The Iowa Hawkeyes finally got the big road win that eluded them during the regular season. Roy Devyn Marble scored 24 points as the Hawkeyes took command in the second half in a 75-64 victory at Virginia in the quarterfinal round of the NIT. The victory snapped the Cavaliers 19 game home court winning streak.
“Obviously we needed to have a signature road win, we’ve come so close so many different times, Purdue, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota. We did get a close one at Penn State and a close one at Ohio State, so to go on the road and beat a team with that kind of winning streak,that has already put up 23 wins, undefeated in the ACC, is a great statement,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said.
The Hawkeyes connected on 49 percent from the field, made 8 of 17 from three point range and was a perfect 15 of 15 at the line. McCaffery says he wanted the team to make a statement about their abilities on the road and for it to be an example of how they have grown.
The Hawkeyes advance to next Tuesday night’s NIT semifinal against Maryland. “It’ll be a phenomenal experience for these kids, an opportunity to win a championship in the greatest arena in all of sports,” he says. McCaffery says some of the players have never been to New York, so it will be a great trip.
Iowa got a big lift from freshman center Adam Woodbury who finished with 10 points and eight rebounds. Woodbury says it has been a learning experience all year and it was great to see some of it pay off.
Iowa is 24-12.