Iowa men’s basketball defeated North Carolina Central, 86-69, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena Tuesday night. 

Senior shooting guard Jordan Bohannon tied Jon Diebler’s Big Ten Conference record for 3-pointers made in a career at 374.

Bohannon came into Tuesday’s game needing just two 3-pointers to pass Diebler in the league records books. Bohannon, however, shot an underwhelming 1-of-9 from 3-point range.

Bohannon finished the Hawkeyes’ game against the Eagles with just seven points and two rebounds.

Iowa still found ways to score, despite Bohannon’s lackluster offensive outing. Sophomores Ahron Ulis and Tony Perkins scored a combined 25 points off the bench. Perkins played 19 minutes, and Ulis was on the floor for 21.

Ulis and Perkins’ fellow sophomore, Patrick McCaffery, dropped 15 points in 22 minutes of action.

Iowa’s leading scorer, however, was sophomore forward Keegan Murray. The 6-foot-8, 225-pound Iowan racked up 27 points, nabbed 21 rebounds, and blocked four shots.

Murray is the first Hawkeye to corral more than 20 rebounds in a game since Greg Brunner did so in 2006. Before Tuesday, Murray had never recorded a double-double in college.

“I thought Keegan was really good,” Iowa head coach Fran McCaffery said postgame. “You don’t see too many lines like that.”

BIG PICTURE

Iowa is now 3-0 on the season — 4-0 counting the Hawkeyes’ Nov. 5 exhibition against Slippery Rock. Iowa is one of just eight Big Ten teams that are still undefeated.

Nebraska, Penn State, Michigan State, Wisconsin, Michigan, and Illinois have all suffered one or more losses already this year.

PERKINS SHINES FOR IOWA

Perkins, a 6-foot-4, 210-pound guard from Indianapolis scored a career-high 13 points Tuesday. Perkins shot 4-of-7 from the field and 2-of-2 from the free throw line.

“It all came from defense,” Perkins said. “Just the energy I brought on defense led us to get fast break points and allowed me to get open shots.”

Last year, Perkins played a little over six minutes per game, averaging 1.6 points per game.

In three games in 2021, Perkins has been on the floor for about 17 minutes per contest. The Lawrence North High School graduate has dropped exactly eight points per game, on average.

IOWA OVERCOMES EARLY FOUL TROUBLE

Fran McCaffery had to get creative with his lineup and rotation early in Tuesday’s game against the Eagles, as many of the Hawkeyes’ bigs found themselves in foul trouble in the first half.

Senior forward Filip Rebraca picked up two fouls in the first four minutes of Iowa’s matchup with North Carolina Central.

With Rebraca in a jam, Fran McCaffery turned to sophomore center Josh Ogundele. Though, Ogundele picked up back-to-back fouls in the first half.

When Ogundele got in foul trouble, Fran McCaffery really only had one big left on the floor: Murray. One of the Hawkeyes’ other reliable big men, Kris Murray, did not participate in Tuesday’s contest because of a non-COVID-19-related illness.

“Filip had two fouls in the first half,” Keegan Murray said. “That really changed things for our team.”

UP NEXT

Iowa will be back at Carver-Hawkeye Arena Thursday night for a matchup with Alabama State. Tipoff between the Hawkeyes and Hornets is scheduled for 6 p.m. The game will air live on the Big Ten Network.