The Iowa men’s basketball team had its highest-scoring performance of the season Tuesday night against USC Upstate. The Hawkeyes defeated the Spartans, 110-77, at Carver-Hawkeye Arena behind efficient shooting and dominance in the paint to improve to 6-1 on the season.

Second-year guard Brock Harding led the home team with a career-high 20 points on 9-of-13 shooting to go along with a team-high ten assists. The double-double marked his first of the season and xth of his career. Fellow sophomore Owen Freeman pitched in 17 points while senior guard Drew Thelwell added 15. Iowa finished the evening with 12 different scorers and shot 60 percent from the floor and 46 percent from beyond the arc.

The lone blemish for the Hawkeyes came in the first half when transfer forward Seydou Traore rolled his right ankle and did not return. Head coach Fran McCaffery told the Hawkeye Radio Network that he hopes Traore, averaging 8.3 points and 4.3 rebounds this season, would only be sidelined for a week or two.

The injury only adds to Iowa’s pile this season, as forwards Even Brauns and Cooper Koch did not play due to unspecified injuries.

Iowa came out firing off the opening tip, embarking on a 20-5 run over the opening 6:40, with Freeman scoring 12. Even without Brauns, backup center Riley Mulvey added 11 points on 4-of-4 shooting from the floor. The Hawkeyes scored 26 points in the paint in the first half on their way to a season-high 55 points at the break. Iowa only had two turnovers in the opening 20 minutes and finished with more than three times as many assists than turnovers.

Iowa held a 55-28 advantage at the break, holding its opponent under 30 points for the second time this season. USC Upstate shot 32 percent from the floor and only hit two triples.

The second half was a laugher for the Hawkeyes, who continued their previous dominance with some added flair. Freeman hit his second three-pointer of his career.

Guard Brit Harris led the visitors with 20 points.

Up Next 

Iowa opens up conference play on Tuesday, Dec. 2 when it hosts Northwestern at Carver-Hawkeye Arena at 6:00 p.m. The Wildcats are 5-1 on the season before a Thanksgiving battle against Butler. The Wildcats are led in the scoring by junior forward Nick Martinelli, who also chips in a team-best 6.8 rebounds per game. At 23.8 points per game, he’s the Big Ten’s leading scorer.