Garza leads No. 18 to 77-68 win over 16th-ranked Penn State

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Will Luka Garza or Lamar Stevens win the battle of the bigs?

Dalen Cuff looks into what Penn State's Lamar Stevens and Iowa's Luka Garza do well on the court ahead of their matchup on Saturday.

Feb 29, 2020, 08:03 pm

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Luka Garza scored 25 points and had 17 rebounds as No. 18 Iowa pulled away in the second half for a 77-68 win over No. 16 Penn State on Saturday.

Garza extended his streak of 20 or more points against Big Ten teams to 14 games, a new school record. It was Garza's 14th double-double of the season.

He struggled in the first half, going 3 of 16 from the field, but found room to work inside in the second half, making 8 of 12 shots.

It was the 13th consecutive home win for the Hawkeyes (20-9, 11-7 Big Ten).

Iowa used a 13-4 run to take a 35-34 halftime lead. The Hawkeyes then opened the second half with an 18-6 run.

Joe Wieskamp had 13 points for the Hawkeyes. CJ Fredrick returned to the Iowa starting lineup after missing three games with a sprained right ankle, and scored 10 points.

Lamar Stevens led Penn State (21-8, 11-7) with 20 points and 10 rebounds. Seth Lundy had 19 points, 14 in the first half. Myles Dread had 11.

JONES BACK

Penn State guard Myreon Jones, who missed the last six games because of an undisclosed illness, played 19 minutes and scored five points.

BIG PICTURE

Penn State lost for the third time in its last four games after an eight-game winning streak, failing to keep the Nittany Lions in the four-way tie for second place in the Big Ten.

Iowa won for the fourth time in six games, staying in the chase for a double-bye in the Big Ten Tournament.

POLL IMPLICATIONS

The Nittany Lions split their games this week and shouldn't move much in the rankings. It's the same for the Hawkeyes, who lost at Michigan State on Tuesday after leading for most of the game.

UP NEXT

Penn State plays at home against Michigan State on Tuesday.

Iowa plays at home against Purdue on Tuesday.