Cartwright Engineers Victory for the Hawks
By: Mike Rabon
Bryce Cartwright (Photo by Ben Roberts via hawkcentral.com)
Gatens for 3….Good! Assist by Bryce Cartwright. Iowa led Idaho State 33-7 with 5:29 remaining in the first half and all signs pointed to a route until 6 seconds later when Kenny McGowen drained a 21 foot basket. With 10:15 left in the Second Half Deividas Busma punched in a 2-point layup to cap a 35 -15 run for the Bengals.
48-42 the score read in Carver-Hawkeye Arena leaving Hawk fans listening on the radio and in attendance stunned at the impending metldown. During the next four minutes the teams traded baskets until finally Andrew Brommer created a turnover and dished the ball to Bryce Cartwright for a 2-point layup. ISU Head Coach Joe O’Brien called a timeout with 6:09 left in the half.
Fortunately, Iowa continued to respond and extended the lead to 65-53 with 1:25 left in the half. Senior Jarryd Cole made a layup, drained a free throw and Bryce Cartwright nailed a 2-point jumpshot, assisted by Eric May.
As the clock ran out on Idaho State, the final score read 70-53. Eric May accentuated the victory with a thunderous dunk in the final minute leaving Hawkeye fans excited about the finish but wary about the scant performance in the second half.
Bryce Cartwright scored in double-digits for the 5th straight game but the indelible mark he placed on this game resided in the assist department. A season high, 8 assist performance, faciliated the play of Eric May, Matt Gatens and Jarryd Cole.
Matt Gatens struggled from behind the arch but ended the game with 14 points, 5 assists and 5 steals. Eric May finished with 11 points, 6 rebounds and 2 assists.
Iowa’s defense held Idaho State to a coarse 38% shooting and forced 23 turnovers. ISU Guard Broderick Gilchrest played all 40 minutes and scored 14 points but to his detriment turned the ball over 8 times.
Saturday’s game was reminiscent of Iowa’s second half debalce against Wake Forest in terms of protracted scoring droughts, turnovers in the second half and a lack of leadership. Idaho State does not have a wealth of talent like Wake Forest and this was acute in the final stages of the second half in terms of turnovers and sloppy ball handling.
Nonetheless, Iowa moves to 4-4 on the young season and will welcome intrastate rival Northern Iowa to Carver-Hawkeye Arena on Tuesday night at 7:05pm. Northern Iowa defeated TCU on Saturday 64-60 and smothered Iowa State at the McCleod Center 60-54 on December 1st. The Hawkeyes suffered a humiliating 67-50 loss to Northern Iowa a season ago and look to reclaim preeminence in the state of Iowa.
KRUI Sports Blog 