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Iowa had no answer for Oregon on defense and the Hawkeyes were ousted from the NCAA Tournament. The Ducks took control with a 10-0 run to close the opening half then blew the game open in the second half in a 95-80 win.
Oregon shredded the Hawkeye defense for 56 percent shooting and 11 three pointers.
“Anybody can bring it and everybody makes threes,” said Iowa coach Fran McCaffery. “They spread you out and it is a hard team to cover.”
Luka Garza wrapped up his brilliant career with 36 points and nine rebounds while Joe Wieskamp added 17. Those are the only points the Hawkeyes got from their starters as Oregon’s guard court dominated the game.
The Hawkeyes finish the season with a record of 22-9 and came up short in their bid to return to the Sweet-16 for the first time since 1999.
“I feel bad I was not able to lead this team to where it needs to go,” said Garza. ” We did a lot of really good things this year and it just hurts we weren’t able to do it when it matters most and that is something that is going to haunt me forever.”
