Victories at Ohio State have been rare for the Iowa men's basketball team, but the Hawkeyes have back-to-back wins there for the first time in a decade.

Iowa opened Big Ten (B1G) Conference play with a 71-65 upset of the 20th-ranked Buckeyes in Columbus this afternoon (Tuesday, December 30, 2014).

Jarrod Uthoff and Aaron White both scored a game-high 18 points to lead Iowa, which never trailed after the opening minute and led 43-31 at halftime.

Ohio State (11-3, 0-1) owned an early 3-2 lead, but the Hawkeyes controlled the game from the start. They hit their first five shots from the field, including both three-pointers, and added five-of-six free throws while building a 17-5 lead in the opening four minutes.

Iowa (10-4, 1-0) maintained control in the second-half and held on for the win, despite Ohio State's applied pressure at the end. The Buckeyes cut the deficit to 63-60 with just over three minutes remaining, but could get no closer.

Sam Thompson led Ohio State with 17 points, while D'Angelo Russell scored 13 despite heavy foul trouble. Marc Loving also added 10 for the Buckeyes.

The loss marked the first time the Buckeyes lost a Big Ten opener at home under Coach Thad Matta, who's now in his 11th season guiding the program. Since the 2009-10 season, Ohio State is 99-9 (.917) on its own floor, the most home wins of any team in the country.

Ohio State had won eight-straight games in the series before the Hawkeyes' 84-74 win at Value City Arena last year. Three weeks later, the Buckeyes won in Iowa City 76-69.

The Hawkeyes lead the overall series with Ohio State 75-72, but the Buckeyes own a 46-27 edge against Iowa in Columbus. The last time Iowa won consecutive games in Columbus was Feb. 25, 2003, and Feb. 18, 2004.

Iowa returns to action on Monday (Jan. 5, 2015), hosting Nebraska at Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tip-off is scheduled for 8 p.m.

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