Iowa is a victory away from a trip to the Final Four. The Hawkeyes used a late 9-0 to take their first lead and stunned Nebraska 77-71 in Houston.
(That’s Gary Dolphin with the call on the Hawkeye Network) Iowa trailed by as many as 10 in the opening but rallied to within three at halftime.
Iowa’s first lead came with just over two minutes remaining on a three pointer by Bennett Stirtz.
A key play with 58 second remaining came courtesy of a Nebraska mistake. Leading 71-68, Kael Combs threw a length of the court inbound pass to Alvaro Folgueiras who got the layup and was fouled. The Huskers only had four players on the court.
That’s senior guard Bennett Stirtz, who led the Hawkeyes with 20 points. Two years after playing Division II basketball at Northwest Missouri State, Stirtz is a win away from leading his team to the Final Four.
The ninth seeded Hawkeyes had 12 regular season losses and become the lowest seeded Big Ten team to reach the Elite Eight.
Nebraska coach Fred Hoiberg.
The Huskers complete the most successful season in program history with a record of 28-7.
The Hawkeyes will play Illinois in Saturday’s South Regional final, with the tip-off set for 5:09-p.m. The Illini beat Houston 65-55.
