PALM DESERT, Calif. — Isaia Howard scored 19 points off the bench, Bennett Stirtz added 13, and Iowa defeated Grand Canyon 59-46 in the Acrisure Classic championship game on Wednesday night.

The Hawkeyes (7-0) remained undefeated under first-year coach Ben McCollum, who coached Drake last season and brought Howard and Stirtz with him to Iowa City.

The Hawkeyes led 30-23 at halftime then allowed one point in the first eight minutes of the second half while extending their lead to 37-24. Each team had more made free throws than made shots in the first 14 1/2 minutes after halftime.

A 3-pointer by Howard gave the Hawkeyes a 51-37 lead with about 4 minutes remaining. He buried two more 3-pointers down the stretch and finished with his season high in scoring.

Freshman Cooper Koch scored 11

See Full Page