Iowa basketball: Instant takeaways from Hawkeyes' loss to Michigan State on Senior Night

Iowa basketball: Instant takeaways from Hawkeyes’ loss to Michigan State on Senior Night

Posted by author March 7, 2025 Basketball

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IOWA CITY — Like it has done a few times this season, Iowa men’s basketball put itself in position to knock off a quality team Thursday.

The Hawkeyes did so against Iowa State, Purdue, Wisconsin and Oregon at Carver Hawkeye-Arena. They had a near-miss on the road against Michigan.

But Iowa was unable to close out any of those games.

That was the case again on Thursday. Leading by as many as 14 points in the first half, Iowa played spirited stretches against Michigan State.

But again, Iowa was unable to finish the job.

Michigan State’s second-half surge helped the Spartans to a 91-84 win. With the victory, Michigan State captured an outright Big Ten regular-season title. That is a credit to Tom Izzo and his squad for navigating a brutal conference and winning the first regular-season championship since the addition of the former Pac-12 programs.

On the other side of things, Iowa’s season continues its decline. The Hawkeyes have lost 11 of their last 14 games. A berth in the Big Ten Tournament is in jeopardy ahead of Iowa’s regular-season finale against Nebraska on Sunday.

Better start but second-half stumble

In Iowa’s consecutive road losses last week, the Hawkeyes didn’t lead for a single second. The Hawkeyes dug themselves into holes, played catch-up and were never able to recover.

That wasn’t the case against Michigan State.

The Hawkeyes started the game much better. Iowa led by as many as 14 points in the first half. Iowa went into the halftime break leading by seven. It was one of Iowa’s best halves as of late.

But Iowa wasn’t able to sustain that.

The Hawkeyes led by 10 with more than 12 minutes remaining, but then things started to fall apart. Michigan State closed the game on a 43-26 scoring run.

Fran McCaffery’s evaluation

Video: Fran McCaffery reacts to Iowa’s loss to Michigan State

Fran McCaffery discusses Iowa basketball’s 91-84 loss to Michigan State.

After shooting just 40% from the field and 25% from deep in the first half, Michigan State turned around those deficiencies after the break. The Spartans shot 61% from the field and 46% from three in the second half.

Iowa mostly played zone. It gave Michigan State trouble in the first half. But the Spartans solved it in the second. The Spartans scored a startling 61 points in the second half.

Iowa coach Fran McCaffery was asked after the game how Iowa contained Michigan State in the first half and how the Spartans were able to get going in the second half.

McCaffery’s full response was: “27 free throws in the second half,” referring to the number of free throws Michigan State attempted after the break.

In total, Michigan State shot 12 more free throws than Iowa (30-18). But the Spartans took just three in the first half.

That meant 27 of their 30 attempts from the charity stripe came in the second half. Iowa had eight in the first and 10 in the second.

Iowa shot a much better percentage from the free throw line. The Hawkeyes were at 83% compared to Michigan State’s 67%. But the Spartans scored five more points in that category due to attempting more.

For what it’s worth, Payton Sandfort came into postgame media with a hole in his jersey and visible scratches on his skin.

Video: Michigan State coach Tom Izzo on Fran McCaffery, Iowa basketball

Michigan State coach Tom Izzo provides his thoughts on Fran McCaffery, Iowa men’s basketball program.

Payton Sandfort, Josh Dix and supporting cast

Iowa’s duo had been struggling entering Thursday. Over the Hawkeyes’ last two games, they had combined for just 37 points on 13-of-47 (28%) from the field.

They were better on Thursday but not by enough. Dix had 18 points on 7-of-15 from the field. Sandfort had 15 points on 4-of-12 from the field, including 1-of-5 from deep.

They contributed on the glass, grabbing seven rebounds each. Dix provided some scoring late in the game, but not enough before a final push. For context, Dix made his final four shots from the field, meaning he started 3-of-11.

Iowa’s supporting cast played well enough around them.

Seydou Traore had 15 points. Pryce Sandfort had 12 off the bench. Even Brauns added another seven. Drew Thelwell scored seven.

Iowa’s offense played well. The Hawkeyes shot 48% from the field and 39% from deep on the game. But Iowa was not able to get nearly enough stops in the second half.

Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com