Iowa Tops North Florida, 103-78

IOWA CITY, Iowa – The University of Iowa men’s basketball team defeated North Florida, 103-78, on Wednesday night on Mediacom Court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Hawkeyes improved to 5-2 on the season.

Freshman Owen Freeman provided a spark for the Hawkeyes off the bench. Freeman poured in 16 points and finished the game with five blocks, including three on one possession. Freeman is averaging 1.7 blocks per game.

Despite Iowa leading for the majority of the first half, North Florida was able to take a two-point lead with eight minutes to go in the half. The Hawkeyes responded with a 12-0 run to gain a 10-point advantage. At halftime, Iowa led North Florida, 47-43.

A Patrick McCaffery 3-pointer gave the Hawkeyes the lead back with 17 minutes to go in the game. The Hawkeyes would never look back and led for the rest of the game. McCaffery finished as the team’s third leading scorer with 16 points, including connecting on 2-of-2 from deep.

Senior Tony Perkins came out hot to start the game. Perkins made his first five field goal attempts, including his first two attempts from behind the arc. Perkins and Ben Krikke each finished the contest with a team-leading 21 points. Krikke has tallied double figures in every game this season.

HEAR FROM HEAD COACH FRAN MCCAFFERY

“To be truthful I think it should be an expectation (treating the players like family). That’s what we discuss in the recruiting process. We tell them we are going to treat them like family. We tell them that we are going to take care of them.”

“[North Florida] plays a unique style. I was really impressed with Matt’s team. They’ve got quickness and drivers, but they are going to shoot somewhere between 30 to 40 threes every game. So over 50 percent of the shots they take are 3s. That is obviously going to stretch the defense.”

HAWKEYE NOTABLES

• North Florida erased a four-point halftime lead and led twice in the second half (50-49, 52-51) with 16:50 left before the Hawkeyes used a 29-9 run over a 7:23 stretch to build an 80-61 lead.
• Iowa hit the century mark for the second time this season, finishing with 103 points.
• The Hawkeyes improved to 4-0 at home this season.
• Iowa had five players reach double figures – Tony Perkins (21), Ben Krikke (21), Owen Freeman (16), Patrick McCaffery (16) and Payton Sandfort (10)
  • It is the second time this season five players have reached double digits; Iowa has had four or more players score 10+ in six of seven games.
• Krikke finished with 21 points with 17 coming in the second half.  He finished 5-of-9 from the field and went 11-of-11 from the free throw line.
  • It is his team-best third game this season with 20 or more points.
  • He is the first Hawkeye since Jordan Bohannon in 2019 vs. Nebraska to make all of his free throws (10 or more attempts).
  • He is the only Hawkeye to reach double digits in every game this season.
• Perkins scored 14 of his 21 points in the first half as he finished with a season-high 21 points.  He made 8-of-10 field goals and two 3-pointers in the game.
  • Perkins is the fourth Hawkeye to reach 20 points in a game this season (six total games).
• Freeman scored a career-high 16 points on 6-of-8 shooting to go along with five rebounds, five blocks and three steals. 
  • The forward scored 12 points (5-of-7 FG) in the first half in 11 minutes.
  • Freeman’s five blocks are a career high and he had three in a single second-half possession.  
  • They are the most blocks by a Hawkeye since Keegan Murray against Longwood in 2021.
• Iowa shot 54.8 percent from the floor in the first half, making 17-of-31 field goals, and 63.3 percent (19-of-30) in the second half. 
  • The team has shot 50 percent or better in four straight halves.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes return to action Monday, traveling to West Lafayette, Indiana, for their Big Ten opener at No. 1 Purdue. Game time is set for 6 p.m. (CT) and the game will be televised on BTN.