IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) - The Iowa Hawkeyes finally left Carver-Hawkeye Arena with smiles on their faces Friday night.

The gang that couldn't shoot straight in its first two games sank a dozen 3-pointers and dunked Bowling Green 68-46.

The Hawkeyes (1-2) shot poorly in their first two games and began the season 0-2 for the first time since 1970-71. Another loss would have meant Iowa's first 0-3 getaway in 90 years, and there was some anxiety in the building as the Hawkeyes missed seven of their first eight shots.

Not to worry.

The Hawkeyes found the range, ticked off 10 straight points, turned a 7-3 deficit into a 13-7 lead and were never headed again. Iowa led 33-20 at halftime and doubled the count on the Falcons (1-2) at 40-20 early in the second half. The biggest lead was 23 points, reached initially at 51-28 on a layup by Brennan Cougill with 10:32 left.

Freshman Eric May went 4-for-4 on 3-pointers and led the Hawkeyes with 16 points. Matt Gatens scored 14 points, and Anthony Tucker collected 13 points and nine assists in a balanced attack.

Marc Larson was the only Bowling Green player in double figures, with 12 points. The Falcons, who lost 101-57 Tuesday night at Xavier, had another long night on the road.

Iowa coach Todd Lickliter credited a "lack of anxiety" for his club's improved shooting. He thought his players relaxed, forgot about the first two games and concentrated on playing well against Bowling Green.

"If you want to play well, just concentrate on the task at hand, and most of the time things will work out," he said. "It's frustrating when you're a great shooter and it doesn't go in. You have to have good toughness to shoot it. And you have to have good toughness when you don't shoot it well."

Iowa shot just 32.7 percent from the field, 20.4 percent on 3-pointers and 61.3 percent at the foul line in losses to Texas-San Antonio and Duquesne. But the Hawkeyes shook off the doldrums against Bowling Green. Five Hawkeyes hit 3-pointers, including the first of his career for center Jarryd Cole.

All told, Iowa made 12 of its 25 attempts from 3-point range for a healthy 48.0 percent. By contrast, the Hawkeyes were a combined 11 of 54 on 3-pointers in their first two games.

"We just got in a flow," May said. "It's nothing magical. We were comfortable, more relaxed. We weren't worried about the first two games. We were just concentrating on tonight's game."

Tucker made three of Iowa's 3-pointers. Gatens and Devan Bawinkel hit two apiece, and Cole got his one.

"I was open, so I shot it," said Cole, a burly 250-pound junior who rarely strays far from the basket. "They backed off, and I just let it go."

The Hawkeyes were confident the shots would start falling.

"We're all good shooters," Gatens said. "We just got our confidence back."

The Hawkeyes needed a ray of sunshine before facing No. 3 Texas in the CBE Classic on Monday in Kansas City, Mo. And they got it.

Lickliter changed his lineup and gave Cougill his first start of the season in place of struggling Aaron Fuller. The 6-foot-9 freshman responded with eight points, eight rebounds and good hustle. Fuller played only three minutes and was using crutches after the game.

Bowling Green won the Mid-American Conference regular-season title last season, but coach Louis Orr's club has now suffered two lopsided losses in a row.

"We're a work in progress," said Orr. "You use words like courage, toughness ... all the things that come from the inside. It's something we have to learn."

(Copyright 2009 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)