CEDAR FALLS – UNI men’s basketball rallied late and closed down Loyola-Chicago in overtime on Saturday afternoon as the Panthers defeated the Ramblers 102-96 to clinch the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) regular season championship.
The Panthers finish the regular season with a record of 18-10 (14-4 MVC), while Loyola drops to 22-7 (13-5 MVC). UNI clinches the program’s fourth regular season title with the win, third outright, and second in the last 3 seasons.
UNI shot a commanding 60% from the field in the first half, with Noah Carter scoring 19 points in the opening 20 minutes of play. With a heavy attack in the paint from the Panthers, the Ramblers sank 7 three-point field goals in the first half, cutting UNI’s 10-point lead down to 2 points in the final minutes. A pair of Ryan Schwieger free throws tied the game in the final minute of the half, sending both teams into the locker room tied in a 46-46 deadlock.
Loyola struck quickly out of the halftime break from beyond the arc to build a 9-point lead 8 minutes into the period. Drawing contact early and forcing the Ramblers into foul trouble with a swarming defense, UNI shot 22-of-26 from the free throw line, shrinking Loyola’s lead and tying the game with 28 seconds remaining on an AJ Green jumper. In overtime, the Panthers sank 7-of-8 shots at the charity stripe, holding control of the lead for nearly the entire period to close out the 6-point victory.
AJ Green finished the day with a game-high 32-point, 12 rebound double-double with 16 made free throws. Noah Carter recorded his 14th game of 15+ points in league play this season with a 24-point performance. Bowen Born notched a season-high 20 points, while Nate Heise posted 9 points. Tywhon Pickford scored 9 points for UNI, as Tywhon Pickford posted 8 points in his final home game as a Panther.
UNI’s victory snaps the Panthers’ 4-game losing streak to the Ramblers. Saturday marked the final regular season matchup between the two programs as MVC programs. Loyola will depart the MVC for the Atlantic-10 Conference at the end of this season.
AJ Green extended his career record for consecutive made free throws to 48 on Saturday, before having the streak snapped in the second half. Green’s streak is tied for the 5th longest in MVC history.
The Panthers improve to 75-9 when scoring 80+ points under head coach Ben Jacobson. UNI is 4-0 this season when posting 90 or more points.
AJ Green became the 7th player in UNI men’s basketball history to surpass 1,700 career points. Green is 12 points from passing Bill McCoy (1969-73) for 6th all-time in school history.
AJ Green recorded his 4th 30-point game of the season on Saturday against Loyola, and the 6th of his career.
The Panthers finish the regular season 8-1 in MVC home games this season, the only loss coming on Jan. 22 vs. Drake. UNI is also 3-2 in overtime games this season.
Saturday’s game marked the first game in which UNI scored 100 or more points since Dec. 2, 2019 in a 110-point effort against Luther.
Austin Phyfe is 6 points from passing his father Steve for 55th all-time in scoring at UNI. Steve Phyfe, who played at UNI from 1987-90 as part of the Panthers’ 1990 NCAA Tournament team, scored 912 points during his time at UNI.
Noah Carter jumps to 67th in career scoring at UNI with his 817th point. Carter is one point from tying Tony Haupert (1977-81) for 66th all-time.
UP NEXT
UNI will begin postseason play on March 3 at the MVC Tournament in St. Louis, facing off against the winner of the Illinois State/Indiana State first round game on March 2. Tip-off is scheduled for 12 p.m. at the Enterprise Center.
