Purdue-Iowa Box Score in PDF Format
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By TODD DVORAK
Associated Press Writer
IOWA CITY, Iowa - Pierre Pierce scored 19 points and Jared Reiner added 14 to lead Iowa to a 71-61 victory over Purdue on Wednesday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.
The Hawkeyes (8-3) were helped by a major turnaround in free throw shooting. Iowa shot 78 percent from the line, a season best, and 13 of Pierce's points came on free throws.
Coming into the game, the Hawkeyes were shooting just 63 percent from the line and coach Steve Alford had complained about his team's free throw shooting woes during a stretch of three losses over the last four games.
Kenneth Lowe led the Boilermakers (10-4) with 19 points in a game his teammates struggled throughout to find their shooting touch. Purdue shot 37.5 percent from the field and was just 6-of-26 from behind the 3-point arc.
Lowe hit a 3-pointer to give the Boilermakers a 32-30 lead, capping a 7-2 run to open the second half.
But the Hawkeyes reclaimed the lead for good a minute later when Pierce made the second of two free throws to put Iowa up 33-32.
Sean Sonderleiter fueled a 10-4 Iowa run midway through the second half by scoring on three straight possessions. He capped the run with an assist to Brody Boyd, whose easy layup put Iowa up 49-41 with 10:19 to go. Iowa hit enough free throws down the stretch to hold on for a victory that avenged last season's home loss to the Boilermakers.
The teams traded leads several times in a close first half.
Purdue, led by Brandon McKnight, rallied in the last two minutes of the half. The Boilermakers turned two Iowa turnovers into easy layups, and McKnight's baseline jumper with 1:06 made it 28-25.