For the eighth straight season the Iowa Hawkeyes won their Big Ten opener. Pierre Pierce had 19 points including 13 of 16 from the foul line as the Hawks downed Purdue 71-61. Foul shooting plagued the Hawks in recent weeks but it was a key in last nights win as they converted 29 of 37 from the charity stripe.Iowa coach Steve Alford says he told them to keep grinding and the free throws would fall, and they finally did. Sophomore guard Jeff Horner played 39-minutes and finished with ten points and ten rebounds. He says Horner did it on a night when he didn’t make jumpshots, yet he still had a productive game. Alford says the same was true for Pierce and Brody Boyd.Alford says the Hawks showed improvement on offense, but he says the staple of the whole thing was still their good defense in holding Purdue to 37-percent shooting.Iowa is now 8-3 and hosts Northwestern this weekend.
