INDIANAPOLIS — Keegan Murray scored 26 points, Jordan Bohannon had 17 and No. 24 Iowa beat Northwestern 112-76 in Thursday’s Big Ten Tournament quarterfinals.
Murray was 11 of 16 from the field and also had eight rebounds as the Hawkeyes (23-9) delivered a historic performance in coach Fran McCaffery’s 400th game. They broke single-game tourney records for points, field goals (43) and 3-point baskets (19).
Maryland set the previous scoring record of 97 points in March 2016. Ohio State made 37 field goals in March 2012, and Illinois twice made 14 3s in tourney games in 2016 and 2018.
The Wildcats (15-16) were led by Ryan Young with 14 points and Boo Buie with 12.
But this one was never close.
Iowa opened the game on a 17-4 run, extended the margin to 50-26 late in the first half and headed to the locker room with a 64-31 cushion.
Northwestern couldn’t get closer than 26 in the second half — until Iowa pulled its final starters with 7 1/2 minutes to play — and failed to reach the Big Ten quarterfinals for the fifth consecutive year.
Iowa has won nine of its last 11, and 20 of its 23 wins have come by double digits.
BIG PICTURE
Northwestern: The Wildcats seem like they are running in place as a program. With three senior starters unlikely to return next season, coach Chris Collins has plenty of work to do.
Iowa: The Hawkeyes have done more than enough to get into the NCAA Tournament. If they want to improve their seeding, though, a deep run in Indianapolis would help. McCaffery’s squad made a strong statement Thursday.
POLL IMPLICATIONS
A win over the Big Ten’s No. 12 seed won’t do much to strengthen Iowa’s résumé or its hold on a spot in the Top 25. Reaching Saturday’s semifinals might.
STAT PACK
Northwestern: Pete Nance scored 11 points and Robbie Beran had 10. ... The Wildcats were outrebounded 45-18. ... Northwestern had won its previous two and three of its last five
Iowa: Bohannon moved within eight points of hitting the 2,000-point mark after making five 3s. ... Payton Sandfort had 13 points while Filip Rebraca collected 10 points and nine rebounds. ... Connor McCaffery also finished with 10 points.
UP NEXT
Northwestern: The Wildcats face a long offseason to contemplate how to right the program.
Iowa: The Hawkeyes take on unranked Rutgers in Friday’s second quarterfinal game.
