Iowa, Uthoff bury Western Illinois

IOWA CITY — Iowa forward Jarrod Uthoff inexplicably was left off multiple national top 100 players lists despite earning third-team all-Big Ten honors last winter.

It's tough to predict where Uthoff, a 6-foot-9 senior, might land next spring amid such consideration when this season is complete. But there was no doubt Monday night Uthoff was the best player on the court at Carver-Hawkeye Arena in the Hawkeyes' 90-56 win against Western Illinois.

Uthoff, who finished with a career-high 27 points, flat-out took over the game in a pair of first-half sequences. He scored 11 of Iowa's 13 points when the Hawkeyes stretched their lead from 6-3 to 19-6. In back-to-back possessions, Uthoff first dunked on a fast-break pass from Anthony Clemmons then hit a 3-pointer. He scored inside on Iowa's next trip, then sank two free throws.

Later in the first half, Uthoff hit his customary step-back jumper, then drilled three 3-pointers over four possessions. He followed his own miss with a basket on the ensuing trip. That 13-point run helped Iowa end a 7-0 Western Illinois run and extend the Hawkeyes' lead to 45-26.

'He couldn't miss in the first half,' Iowa point guard Mike Gesell said. 'We expect nothing less from him. He's one of the best shooters in the country, one of the best players in the country. He really showed that the first half tonight.'

Last week Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery said he wanted Uthoff to become more aggressive with his shot selection. But McCaffery was the only person who could cool down Uthoff, who played only six minutes in the second half. Uthoff scored 24 of his 27 points before halftime. He hit 10 of 16 shots, grabbed nine rebounds (eight in the first half) and added an assist.

'I kind of wanted to leave him out there, let him take 25 shots,' McCaffery said. 'But once we got on a little run, got it to 25, I wasn't going to do that. I was going to take him out.'

'(Uthoff was) being very aggressive, and that's what we need,' Gesell said. 'He's our biggest weapon offensively, and he's knocking down shots. He's being very aggressive and that helps the offense get going.'

Uthoff now has scored 20 points in four of Iowa's nine games and averages 18.2 points a game. He ranks third in Big Ten scoring behind Michigan State's Denzel Valentine and Michigan's Caris LeVert.

As for his smooth stroke Monday night, Uthoff downplayed his performance.

'Just made a couple of shots,' he said. 'Some days I may go 0 for 5, some days you go 5 for 5. You can't let that affect you; you still have got to do the other things. You've got to rebound, you've got to play defense, move the ball.

'I had a bunch of open looks. That's got to help a shooter, open looks.'

Dominique Uhl added 15 points and Iowa center Adam Woodbury chipped in with 10. Gesell and Anthony Clemmons added seven and six assists, respectively. Clemmons added nine points. Iowa scored 24 points off Western Illinois' turnovers.

The Hawkeyes (7-2) travel to No. 2 Iowa State at 6:30 p.m. Thursday (ESPN2). Western Illinois, which upset Wisconsin 69-67 in the opener, falls to 6-2 overall.

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