Garza scores 34 in 17 minutes, No. 3 Iowa thumps Iowa State
IOWA CITY, Iowa — Luka Garza was angry as he sat, and it showed in the second half.
Garza surged after halftime and finished the game with 34 points in just 17 minutes, lifting No. 3 Iowa over Iowa State 105-77 on Friday night.
Garza missed nearly 11 minutes in the first half after picking up his second foul, but he responded with 25 points in the second half. He was 13 of 14 from the field — including 10 of 10 after halftime — and knocked down four straight 3pointers.
“I definitely was a little bit frustrated,” Garza said. “Getting ticky-tack fouls is unlike me. And it was just upsetting. I wanted to get out there and just kind of let loose.”
The 6-foot-11 senior scored the most points by a Division I player who played less than 20 minutes in a game over the past 25 seasons.
“We were looking forward once he got going,” Iowa coach Fran McCaffery said. “He can score inside. He can score outside. He scores wherever you put him.”
“That stretch in the second half, Garza was really good,” Iowa State coach Steve Prohm said. “He was good around the basket, but was terrific from 3.”
Jack Nunge had 17 points and 10 rebounds and Joe Wieskamp had 16 points for the Hawkeyes (5-0). Nunge, like Garza a 6-foot-11 center, had 15 points and eight rebounds in the first half with Garza on the bench.
“(Nunge) was awesome,” McCaffery said. “That’s what he does. He’s just a terrific player, and we needed him. Luka’s in foul trouble, and somebody’s got to step up. And he sure did.”
Garza came into the game ranked second in the nation in scoring at 29.5 points per game. He picked up his second foul with 10:48 left and didn’t play the rest of the half. Iowa State had a 15-2 run to take a 32-29 lead after Garza went out, but Iowa outscored the Cyclones 23-9 going into the break.
“I’m proud of the rest of our guys for taking care of business when I was out of the game,” Garza said. “It gives me confidence that, when I make a mistake like that, we’re not doomed.”
Javan Johnson led Iowa State (1-2) with 20 points. Rasir Bolton had 18 points, and Jalen Coleman-Lands had 17.