By Pat Harty

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Luka Garza was on a mission to make sure that Rutgers didn’t leave Carver-Hawkeye Arena with two consecutive victories, and it was mission accomplished on Wednesday.

Iowa’s 6-foot-11 junior center continued his season-long dominance by leading four Iowa players in double figures with 28 points during a hotly contested 85-80 victory.

In addition to improving Iowa’s record to 14-5 overall and 5-3 in the Big Ten, Wednesday’s victory also was payback for last season when Rutgers defeated Iowa 86-72 on Senior Day at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

"I just play hard every single game and credit to my teammates, they do a tremendous job of getting me the ball when I'm open," said Garza, who also had 13 rebounds and four blocks. 

Garza's performance drew praise from Rutgers coach Steve Pikiell.

"I thought we did a good job on Garza today, and then I look at the stats, 28 and 13, so that tells you what kind of terror he's on," Pikiell said. "Great college basketball game. I thought we never gave up."

Sophomore guard Connor McCaffery helped to secure the victory by making four three throws in the final 16.6 seconds. His fourth free throw gave Iowa an 85-80 lead with 8.7 remaining.

It was the only points that Connor McCaffery has scored in the last two games.

"He stepped up there and swished four of them, so I'm really proud of him," said Iowa coach Fran McCaffery, who is also Connor's father. "But I think he expects that of himself. And that's how you've got to close a game out."

Garza told reporters on Tuesday that last season’s loss to Rutgers left a salty taste in the mouth of the Iowa players and they were determined to make sure that Wednesday’s game wouldn’t be a repeat.

But it wasn’t easy as Rutgers showed why it’s one of the Big Ten’s most improved teams under Pikiell.

Ron Harper Jr. made an old-fashioned 3-point play to trim what has been a 10-point deficit to 76-75 with 2:42 remaining.

He then made two free throws to give Rutgers a 77-76 lead with 2:27 left to play.

Iowa then answered with a layup by redshirt freshman guard C.J. Fredrick, and with a 3-point basket by sophomore Joe Wieskamp that expanded the lead to 81-77 with 1:21 remaining.

The Scarlet Knights entered Wednesday’s game leading the Big Ten in scoring defense at 58.7 points per game, while Iowa entered the game leading the conference in scoring offense at 79.9 points per contest.

Garza said that controlling the tempo and getting Rutgers to play at Iowa’s desired pace would be a key to Wednesday’s game, and he was right judging from the final score.

"We can play fast, too," Pikiell said. "We had chances to win that game, even at that pace."

Freshman point guard Joe Toussaint had arguably his best game as a Hawkeye with 14 points, seven rebounds and four assists.

"I think the way he played tonight is the way he should play," Fran McCaffery said of Toussaint. "And it's what I expect of him and it's what he expects from himself.

"He's really talented and he got great speed. He can get anywhere he wants to get on the floor." 

Wieskamp and senior forward Ryan Kriener also scored in double figures with 18 and 11 points, respectively.

A first half that included six ties, four lead changes and each team having 12 rebounds and 10 assists ended in controversy as McCaffery was called for a technical before leaving the court at halftime.

McCaffery was upset because Iowa had fouls to give and was trying to intentionally foul in the final seconds of the first half, but the officials didn’t call a foul.

Harper Jr. then broke free under the basket and made a short bank shot right before the halftime buzzer to give Rutgers a 43-38 lead at the break.

McCaffery rushed on to the court to protest, and he kept pleading his case until one of the officials finally gave him a technical foul.

The three officials were showered with boos as they left the court at halftime, and again when they returned for the second half.

The second half started with Rutgers guard Caleb McConnell making one of two free throws that came as a result of McCaffery’s technical. Fans booed the entire time McConnell was at the free throw line.

Harper then scored on an a baseline dunk to expand the lead to 46-38, but then Garza answered with a 3-point basket and Joe Wieskamp followed with a basket that trimmed the deficit to 46-43 barely one minute into the second half.

Wieskamp then made an old-fashioned 3-point play to even the score at 46 with 17:44 left to play.

Iowa then went on a 14-6 scoring run and took a 60-55 lead on another old-fashioned 3-point play by Wieskamp with 13:52 remaining

Iowa expanded the lead to double digits at 69-59 on a basket by Toussaint.

But it still took four clutch free throws by Connor McCaffery down the stretch to finally put Rutgers away.

Harper Jr. led Rutgers with a career-high 29 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field.

The 24th-ranked Scarlet Knights (14-5, 5-3) entered Wednesday's game on a roll, with eight victories in their last nine games. This also marks the first time that Rutgers has been ranked since the 1978-79 season.

Iowa now has the weekend off before hosting Wisconsin on Monday.