Jan. 22, 2005
IOWA CITY, Iowa - Greg Brunner and Doug Thomas each scored 14 points to help No. 23 Iowa bounce back from a loss to top-ranked Illinois with a 71-57 victory over Purdue on Saturday.
After a sluggish start, the Hawkeyes (14-4, 2-3 Big Ten) built an 18-point halftime lead and were never threatened in the second half, easily rebounding from Thursday's overtime loss against the Illini.
Jeff Horner had 13 points and the Hawkeyes shot 45 percent from the field to hand Purdue its sixth straight defeat and worst Big Ten start since 1963.
Carl Landry led the Boilermakers (4-12, 0-6) with 16 points and eight rebounds, and David Teague chipped in 11 points, including three 3-pointers.
Purdue hit 50 percent of its 3-point attempts, but turned the ball over 19 times and was badly outmuscled underneath the basket. Iowa won the rebound battle 35-27 and outscored the Boilermakers 34-14 in the paint.
Iowa twice built leads of 21 points in the second half. Thomas' put back with 8:12 left put the Hawkeyes up 59-38.
Both teams started out sluggish and sloppy. The Boilermakers - ranked near the bottom of the Big Ten in scoring - managed just eight points in the first 12 minutes, and their 17 first-half points were a season low.
After Landry picked up his third foul and was benched with 4:22 left in the half, the Hawkeyes quickly took advantage. Iowa picked up the tempo, and led by Thomas' three dunks, scored 17 points in the final 4 minutes to build a 38-20 halftime lead.
Purdue coach Gene Keady, who coached his final game in Iowa City and was honored with a standing ovation before tip-off.
TODD DVORAK
Associated Press Writer