IOWA CITY, IOWA - Ronald Dupree scored 19 points and hit the go-ahead basket with 1:22 left as LSU beat Iowa 63-61 Wednesday night in the first round of the NIT. <br>
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LSU (19-14) blew a nine-point lead in the first half. But the Tigers came back from eight down in the final 20 minutes to end a disappointing season for Iowa (19-16), which lost 13 of its last 20 and finished eighth in the Big Ten after being expected to contend for the title. <br>
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Dupree's 17-footer from the right side gave LSU a 58-56 lead. Iowa's Glen Worley then lost the ball going up for a shot, LSU's Torris Bright picked it up, sped down the court and dunked to make it 60-56 with 58.4 seconds remaining. <br>
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Duez Henderson's two free throws drew Iowa to 60-58, and the Hawkeyes got a chance to tie when Bright made only one of two free throws to put LSU up 61-58. But Luke Recker, who won two games for Iowa in the Big Ten tournament with last-second shots, missed a 23-footer from the right side. <br>
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Jermaine Williams made two final free throws for LSU, rendering a 3-pointer by Iowa's Chauncey Leslie at the buzzer meaningless. <br>
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Bright finished with 18 points, 15 in the second half, and Williams scored 10. Pierre Pierce led Iowa with 13 points and Recker scored 12 but was only 4-of-16 from the field. <br>
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Pierce had three assists and a basket in 15-4 run that gave Iowa a 45-37 lead seven minutes into the second half. LSU clawed back steadily, pulling ahead 53-52 when Bright stole the ball and made a layup. <br>
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Ryan Hogan's 3-pointer gave Iowa a 56-54 lead, and the Hawkeyes had a chance to extend it, but Williams picked off Recker's pass and made two free throws to tie it at 56. <br>
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LSU stunned Iowa with its quickness and athletic ability early, especially Dupree. In the first three minutes, Dupree scored after catching a lob pass, made a jump shot, drove for a basket and converted a three-point play off a steal. <br>
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Later, he sailed down the lane to score on an acrobatic follow shot, and his jumper gave the Tigers a 24-16 lead with 8:53 left in the half. But that turned out to be LSU's last basket of the half. <br>
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Recker hit a 3-pointer to start a 12-2 run that sent Iowa into a 28-27 lead. LSU went up 29-28 at the half on two free throws by Williams.