IOWA CITY - Buried.
That, in many ways, is what happened to the Michigan men's basketball team last night in its 80-75 loss at Iowa.
After a nip-and-tuck first four minutes that saw the Wolverines grab a 12-8 lead, the Hawkeyes pounced. Over the next seven minutes, they exploded into a 23-4 run that gave them a 31-16 lead, and left Michigan in a hole just too deep to get out of.
The loss dropped the 18th-ranked Wolverines (7-6 Big Ten, 17-8 overall) into sixth place in the conference, while the Hawkeyes (8-5, 17-8) put an end to a three-game losing streak.
Michigan coach Steve Fisher said the Hawkeyes, with their backs to the Big Ten wall, made the big plays necessary to overwhelm the Wolverines early and then keep them at bay down the stretch.
"In eight minutes, we were outscored (23-4) to give them such a lead that it became difficult for us to mount a charge," he said.
Junior guard Travis Conlan underscored the insurmountability of Iowa's charge into the lead.
"They seemed to roll, and we could never get out of that first big run they had," Conlan said.
"We just never got out of that deficit."
The Hawkeyes were able to stretch their lead to as many as 19 points late in the first half, and led, 44-29, at the break.
But five minutes into the second half, the Wolverines appeared poised to make things tough for the Hawkeyes. After Iowa point guard Andre Woolridge hit a 3-pointer to make the score 50-36, Michigan broke the Iowa press, and sophomore guard Louis Bullock was fouled on a layup attempt. He nailed both shots to cut the lead to 12 with 14:52 remaining.
Two possessions later, junior forward Maceo Baston sank a layup after a feed from Conlan, whittling the lead to 51-40.
On Michigan's next trip downcourt, sophomore center Robert Traylor was fouled and made one of two free throws to cut the deficit to 10.
But the Hawkeyes rattled off three quick buckets, and with 9:52 to play, the lead was back up to 16 points, 57-41.
The Wolverines made another attempt to get back into the game with less than three minutes left, closing to 11 points when junior guard Brandun Hughes hit one of two free throws with 2:33 to go.
And again, Iowa had the answer. Off a Bullock miss, the Hawkeyes raced back in the opposite direction, and after some crisp passing, junior center Ryan Bowen's lay-in restored Iowa to its comfort zone with a 72-58 cushion.
On paper, things got tight again in the final minute of play, as Michigan closed the lead to 10, then eight and then six. But each Michigan basket was followed by an Iowa trip to the charity stripe, and despite the close final score, the outcome was never really in doubt.
The Hawkeyes shot 28 free throws in the second half, connecting on 15.
The 51.7-percent mark from the line was surpassed by Iowa's shocking 59.2 percent from the field, by far the best shooting performance against the Wolverines this season.
Woolridge led all scorers with 25 points, while Bullock totaled 23.
Woolridge said his squad's fast start was the key to victory in what he said was the Hawkeyes' best game of the season.
"We got a couple of good runs going," he said. "That really helped us get a good start."
Iowa coach Tom Davis said scoring off the bench also played a major role for the Hawkeyes, especially after receiving very little of it in their unsuccessful trip to Ann Arbor in January.
"Compared to our first game up there when we had no bench points, tonight was certainly different," Davis said.
"Our bench played much better, and that was the difference in the game."
The Wolverines next head to West Lafayette on Sunday to take on Purdue.
JOE WESTRATE/Daily
Iowa's Andre Woolridge stole the ball - and the game - from Brandun Hughes and the rest of the Wolverines last night at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. The Wolverines fell, 80-75, to the Hawkeyes after committing 19 turnovers. Woolridge finished with 25 points, as the Hawkeyes pulled ahead of the Wolverines in the Big Ten standings by one game. The Wolverines, now 7-6 and in sixth place in the conference, travel to Purdue on Sunday.