Hawkeyes fall in Battle 4 Atlantis finale
The Iowa men’s basketball team won two games to play a third in the championship game of the Battle 4 Atlantis, but the Hawkeyes fell short to Villanova, 88-83, in overtime.
Iowa held a 15-point lead early, but ’Nova battled back thanks to a passel of 3-pointers (14 on 38 attempts). Iowa scored the first basket of the extra period, but that was the only lead it saw, and ’Nova was crowned champions of Atlantis.
Iowa also needed overtime in its first game of the tournament to rally to defeat Xavier. The Hawkeyes were down 15 at one point, but in a fashion that was similar to the way Villanova came back to beat Iowa, the Black and Gold battled to take down the Musketeers, 77-74, in overtime.
Iowa handled its second matchup of the tournament easily, taking down Texas-El Paso, 89-53.
After the loss to Villanova, Iowa seniors Devyn Marble and Zach McCabe were named to the all-tournament team for their performances in the three games. Marble scored 41 points in the three games and made 6 of 18 3-point attempts. McCabe totaled 39 points, coming off the bench in all three games for the Hawkeyes.
Iowa has a quick turnaround — it will take on Notre Dame in Carver-Hawkeye Arena Tuesday evening.
— by Ben Ross
Hawkeyes go 1-3 to close out season
The Iowa volleyball team closed out the 2013 season over Thanksgiving break, posting a 1-3 record in its last four meetings.
After securing its second Big Ten conference win of the season over Indiana, 3-2, on Nov. 22, the Hawkeyes traveled to West Lafayette, where they dropped their second match to Purdue on Nov. 23 to finish the road trip.
They closed out their campaign with back-to-back home losses to Nebraska and Ohio State on Nov. 27 and Nov. 30. While they were swept by Nebraska, they managed to win a set against Ohio State before eventually falling, 3-1, on Senior Night.
The Hawkeyes finished the season with an 11-21 overall record, 2-18 mark in the Big Ten.
— by Ryan Rodriguez
Women’s basketball crowned champions in Cancún Challenge
The Iowa women’s basketball team had a successful Thanksgiving vacation to Cancún, which ended with a 102-65 victory over North Carolina-Wilmington and the Cancún Challenge crown.
The Hawkeyes defeated USC, 78-65 on Thanksgiving and came back to beat Boston College 78-68 on Nov. 29 before playing Wilmington and winning the tournament. Junior guard Melissa Dixon was named Most Valuable Player of the tournament, after scoring 32 points, including a personal best seven 3-pointers, against Wilmington. She also dropped 18 points against USC and 17 against Boston College.
On Nov. 24, the Hawkeyes earned their first road victory of the season in Cedar Falls with a 67-60 win over Northern Iowa. Sam Logic led the Hawkeyes in scoring against the Panthers with 17, to go with 10 rebounds and 2 assists.
Iowa now has an 8-1 record, with its only loss coming against the No. 14 ranked Colorado on Nov. 20. Iowa will next host Syracuse on Dec. 5 in the annual Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
— by Matt Cabel
