[Highlights] Garza Helps No. 3 Iowa Rout Northern Illinois, 106-53

IOWA CITY, Iowa — – Luka Garza scored 23 points and just missed another double-double as No. 3 Iowa defeated Northern Illinois 106-53 at Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Sunday.

Garza, the nation’s leading scorer who is averaging 29.2 points, 9.0 rebounds, and 2.2 this season, added eight rebounds and shot 8 of 10 from the field, and played 20 minutes in the comfortable victory.

Junior guard Joe Wieskamp added 20 on 9 of 13 shooting to go with four rebounds and two steals and played 19 minutes, while redshirt freshman forward Patrick McCaffery ended with 14 points off the bench for the Hawkeyes (6-0) who stayed undefeated this season.

“You did your job when you’re sitting on the bench for 16 minutes in the second half,” Wieskamp said.

Keegan Murray finished with 10 points, five rebounds, three blocks, and two steals for Iowa, which used a 25-2 first-half run to help secure the victory.

“We have a lot of great players on our team, a lot of players that can score really well,” Murray said. “And that’s something I’m not right now. If I can do the little things on the court, then [coach Fran McCaffery] will build more trust in me.”

Sunday’s defeat means Northern Illinois remains winless from its five games so far this season.

Adong Makuoi had 14 points on 7 of 10 shooting with four rebounds for the Huskies (0-5). Anthony Crump chipped in with 10 points and five boards in the defeats.

Iowa, which is leading the nation in assists per contest this season, at 24.0, added 29 assists on 41 made baskets on Sunday. The Hawkeyes shot 56.2% from the field. They entered Sunday’s game ranked second in the country in scoring at 99.4 points per game. This was the third game Iowa was scoring 100 or more points this campaign.

Northern Illinois shot 34.3% in the loss.

Iowa will now turn its attention to No. 1 Gonzaga on Saturday in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

A day before that, Northern Illinois will entertain Chicago State on Friday.

Box Score –

N. ILLINOIS (0-5)

Kueth 3-7 1-1 7, Makuoi 7-10 0-0 14, Beane 2-11 1-4 5, Crump 5-12 0-2 10, Hankerson 3-9 0-0 8, Thornton 3-11 0-0 6, Okanu 0-2 0-0 0, Cole 1-5 1-2 3, Johnson 0-2 0-0 0, Filippone 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 24-70 3-9 53.

NO. 3 IOWA (6-0)

Garza 8-10 5-7 23, Bohannon 2-5 0-0 6, Fredrick 2/3 0-0 4, C.McCaffery 2-4 0-2 5, Wieskamp 9-13 1/3 20, P.McCaffery 4-9 4-4 14, Toussaint 2-4 2-2 6, Ke.Murray 4-5 0-0 10, Nunge 2-6 0-0 4, Ulis 2-4 0-0 4, Perkins 2-6 0-0 4, Ash 2/3 0-0 6, Kr.Murray 0-0 0-0 0, Ogundele 0-0 0-0 0, Baer 0-0 0-0 0, Hobbs 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 41-73 12-18 106.

Halftime–Iowa 51-27. 3-Point Goals–N. Illinois 2-15 (Hankerson 2-7, Cole 0-1, Crump 0-1, Thornton 0-1, Beane 0-2, Kueth 0-3), Iowa 12-30 (Ash 2-2, Garza 2-3, Ke.Murray 2-3, Bohannon 2-5, P.McCaffery 2-5, C.McCaffery 1-3, Wieskamp 1-4, Hobbs 0-1, Perkins 0-1, Ulis 0-1, Nunge 0-2). Rebounds–N. Illinois 37 (Hankerson 7), Iowa 44 (Garza, Nunge 8). Assists–N. Illinois 10 (Thornton 3), Iowa 29 (C.McCaffery 7). Total Fouls–N. Illinois 17, Iowa 9. A–546 (15,500).