Michigan rolls past Iowa, sets up showdown with Ohio State

Returning home after a week long road stretch, Michigan knew coming in a win over Iowa would sure up its NCAA Tournament hopes.

The Wolverines players that have played in March Madness, showed up all game long.

Moritz Wagner, Muhammad-Ali Abdur-Rahkman and Duncan Robinson combined for 50 points, leading the way to a 74-59 victory over the Hawkeyes on Wednesday night in the Crisler Center.

The Wolverines (21-7, 10-5 Big Ten) are now have a 14-1 record at the Crisler Center this season, with the only blemish being a one-point loss to Purdue.

Summary

It was nothing but black jerseys to open the game with a 9-2 run, but two triples from Wagner and Jaaron Simmons but the Wolverines within one at the first media timeout.

Wagner would stay hot from beyond the arc, burying another 3-pointer and giving the Wolverines a 17-14 lead with 11:12 to play in the first half.

A thunderous slam dunk from Charles Matthews capped off a 5-0 run for U-M giving them a 29-20 lead.

The Wolverines would grow their lead to 37-24 at halftime, lead by 16 bench points, nine of which came from Robinson.

Iowa had 12 turnovers in the first half which lead 13 points for U-M.

The second half started with a lot of buckets being traded until Iowa got back within single digits, 45-36, with 13:13 to play in the second half.

Then, the Robinson show began and with it came a lead the Wolverines would never give up.

The Division III transfer hit three consecutive 3-pointers in a span of two minutes, giving his team a 9-0 run and a 58-42 lead with 9:59 remaining.

Senior guard Abdur-Rahkman hit another triple to give him two on the night nearing the six minute mark, giving the Wolverines a 63-47 advantage.

Iowa would never crawl back within single digits of the lead Robinson’s run created.

The win sets up a showdown with No. 8 Ohio State on Sunday at 1 p.m. in Ann Arbor on CBS. When the two teams last met in Columbus, U-M blew a 13-point halftime lead.

Game notes

• 29 bench points was the most the Wolverines have scored this season in that category.
• The Hawkeyes shot 48 percent from the field, but turned the ball over 16 times leading to 20 Wolverine tallies. U-M had 13 steals in the game.
• Both teams were deadlocked at 33 rebounds apiece.
• Simmons scored five points in 12 minutes on 2-of-3 shooting in the backup point guard role. Freshman guard Eli Brooks did not see playing time.