Hawkeyes slam Hoosiers, wins 5th straight

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. ­- Everyone stares at the big picture, but Iowa's players and coaches see the smallest image.

People view the five consecutive wins, counting Tuesday night's 77-63 stomping of Indiana, and they look at each victory individually. There's three straight 20-win seasons, six Big Ten road wins and 11 league victories. Instead, Iowa magnifies the possessions and togetherness that made it possible.

It's cliche for coaches and players to talk about team-first success, but Iowa embodies it. They live it. They embrace it.

'I just think we're dedicated to each other,” Iowa senior Aaron White said. 'Dedicated to winning. I just love that saying. I love that feeling about us. I think we're dedicated to each other. We play together, we play for one another - coaches down to the players. That's the highest compliment you can have for a team, and I've got some great teammates.”

In its domination of a likely NCAA tournament squad, nearly every Iowa player came up with a crucial play to answer an Indiana score or prevent one. Gabe Olaseni missed three makable shots in the first half, but he entered the second half focused. He registered a dunk as part of an 8-0 run, scored inside on a pass from Anthony Clemmons and then knocked down a jumper. Then in a pivotal sequence, Olaseni rejected Indiana's James Blackmon, then ran the floor and slammed down a White miss. Olaseni produced eight of Iowa's first 16 points of the second half.

Clemmons played 26 minutes, in part because of foul trouble by Mike Gesell. Clemmons scored 10 points, including perhaps the most impactful basket of the game. Indiana's Nick Zeisloft hit a 3-pointer to bring the Hoosiers within five points at 48-43. Two possessions later, Clemmons countered with his own 3-pointer to put Iowa back ahead by eight points.

Iowa sophomore Peter Jok had five first-half turnovers. Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery stuck with him, and Jok hit two 3-pointers in a three-possession span to put Iowa up 59-48.

As Indiana made its final push, Iowa junior Jarrod Uthoff grabbed the offensive rebound on a White miss, scored and was fouled. He converted the three-point opportunity to put the Hawkeyes back up 13 with 3:33 left in the game.

'It was a bunch of different guys,” White said. 'Sapp (Clemmons) hits the 3, JU had the offensive rebound and-one. Gabe had the tip dunk. There were multiple guys stepping up at key parts of the game. So that's hard to guard against. They kind of doubled me in the post there and put up a shot and JU rebounded it. It's just stuff like that, we've got guys who are making the small plays you have to do to win.”

White scored 21 points, his third consecutive 20-point outing. Uthoff added 14 with six rebounds, three blocks, three steals and no turnovers. Olaseni scored 13 with eight rebounds and two blocks.

Iowa (20-10, 11-6 Big Ten) has won five straight Big Ten games for the first time since 1996-97. It's the most league wins for the program since 2005-06 and the Hawkeyes' 6-3 road record in league plays is their best since 1986-87.

That's all well and good. But this team is about making memories, and they're making them together.

'I've had a lot of teams over the years and this team is together,” McCaffery said. 'They're incredibly unselfish, they truly love one another and there's no better feeling as a coach than when you have a team like that.”

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Iowa won its fifth straight Big Ten game for the first time since 1996-97 with a 77-63 win at Indiana last night at Assembly Hall.

The Hawkeyes (20-10, 11-6 Big Ten) answered every big shot by the Hoosiers (19-11, 9-8) throughout the second half to earn its first 11-win league campaign since 2005-06. The Hawkeyes finished 6-3 in Big Ten road games, their best record since a 7-2 mark in 1986-87. It also would mark its third straight 20-win season. The last time that happened was in Tom Davis' final three years (1996-7 through 1998-1999).

In the game's biggest play, Indiana's Nick Zeisloft hit a 3-pointer to cut the Hoosiers' deficit to 58-53 with 11:16 left. Iowa point guard Anthony Clemmons countered two possessions later with a 3-pointer that pushed the Hawkeyes up eight points. The teams matched scores on their next two trips, then Iowa's Peter Jok buried a 3-pointer and Jarrod Uthoff followed with a jumper to push Iowa ahead 61-48 with 6:01 left.

Iowa's Aaron White scored 21 points, while Uthoff added 14. Gabe Olaseni scored 13.

Indiana led by four points three different times in the first half. Iowa crept within two points at 19-17 on a Mike Gesell jumper. On Indiana's next possession, Robert Johnson missed a 3-pointer, and Troy Williams followed with a monstrous, one-handed slam that was negated by a Hanner Mosquera-Perra offensive foul.

Uthoff hit two free throws on Iowa's next possession to knot the score at 19-19. After an Indiana free throw, Iowa center Adam Woodbury scored on back-to-back trips to push Iowa ahead 23-20. The Hoosiers scored the next four points to retake the lead before Olaseni put Iowa back in the lead with a layup.

Three trips later, Peter Jok missed the front end of a one-and-one. White corralled the rebound and Uthoff drilled a 3-pointer to put Iowa up four. The teams traded free throws before White scored on a goaltending call to put Iowa up 32-26. Johnson hit a jumper at the buzzer to bring the Hoosiers within four.

Iowa opened the second half strong. After Indiana's James Blackmon opened the half with a 3-pointer, the Hawkeyes went on an 8-0 run to go up 40-31. Woodbury, Olaseni and White scored on the run, prompting an Indiana timeout. The Hoosiers answered with an Emmitt Holt layup, but Iowa's Josh Oglesby converted a lob pass to White for the slam to keep the lead at nine.

Iowa had lost three straight at Assembly Hall entering Tuesday night.

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