Iowa rallies from 10-point deficit, beats Minnesota

IOWA CITY - After trailing by 10 points midway through the second half, Iowa rallied in a pressure-packed final few minutes to beat Minnesota 63-59 Wednesday night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

The Hawkeyes (12-11, 4-6 Big Ten) rallied from five points down with 3:22 left in the game to score the game's final nine points.

Devyn Marble drilled a 3-pointer with 2:26 left to cut Iowa's deficit to 59-57. One possession later Marble dunked on Minnesota's Ralph Sampson III to tie the game.

Then Iowa senior Bryce Cartwright got into the act. On defense he helped strip Sampson III near the basket, then ran down the court and was fouled. Cartwright hit both free throws to give Iowa the lead at 61-59.

Minnesota's Julian Welch, who scored 12 points, then missed a jumper with 49 seconds left. Iowa ran down the clock and Marble found Matt Gatens near the basket. Gatens scored a layup with 8 seconds left to push the lead to its final score.

Gatens led Iowa with 18 points, while Marble added 12. Minnesota falls to 16-7, 4-6 Big Ten.

Here's the first-half account:

Iowa led by12 points midway through the first half but drifted into an offensive funk, allowing Minnesota to rally and take a 27-24 lead tonight at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Iowa led 17-5 with 9:43 left in the first half, but Minnesota (16-6, 4-5) got back into the game in a hurry. The Gophers scored three points on four of their next six possessions. Ralph Sampson III scored inside and was fouled by Josh Oglesby. Sampson III then converted the free throw to cut Minnesota's deficit to 17-8.

After a Zach McCabe free throw boosted Iowa's lead to 10, Julian Welch hit a basket and a free throw. One possession later Austin Hollins drilled a 3-pointer to cut Minnesota's deficit to 18-14.

Iowa (11-11, 3-6 Big Ten) stayed in front for most of the half, with Melsahn Basabe scoring the Hawkeyes' last two buckets to give Iowa a 24-21 lead. But one possession later Rodney Williams drilled a 3-pointer to tie the game. Andre Hollins hit a 3-pointer with 1:08 left to give Minnesota the halftime margin.

Both teams failed to take care of the basketball effectively. Minnesota had 12 turnovers, while Iowa had nine.

Williams and Sampson III each had seven points for the Gophers. Basabe led Iowa with six.

MINNESOTA (16-7)

Williams 3-7 2-4 9, Sampson III 5-10 3-3 13, Welch 4-8 1-1 12, Coleman 0-2 0-0 0, Au. Hollins 3-11 2-2 11, An. Hollins 2-5 0-0 5, Osenieks 1-2 0-1 3, Ahanmisi 0-0 1-3 1, Armelin 2-4 0-0 5, Eliason 0-2 0-0 0. Totals 20-51 9-14 59.<

IOWA (12-11)

McCabe 2-5 3-4 8, White 2-7 5-7 9, Marble 5-9 1-1 12, Gatens 7-14 2-4 18, Cartwright 2-9 2-4 6, Olaseni 0-0 0-0 0, Basabe 3-7 2-4 8, Oglesby 0-5 2-2 2, Archie 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-56 17-26 63.<

Halftime_Minnesota 27-24. 3-Point Goals_Minnesota 10-19 (Welch 3-5, Au. Hollins 3-9, Armelin 1-1, Osenieks 1-1, Williams 1-1, An. Hollins 1-2), Iowa 4-14 (Gatens 2-6, Marble 1-2, McCabe 1-2, White 0-1, Cartwright 0-1, Oglesby 0-2). Fouled Out_None. Rebounds_Minnesota 35 (Coleman, Eliason 6), Iowa 39 (McCabe 10). Assists_Minnesota 17 (Welch 6), Iowa 13 (Cartwright, McCabe 4). Total Fouls_Minnesota 18, Iowa 13. A_11,232.