Iowa men no longer road kill

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter breezed outside his players' locker room where sophomore Aaron Fuller was speaking with reporters.

Armed with a huge smile, Lickliter interrupted Fuller in mid-sentence, saying “I thought you were to talk about me?” Fuller humored his coach with faint praise, but the reaction was genuine from both parties.

The Hawkeyes (8-12, 2-5 Big Ten) ended a school-record 15-game road losing streak with a 58-43 win at Indiana last night. The win also blew up an 11-game road Big Ten road losing streak and gave the Hawkeyes their third win in their last four games.

“It's going to be fun traveling home after a win and being a little more happy rather than down,” Iowa sophomore Matt Gatens said. “It feels good. It's a huge confidence booster, and it's great to see us go on the road and finish a game off.”

Statistically it was a surprising win for Iowa, which maybe makes the victory even sweeter. Iowa had 21 turnovers, tied for its second-most this season. Iowa hit only five 3-pointers of a season-low 14 attempts and was outscored 10-0 on fast breaks. But Iowa was able to pound the ball inside, outscoring Indiana 34-16 in the paint and holding Indiana without a 3-pointer for the first time since 2001.

“If you would have told me we would have 21 turnovers and win, I wouldn't have believed you,” Lickliter said. “Twenty-one turnovers? That's like three games worth right there.”

Iowa also weathered a jolting 11-0 Indiana run in the first half. The Hawkeyes kept their composure and finished the first half on a 12-2 run to take a nine-point lead at halftime.

“It's pretty incredible,” Gatens said. “We didn't think we were playing that well and we looked at the scoreboard and we were up by like eight points. We just needed to calm down, stay patient and take care of the ball.”

Iowa's second-half surge consisted of three consecutive scoring possessions after Indiana cut the Hawkeyes' lead to 33-31. Fuller hit one of two free throws, then on Indiana's next possession, freshman post Brennan Cougill pulled down a rebound. On offense, Cougill set a screen, slid over and then hit a 3-pointer. He did the same thing on Iowa's next possession to put the Hawkeyes ahead by nine points at 40-31.

“Coach (LaVall Jordan) was talking to me and he said Indiana struggles with the screen and pop,” Cougill said. “So if I was to set good ones, I should be wide open. John (Lickliter) found me on both of them, and I was able to hit them.”

Iowa did most of its damage on the boards, out-rebounding Indiana 39-23. Jarryd Cole, who posted a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds, had eight offensive rebounds. Indiana had only 10 the entire game.

Iowa also held Indiana to its fewest point total against the Hawkeyes in Bloomington since Feb. 10, 1945 in a 45-40 Iowa win.

With the superlatives flowing as frequently as Iowa's wide-open smiles, it's no wonder Lickliter declined to acknowledge the end of his team's road woes.

“I didn't know that,” Lickliter said. “I pay no attention to any of those things.”

Now, he doesn't have to.