Iowa Basketball Knocks Off Badgers

Hawkeyes Top No. 20 Wisconsin in Overtime Saturday

Patrick McCaffery, shower philosopher, apparently delivered the perfect assessment of Iowa’s 88-86 overtime win over No. 20 Wisconsin on Saturday at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

“We needed it,” freshman center Owen Freeman said. “Patrick said it’s like falling out of a plane and needing a parachute. It’s like that. We needed it.”

Someone asked Freeman where McCaffery said that.

“In the shower,” Freeman said.

So, it had to be a topic when Iowa coach Fran McCaffery came into his post-game press conference.

His son’s theory was mentioned, and McCaffery had to smile.

“I’m a little confused on that,” he said.

Then McCaffery thought about it.

“We all know Patrick is a goofball,” he said, smiling.

The Hawkeyes could laugh, because they had salvaged a win in a game that could have easily gotten away. They let a nine-point second-half lead get away and then forced overtime, then won the game on Tony Perkins’ layup with 1.3 seconds left.

Iowa (15-11 overall, 7-8 Big Ten) is scrambling to build a postseason resumé to go somewhere, and beating the Badgers (17-9, 9-6) certainly helps.

But with five conference games and at least one Big Ten Tournament game left on the schedule, one win has to be the start of something more.

“We know we need to get hot,” said Freeman, who led the Hawkeyes with 20 points and 12 rebounds.

Perkins hit the winning shot after Wisconsin’s Max Klesmit missed a 3-pointer with 15 seconds left in the overtime.

Out of a timeout, the ball went to Perkins, who drove the right side of the lane. Wisconsin’s Chucky Hepburn went for the steal and the ball came loose. But Perkins recovered for the layup and the lead.

And when Payton Sandfort intercepted Carter Gilmore’s inbounds pass after a Wisconsin timeout, the Hawkeyes could celebrate.

Perkins had 18 points, but 16 of those came in the second half and in overtime.

It’s why, he said, he came into the locker room at halftime and said, “That’s on me.”

“My teammates believed in me, my coaches believed in me,” he said.

That was certainly evident after the game.

“Man, I love Tony Perkins,” Freeman said. “You get the ball in his hands, and then he does Tony Perkins things.”

“Tony took over the second half,” Fran McCaffery said. “That’s who he is.”

Later, McCaffery would expand on the definition.

“You know what?” McCaffery said, recalling Perkins’ halftime reaction. “He said that’s on me. That’s character.”

Iowa had four players score in double figures — Freeman, Perkins, Sandfort with 18, and Josh Dix with 17.

“That’s the riddle we couldn’t solve today,” Wisconsin coach Greg Gard said when asked how to guard a team with so many scorers. “They’re good offensively. They share the ball well.”

Wisconsin opened the game by outscoring the Hawkeyes 17-6 in the first four minutes. The Badgers made 12 of their first 15 shots, building a 13-point lead before Iowa started to come back. Then the Hawkeyes made seven of their last nine shots of the half, getting to within 47-43 at halftime.

Iowa led by as much as nine points in the second half, but a drought of more than six minutes without a field goal let the Badgers carve away at the lead. It’s been a trend for the Hawkeyes that McCaffery would like to see change.

“It seems like we’re either up or down,” he said. “It would be nice if we could get a lead and keep it.”

The same could be said for the Hawkeyes’ season, and they need more ups than downs.

Still, this was a win they needed — a safe landing, if you will.

Just like a parachute.