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Christmas surprise: Minnesota stuns No. 4 Iowa with upset victory
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Minnesota received one final Christmas gift to close out the holiday on Friday night.
The Golden Gophers used a 30-point performance from Marcus Carr and got 26 points from Brandon Johnson off the bench to hand No. 4 Iowa its second loss of the season. Minnesota defeated the Hawkeyes 102-95 in overtime on Christmas to improve to 8-1 on the year.
Iowa dropped to 7-2 on the season
Minnesota took 43 shots from behind the 3-point line and converted on 17, testing the Iowa defense. That ended up being the difference in the game, considering Iowa was better in nearly every other statistical category.
Iowa made 27 free throws compared to Minnesota’s 25 and the Hawkeyes outrebounded the Golden Gophers 55-38, including a 27-11 advantage on the offensive glass. The Gophers also had 8 turnovers while the Hawkeyes had 7.
Along with his 30-point night, Carr also dished out 8 assists in the win, and Johnson was one rebound shy of a double-double, getting 9 rebounds.
Iowa star Luka Garza had another big night, scoring 32 points and grabbing 17 boards in the loss. CJ Fredrick scored 23 and Joe Wieskamp had 14 points and 9 rebounds in the contest.
Both Minnesota and Iowa now sit at 1-1 in B1G play after Friday’s game. The Gophers will take on Michigan State on Monday while Iowa has a matchup against Northwestern on Tuesday.
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