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Another one bites the dust.
Iowa became the seventh B1G team to be eliminated from the 2021 NCAA Tournament, getting blown out 95-80 by Oregon in the second round. The Hawkeyes were one of four teams from the conference to earn either a No. 1 or No. 2 seed in this year’s March Madness field.
Luka Garza scored 36 points and grabbed 9 rebounds in his final game as a Hawkeye, but it wasn’t nearly enough. The only other starter for Iowa to score was Joe Wieskamp, who ended the contest with 17 points.
The Hawkeyes did get contributions off the bench, led by Patrick McCaffery with 10 points and Keegan Murray with 6. Joe Toussaint and Tony Perkins each chipped in 5, as well.
Oregon had an incredibly balanced attack, with Chris Duarte scoring 23 points and LJ Figueroa adding 21. Will Richardson scored 19 point and Eugene Omoruyi added 17 points. The only starter not to reach double figures was Eric Williams Jr., coming up one basket shy with 9 points.
The Ducks shot an impressive 55.9% from the floor and had 25 assists on their 38 makes. They were also 11-of-25 from deep and 8-of-11 from the free throw line. Iowa made just 8-of-25 shots from 3-points range and finished the game with a 45.6% field goal percentage.
Iowa’s season ends with a 22-8 record.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB