Eastern Illinois Panthers vs Iowa Hawkeyes Match Player Stats On Dec 21, 2022

Kinyon Hodges scored 22 points, including 13 in the second half, as Eastern Illinois pulled away from Iowa in the final 14 minutes to earn a stunning 92-83 victory on Wednesday in Iowa City.

With Iowa entering as a 31 1/2-point favorite, the upset proved to be the biggest by point spread in the modern era, per Caesars Sportsbook.

Cale Donaldson finished with 16 points, hitting 5 of 6 from the floor in the second half for the Panthers (4-9). Eastern Illinois shot 72.4 percent from the floor after halftime while outscoring the Hawkeyes 55-38 after trailing 45-37 at the break.

Yaakema Rose Jr. chipped in 13 points and six assists for Eastern Illinois, which shot 60 percent from the field for the night.

Filip Rebraca scored 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting and added eight rebounds for the Hawkeyes (8-4). Iowa has alternated losses and wins since beginning the season 5-0.

Payton Sandfort contributed 18 points but shot only 5 of 14 for the Hawkeyes. Tony Perkins collected 15 points, eight rebounds and five assists, and Patrick McCaffery added 12 points and 13 rebounds, six on the offensive end.

Iowa led 47-39 after Rebraca's layup a few minutes into the second half, but the Panthers scored seven straight points, the last four on a pair of dunks by Hodges.

Minutes later, Rose nailed a 3-pointer to give Eastern Illinois a 51-50 lead with 14:32 left in the game. It was their first lead since the first minute of the contest.

Two free throws by Sandfort restored Iowa's one-point lead, but Rose hit a jumper and Jermaine Hamlin scored on a dunk to put the Panthers up by three, and they never trailed again.

Hodges scored six straight points, all on dunks, as Eastern Illinois broke away from a 55-55 tie to lead by six with 9:59 left in the game. The Hawkeyes got only as close as five thereafter, and they trailed by 14 in the final three minutes.

The game was moved up 4 1/2 hours due to a poor weather forecast.

--Field Level Media