IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) —

Bennett Stirtz scored 21 points and Tavion Banks scored 13 points as Iowa took control a little past the midway point of the first half to beat Xavier 81-62 on Friday night.

Stirtz broke a 22-22 tie with a dunk at 7:48 before halftime, Brendan Hausen followed with a 3-pointer and the undefeated Hawkeyes (3-0) outscored Xavier 23-6 en route to a 45-29 halftime lead.

Jovan Milicevic made two foul shots with 17:57 remaining, and Filip Borovicanin netted a jump shot to get the Musketeers (2-2) within 47-38 with 17:42. Cam Manyawu countered with a layup, and Iowa led by double digits for the remainder.

Reserve Kael Combs scored 11 points for Iowa, which shot 57% (29 of 51) despite just 27% shooting (3 of 11) from 3. Cam Manyawu added nine points and nine rebounds.

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