Indianapolis (AP) — Iowa guard Jordan Bohannon couldn’t remember how many times he tried the long three that won the game in the backyard. Or how many shots did you get?
no matter. Because when it became real, he made it.
With the shot clock stopped in a Thai game, the big tent tournament championship berth at stake, and the ball at hand, Bohannon did what he always did. This time I took a shot from just inside the mid coat logo.
And in a blink of an eye, the ball banked off the backboard and passed the net in 0.8 seconds, letting No. 24 Iowa win Indiana 80-77 in the first match of Saturday’s two semifinals.
“It’s indescribable,” Bohannon said. “When you throw a shot in the backyard, in the YMCA, or wherever you are, you dream of it. So when it came in, I really didn’t know where to go, so I just got in a circle. I started running. “
Fans of Iowa know where the third 2,000-point scorer in school history belonged — shoot themselves from the slump.
Bohannon scored only 12 points against the amazing 9th seed Hoosiers. However, he made three big threes in the last two and a half minutes, giving the fifth seeded Hawkeye (25-9) his third victory in three days. Next, they face the 9th Purdue on Sunday and try to win the first conference tournament crown since 2006. This is part of why Bohannon is back this season.
They might not have made progress without a shot in the second half of Bohannon’s match, but they still needed Keegan Murray, a full-conference forward, to do some work. In case Bohannon missed, he finished with 32 points and nine rebounds and put himself in another board position.
But the final shot didn’t even go the way Fran McCafferry created it.
“He was supposed to hit a shot in the corner, but they blocked it, it’s their credit,” McCafely said. “But he just kept coming. As long as he’s shooting, I think it’s better than what I can draw anyway.”
Bohannon confirmed it, despite trying to rally Hawkeye on 4/10 from the field. Hawkeye dragged everything except 122 seconds until Murray’s 3 gave a 74-73 lead in 1 minute 56 seconds.
Bohannon’s next three seconds were 50.1 seconds left, 77-73, and seemed to seal the victory.
Instead, when Xavier Johnson made two free throws and Indiana (20-13) forced a turnover, Johnson scored in a breakaway layup, scoring with 30.7 seconds remaining. Johnson finished with 20 points and 9 assists.
And that’s how it stayed until the Bohannon bank shot. A desperate wave from Johnson’s 60 feet bounced high off the backboard, sealing Iowa’s victory.
“I knew it would work because he intended to launch one,” said Trace Jackson Davis, who scored 31 points and 10 rebounds in Indiana. Bounced back, obviously, it took us about a second to get into overtime. “
Big picture
Indiana: If two wins in the two days of the 2020-21 Big Ten Regular Season Champion and the 2021-22 Conference Co-Champion weren’t enough to secure the position of 68 teams in the NCAA tournament field, the match on Saturday would be I did a trick. Indiana dominated most of the matches against one of America’s most skilled scoring teams, but was slightly lacking.
Iowa: There is no doubt that Hawkeye shooters are causing problems for most teams. However, after scoring 196 points in two games, Iowa needed a slow gust to secure this. After the match on Sunday, there will be no consecutive contests on the schedule — allowing Iowa to fully open the rest of the season.
Meaning of poll
Given the surprises that happened in Indianapolis on Thursday and Friday, and at other conference tournaments across the country this weekend, Hawkeye should be in the final Top 25 rankings. An even more interesting question is whether Hoosiers’ breakthrough weekend will send them to vote for the first time this season.
STAT pack
Indiana: Race Thompson had 11 points and 7 rebounds. … Hoosiers were 5 out of 19 from the 3 point range in the third game in 3 days. … Indiana reached the semi-final round for the first time since 2013 and won multiple conference tournament games for the first time in 2003.
Iowa: Murray was 11 out of 17 from the field and 8 out of 10 in 3 seconds. The remaining Hawkeye were 6 out of 22 in 3 seconds. … Patrick McCafery finished with 16 points. … Tony Perkins, who played the high school ball at Indy, had 8 points and 5 assists.
next
Indiana: We’ll see on Sunday night if we’ve hosted the first NCAA tournament since 2016.
Iowa: Face the Third Seed Purdue in Sunday’s Championship Game.
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