Courtesy: cyclones.com –
DES MOINES, Iowa – No. 17 Iowa State was taken to overtime Saturday at Wells Fargo Arena by the UNI Panthers, but the Cyclones were able to overcome the Panthers 91-82 to earn their first 7-0 start to a season since 2003-04. UNI falls to 3-5 on the season.
After coming back from an 18-point deficit, Iowa State had re-taken the lead at 60-59 with just over five minutes left in regulation, but UNI center Seth Tuttle banked in a 3-pointer with 1.3 seconds left to tie the game 71-71 and force the game to overtime.
In the overtime period, Iowa State led from the first points of the extra session which featured six points each by Melvin Ejim, Dustin Hogue and DeAndre Kane.
Heading into halftime with a 13-point deficit, it was important for Iowa State to get back into the game early. However, the Panthers were ready to defend their lead, increasing it to as much as 18 points.
The Cyclones finally came alive with a 23-2 run to get the lead for the first time since the 16:18 mark of the first half. One of the keys to the run was free throw shooting as Iowa State, who had been 4-of-11 at the stripe, made all five of its free throws during the run.
The Panthers stormed back with a 7-0 run of its own to restore its lead to 58-54. The Cyclones were able to battle back again and it was Melvin Ejim who drained a corner 3-pointer with 5:17 to go to give Iowa State a 60-59 lead that they would not concede until Tuttle’s banked 3-pointer.
In overtime, Iowa State led the whole way, but saw its lead reduced to one point, 76-75 before the Cyclones fired off a 9-0 run to put the game away for good.
