Josh Dix erupted for a team-high 23 points Tuesday night as Iowa pulled away from South Dakota in the second half of a 96-77 win in Iowa City.
Dix needed just 10 shots to do his damage, going 8 of 10 from the floor and 5 of 6 from the 3-point line as the Hawkeyes improved to 3-0. Payton Sandfort and reserve Seydou Traore each added 12, while Ladji Dembele and reserve Drew Thelwell tallied 11 points apiece.
Iowa shot a blistering 64.7 percent from the field in the second half, expanding a six-point halftime lead to as many as 23 points down the stretch. The Hawkeyes canned 13 of 31 3-point attempts, giving them 41 3-pointers in the first three games.
Kaleb Stewart poured in a game-high 26 points for the Coyotes (3-1), going 11 of 19 from the field and 4 of 10 on 3-pointers. Isaac Bruns came off the bench to score 11 but the visitors just didn’t have enough firepower to beat a Power 4 opponent on the road. South Dakota’s other four starters managed a measly 20 points.
Iowa blew it open pretty quickly in the second half. Leading 46-41 after Cameron Fens hit a layup with 18:28 left, the Hawkeyes rattled off 13 straight points. Dix canned a couple of 3-pointers and fed Riley Mulvey for a dunk and an 18-point advantage with 15:26 remaining.
The Hawkeyes trailed for just 13 seconds in the first half but couldn’t shake their Summit League opponent that was searching for its first win in 13 meetings. It was tied at 10 just under six minutes into the game when Sandfort clocked in with a 3-pointer and a short jumper.
Iowa did expand its lead to 11 on three occasions later in the half but the Coyotes fought back with seven straight points before Dix dunked with 31 seconds on the clock. That allowed the Hawkeyes to take a 42-36 edge to intermission.
–Field Level Media
