Top 25 roundup: Garza nearly flawless as No. 3 Iowa rolls

[December 12, 2020]  Senior Luka Garza scored 34 points while sinking a career-best six 3-pointers and Jack Nunge notched 17 points and 10 rebounds to lift No. 3 Iowa to a 105-77 victory against Iowa State on Friday night in Iowa City.

After navigating foul trouble for much of the first half and an early spell in the second, Garza torched the Cyclones for 25 second-half points on 10-for-10 shooting.

The preseason All-American scored 21 successive Iowa points during one stretch and finished 13-for-14 from the field in 17 minutes. Garza hit 6 of 7 of his 3-point attempts and was 2-for-4 from the free-throw line. Joe Wieskamp added 16 points and Joe Toussaint had seven assists as Iowa earned its third straight victory in the CyHawk series.

Javan Johnson (20 points) paced Iowa State (1-2) with 20 points, while Rasir Bolton (18) and Jalen Coleman-Lands (17) followed. Coleman-Lands and Solomon Young each snagged a team-best six boards.

No. 5 Kansas 95, Omaha 50

Ochai Agbaji scored 18 points on 7-for-10 shooting and sank four 3-pointers as the Jayhawks raced to an early cushion and crushed the Mavericks in Lawrence, Kan.

Kansas (6-1) used 6-for-9 shooting to establish a 17-0 cushion, allowing coach Bill Self to substitute liberally, often inserting several reserves at the same time. Mitch Lightfoot netted 14 points and David McCormack recorded his first double-double of the season with 11 points and 11 rebounds.

Wanjang Tut scored 14 points to lead Omaha (2-5), which shot just 27.4 percent from the floor.

No. 8 Creighton 98, Nebraska 74

Marcus Zegarowski scored 22 points and Denzel Mahoney added 20 as the host Bluejays used a strong second half to down the in-state rival Cornhuskers in Omaha, Neb.

Freshman Ryan Kalkbrenner added 13 points and eight boards for Creighton (4-1), which managed to bounce back from a heartbreaking 73-72 loss at No. 5 Kansas on Tuesday.

Creighton, which outscored the Cornhuskers 54-34 in the second half, has won 13 straight at home over Nebraska, and eight of nine overall in this series. Teddy Allen had a career-high 26 points with nine rebounds for Nebraska (3-3).

Creighton Bluejays guard Marcus Zegarowski (11) drives to the basket against Nebraska Cornhuskers guard Shamiel Stevenson (4) in the second half at CHI Health Center Omaha. Mandatory Credit: Steven Branscombe-USA TODAY Sports

No. 9 Villanova 76, Georgetown 63

Collin Gillespie and Caleb Daniels each scored 18 points to help the Wildcats secure a come-from-behind victory over the Hoyas in Washington.

Villanova (5-1, 1-0 Big East) erased a 13-point halftime deficit with some clutch 3-point shooting in the second half. Cole Swider (10) and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (nine) also chipped in some big points for the Wildcats.

Georgetown (2-3, 0-1) was led by Jamorko Pickett, who scored 16 points and pulled down 10 rebounds. Qudus Wahab added 12 points while Jahvon Blair chipped in with 11 points.

No. 11 West Virginia 62, North Texas 50

Sean McNeil scored 15 points and the Mountaineers posted a victory in their home opener over pesky North Texas at Morgantown, W.Va.

West Virginia (5-1) erased an eight-point halftime deficit and overcame shooting 37.7 percent in its first meeting against the Mean Green (1-3). North Texas agreed to the game earlier this week after the Mountaineers' originally scheduled game against Robert Morris was postponed due to COVID-19 concerns.

West Virginia's Taz Sherman added 11 of his 13 points after halftime while leading scorer Derek Culver posted a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds after being held scoreless in the opening 20 minutes. Javion Hamlet scored 15 points to lead North Texas.

--Field Level Media

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