MOLINE, Ill. – The UNI women’s basketball team dominated from start to finish in their first game of the MVC Hoops in the Heartland tournament, taking down the Valparaiso Beacons 63-39.
It was a complete team game for the Panthers in the Quarterfinals of the Hoops in the Heartland tournament. UNI had 12 different players take the floor throughout the game as the Panthers led in just about every positive statistical category possible. It was also one of UNI’s best defensive games, only allowing 39 points, the fourth-lowest scoring total in the Hoops in the Heartland tournament.
“I thought our defense and energy was terrific from start to finish,” said Head Coach Tanya Warren after the win. “I thought our attention to detail was terrific. We wanted to come in and take away the three. I thought we did a terrific job of doing that. Just a terrific all-around team win.”
The Panthers started hot as they began the game on a 10-3 run over the first seven minutes of the quarter. The Beacons would only get one more basket off in the first before UNI would go on another long run. Through the first 10 minutes, junior guard Kam Finley led the team in points with six while senior forward Bre Gunnels grabbed four rebounds.
It would be a more back and forth game to start the second quarter as Valpo guard Shay Fredrick drew a foul to get the deficit back down into single digits. But shortly after the two shots, freshman guard Maya McDermott made the first trey of the night, going nothing but net from the left side of the arc. The Beacons would answer with a layup almost a minute later as the two teams had three minutes with only two layups made. But in a matter of under a minute, five baskets would be made between Finley and Valpo’s Carie Weinman. The Panthers would close out the half on a 10-0 run to go up by 20.
Finley would continue her scoring streak for UNI at the beginning of the second, making the first two baskets. The Beacons wouldn’t get their first points until over two minutes into the half when Weinman was able to make a fast break hook shot. The Panthers would continue to put on the defensive pressure, only allowing one basket from Valpo in over four minutes of play. The third quarter would end with a stretch of back and forth basketball as UNI would head into the final frame leading 45-21.
It would take almost a full minute in the fourth quarter before either team scored as Gunnels drew a foul and made two at the line. Valparaiso would pick up three straight points before forward Grace Boffeli would draw an and-1 to make the three-point play just two minutes into the quarter. With over seven minutes to go and up by almost 30 the Panthers pulled their starters, allowing freshman guard Kayba Laube and sophomore guard Cailyn Morgan to grab treys. The Beacons would try to keep their feet on the gas, going on an 11-2 run to end the game. But the UNI defense would be too much for Valpo as the Panthers would grab the quarterfinals win 63-39.
UNI’s defense dominated the game as the Panthers grabbed 45 rebounds, forced 14 turnovers, grabbed seven steals, and made three blocks. On the offensive front, UNI shot 22-61 (36.1%) from the floor, 4-25 (16.0%) from behind the arc, and 15-17 (88.2%) from the free-throw line. Over half of the Panthers points came from within the paint and 22 points were scored off the bench.
Kam Finley and Grace Boffeli had double digits offensive performances for UNI with 16 and 10 points respectively. Boffeli also had her eighth double-double performance as she had 14 rebounds for UNI. But Bre Gunnels would have the most boards for the Panthers at 15 along with an assist and a block.
UP NEXT:
UNI continues their quest to the Hoops in the Heartland championship with a semifinal matchup with the Missouri State Lady Bears. The Panthers split the regular season with the Lady Bears 1-1, with each team winning on their home court. Tip-off for the semifinal game is set for 4 p.m. at the TaxSlayer Center in Moline.
