Gophers men’s basketball shocks Iowa 72-67 to pick up second Big Ten win

IOWA CITY – Ben Johnson wondered how his basketball team would respond to a little bit of success after the biggest win in his four years as Gophers coach.

Following last week’s overtime upset against nationally ranked Michigan at home, the Gophers pulled off another shocker Tuesday night with a 72-67 victory against Iowa, the first win at Carver-Hawkeye Arena since 2015.

A 17-point lead in the second half was a good sign Tuesday night. But Minnesota’s 20-point advantage wasn’t good enough to beat the Hawkeyes on the road last season, so Johnson thought there could be another tight finish this year.

“You knew they were going to come hungry,” Johnson said. “We had to match that and then some on the road. I thought our guys’ focus the last two days was at an elite level. It carried over to the game.”

The Gophers (10-9, 2-6 Big Ten) led 63-46 with 6:15 to play, but the Hawkeyes went on a 21-7 run to give their home crowd some life late. Frank Mitchell’s two free throws with 10 seconds left eventually sent the fans home disappointed.

“Frank’s two were huge free throws,” Johnson said. “You’ve got to do that on the road. Guys have to step up. I thought we did a good job of getting into the bonus early. Living at the rim and living in the paint.”

Dawson Garcia was a homegrown hero with his buzzer-beater against the Wolverines last week, and his encore performance was a team-high 20 points Tuesday.

But after Garcia missed two free throws with 25 seconds remaining, the Hawkeyes (12-7, 3-5) had a chance to pull within a point, but Seydou Traore missed the front end of a 1-and-1.

The Gophers led the Big Ten coming into Tuesday with nine games decided by six points or fewer, which included an 89-88 double-overtime loss against Ohio State at home. They also fell 77-71 at Maryland after leading at halftime, but the last two close games ended in their favor.

On Thursday against Michigan, Garcia had to hit two free throws to force overtime with 7.4 seconds left before his miracle shot. Foul shooting again was critical.

Despite being one of the worst free-throw shooting teams in the country at 352nd nationally, the Gophers shot 17-for-24 on Tuesday night.

“Making the free throws in the end meant a lot to me,” said Mitchell, who finished with eight points and six rebounds off the bench. “Coach Ben, the coaching staff and my teammates included gave me confidence day in and day out.”

BOXSCORE: Gophers 72, Iowa 67

Big Ten standings

Femi Odukale, who celebrated his birthday Tuesday, had a season-high 18 points, eight rebounds and four assists for the Gophers, who halted a six-game losing streak against Iowa.

“We just wanted to show our grit,” Odukale said. “I felt like the core we have and our staff makes us really focus on defense. That was our main priority. We didn’t want them to score and make it a track meet.”

The Hawkeyes got 42 points combined from Payton Sandfort and Owen Freeman, including 26 points in the second half. But they weren’t able to generate enough offense late to pull off a comeback against the Gophers. They ranked second in Big Ten games with 84 points per game, but they trailed 32-28 at halftime.

After opening the Big Ten 0-6, the Gophers have a chance to win their third straight game — against No. 15 Oregon on Saturday at Williams Arena.

“They have a toughness and resolve now,” Johnson said. “They knew they were playing good basketball. We just weren’t getting the results. They never wavered. Ever. They just got hardened. They got stronger, and you’re seeing the results now.”