COLUMBIA, Mo., Dec. 15 (UPI) -- Luke Recker scored 16 of his career-high 31 points in the first half Saturday night as the 15th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes avenged an earlier loss to No. 3 Missouri, 83-65.
Iowa (9-3) lost a 73-62 lead with 2:15 remaining on Nov. 21 against Missouri in the championship of the Guardians Classic in Kansas City. Hawkeyes coach Steve Alford complained afterward about the officiating, especially one sequence in which he claimed that Recker was tackled twice.
The Hawkeyes took out their frustration early, jumping out to a 12-4 lead just over six minutes into the contest. Iowa had a 39-28 halftime advantage.
Things did not change in the second half for Missouri (9-1), which suffered its first loss. A basket by Reggie Evans gave Iowa a 45-30 lead with 17:50 remaining and a three-point play by Recker with just over 16 minutes remaining capped the 19-8 run to open the final 20 points for a 54-33 lead.
Evans finished with 15 points and 17 rebounds for Iowa, which limited the Tigers to 33 percent shooting.
Missouri made just five of 29 from beyond the arc.
