Big Ten Daily (Feb. 5): Iowa's Freefall Continues With Home Loss to Ohio State

The No. 8 Iowa Hawkeyes have now lost three of their last four games – including two at home – after losing 89-85 to No. 7 Ohio State in an entertaining top-10 showdown.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – A Big Ten showdown between top-8 teams doesn't happen very often, but the Ohio State-Iowa showdown on Thursday absolutely lived up to the hype.

No. 7 Ohio State made 14 three-pointers and erased a 11-point second half deficit for a thrilling 89-85 victory over the Hawkeyes. That's three losses in four games now for Iowa, including two at home. That other loss was to Indiana on Jan. 21, where the Hawkeyes blew an nine-point lead

Iowa's next game is with Indiana on Sunday afternoon in Bloomington, 

Iowa played well itself, making 14 threes of their own, but the Hawkeyes just couldn't make a stop down the stretch in a game that had 18 lead changes. 

"I’m sure that was a fun game to watch," coach Chris Holtmann said. "It was a fun game to be a part of. Not as much when we were down 11, but we have an incredibly resilient bunch, as much as any group I’ve coached.

"They are perhaps the best offensive team I've ever coached against.'' 

It was something of a historic night in chilly Iowa City. It was the first top-10 showdown between these teams since undefeated and No. 1-ranked Ohio State beat No. 9 Iowa 62-61 in Iowa on February 18, 1961. Bob Knight played in that game for the Buckeyes. He didn't score, and the stat sheet had him for one rebound and one missed free throw.

And how's this for an even rivalry? The teams entered the night with the all-time series tied at 81.

Ohio State has the edge now after winning Thursday, its fourth straight this season and seven of its last eight. Ohio State now has five wins against ranked teams this season, most in the country, and four of those have come on the road.

No. 8 Iowa (13-5 overall and 7-4 in the Big Ten) got a season-low 16 points from All-American center Luka Garza, and he had only two baskets in the second half. Senior guard Jordan Bohannon and Jack Nunge, a sophomore from Newburgh, Ind., each had 18 points 

Ninth-ranked Ohio State (15-4, and 9-4 in the Big Ten) made 8-of-17 three-pointers in the second half, including three in a row late that turned the tide. Justin Ahrens  connected on three triples in the final five minutes and Duane Washington drilled back-to-back three-pointers during the early second-half comeback.

Four Buckeyes finished in double-figures, led by E.J. Liddell, ,Kyle Young and Washington, who all finished with 16 points. Justice Sueing had a double-double with 12 points and 11 rebounds. 

"My team, I love my team, man," Washington said. "I love them to death. This journey has been so great. I can’t express it enough, how much they mean to me and how much we’ve grown together a unit."

It was a tough loss to swallow for Iowa coach Fran McCaffrey.

“We did some good things, we played a good team, but we have to do better in crunch time,” he said.

The teams meet again in Columbus on Feb. 28.

Rutgers beats Minnesota for 4th straight win

Rutgers has been red hot lately, and that continued Thursday night when the Scarlet Knights held off Minnesota 76-72 in Piscataway, N.J. It was their fourth straight win, the first time they've ever done that since joining the Big Ten in 2014.

There were nine lead changes in the final five minutes, and 22 in the game. Geo Baker's jumper put Rutgers ahead 73-72 at 1:01, and Ron Harper Jr. made 3-of-4 free throws in the final minute to seal with victory.

Rutgers (11-6 overall and 7-7 in the Big Ten) has been playing great since Baker became the primary ballhandler. He led the Scarlet Knights with 16 points, and Myles Johnson and Caleb McConnell added 14. 

Minnesota (11-7, and 4-7 in the Big Ten) has now lost all six Big Ten road games this season. 

Weekend hoops schedule

Here's what to look forward to the rest of the weekend on  the Big Ten:

Friday

• Maryland at Penn State, 7 p.m. ET (TV: FOX Sports 1)

Saturday

• Wisconsin at Illinois, 2:30 p.m. ET  (TV: FOX)
• Northwestern at Purdue, 4:30 p.m. ET (TV: Big Ten Network)
• Nebraska at Michigan State, 6:30 p.m. ET TV: Big Ten Network)

Sunday

• Iowa at Indiana, Noon ET (TV: FOX Sports 1)