By TODD DVORAK
Associated Press Writer
IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -- Jeff Horner scored 25 points, including the game winner in the final seconds, to lift Iowa to a 74-72 victory over Ohio State Wednesday night.
With the score tied, Horner got the ball out high, drove just inside the 3-point arc and swished an 18-foot pull-up jumper with 3.4 seconds left on the clock.
The Buckeyes had one more opportunity, but Jamar Butler stepped out of bounds near midcourt with one second left, giving Iowa (18-10, 6-9 Big Ten) its fourth victory in its last six games against the Buckeyes.
The loss spoiled an outstanding performance by Terence Dials, who led all scorers with 29 points on 12-of-17 shooting. Dials who also grabbed nine rebounds, played all 40 minutes and was hounded all night by double teams and a variety of Hawkeye defenders and schemes in an effort to slow him down.
Adam Haluska added 22 points for the Hawkeyes, who took their first lead of the second half with 8:03 remaining when Horner sank two free throws.
The Hawkeyes led by as many as six points down the stretch, but the Buckeyes (18-11, 7-8) tied it at 66 when Matt Sylvester hit the second of two free throws with 1:55 left.
Haluska and Sylvester then traded 3-pointers, knotting the score at 69. On Iowa's next possession, Doug Thomas scored on a dunk when Horner dished off a nifty bounce pass in traffic. Thomas hit the ensuing free throw, giving Iowa a 72-69 lead.
But Dials answered on the other end, hitting a turnaround jumper and the ensuing foul shot with 27 seconds left to set up Horner's last-second heroics.
Horner was 9-of-17 shooting, including 4-of-9 from 3-point range. He also had eight rebounds and eight assists.
The Buckeyes shot 53.8 percent, while Iowa shot 47.2 percent in a game that had 13 ties and five lead changes. The difference for Iowa came at the free throw line, where the Hawkeyes shot 85 percent compared to 64.3 percent for Ohio State.
The Buckeyes grabbed the early lead, but Iowa got back into the game by pressuring the Buckeyes defensively and pushing the ball up court on nearly every possession.
Down by nine, Iowa responded with a 14-5 run and tied the game at 20 when Horner, who had 12 first-half points, stepped in front of a pass, drove the court for a layup and hit the ensuing foul shot.
The teams tied and traded leads several times over the next five minutes before Dials began to get hot inside. Dials scored eight of Ohio State's final 12 points in the first half and his dunk with 2:14 to go put the Buckeyes ahead 35-31.
The Hawkeyes closed the lead to one when reserve Jack Brownlee nailed a 3-pointer, only his second of the season, just before the buzzer.
