iowa was injured while performing during a timeout. Medical personnel responded quickly to the injured student, who was stabilized and taken off the court on a stretcher.

--Field Level Media