Murray's double-double leads Iowa past Western Illinois

Dec 30, 2021, 03:22 am

IOWA CITY, Iowa -- — Keegan Murray had 29 points and 10 rebounds and Iowa defeated Western Illinois 92-71 on Wednesday night.

Murray, the national scoring leader at 23.2 points per game, made 13 of 20 shots, with one 3-pointer and a pair of free throws. Jordan Bohannon and Payton Sandfort scored 13 points apiece and Patrick McCaffery added 11. Iowa (10-3) shot 54% and had a 41-31 rebounding advantage.

Trenton Massner led Western Illinois (10-4) with 20 points. Colton Sandage added 15 points and Will Carius and Luka Barisic scored 12 each. Western Illinois shot 42% despite missing 25 3-pointers (5 for 30).

The Hawkeyes were comfortably ahead through the first 10 minutes of the second half before Massner scored eight points in a 10-2 run for Western Illinois. The Hawkeyes quickly pushed their lead back to 19 points and held Western Illinois to eight points over the final eight minutes.

The Hawkeyes, who shot 58% in the first half, rolled through the final 10 minutes of the opening period with an extended 32-18 run in which they were hottest at the end. They made six of their last seven shots and took a 53-33 lead at the break. Murray had 18 points, eight rebounds, three assists and three steals in the first half.

The game was a homecoming for the Leathernecks' Massner, who played at nearby Wapello High School.

Iowa continues to bounce back from an early December run of consecutive losses to Purdue, Illinois and Iowa State. The Hawkeyes return to Big Ten play on Monday, hosting Maryland.

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