Horner Shoots Iowa Past Minnesota 67-57

For 40 minutes Vincent Grier left it all out on the court. If it was going to be his last Big Ten game, he was going to make it a memorable one. Despite having a game high 29 points including one of the best dunks by a Gopher in years, and a variety of tough buckets in the lane and perimeter, Grier’s performance was not enough as Iowa knocked Minnesota out of the Big Ten Tournament Friday night with a 67-57 win.

Iowa’s Jeff Horner was on fire all night from behind the arc and finished with 26 points including 6/9 from three-point land. His hot shooting gave the Hawkeyes an early lead, but the Gophers had a big run at the end of the first half to tie the game at 30-30.

The Gophers took a small lead a couple of times in the second half, but it was never enough as Horner continued to hit from the outside and Greg Brunner had a field day down low.

Grier finished with his game high 29 points on 13/24 from the floor, and Zach Puchtel added nine rebounds, including eight on the offensive end.

The loss eliminates the Gophers from the Big Ten Tournament as they fall to 15-14 overall. The team will now await word from the NIT Committee to see who the Gophers will play next week. The pairings will be announced Sunday night.