CARBONDALE, Ill. – UNI struggled to defend the three-point line and finish shots in the paint as the Panthers fell to the Southern Illinois Salukis on Wednesday night at the Banterra Center in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play, 86-63.
The loss snaps UNI’s three-game win streak on SIU.
Facing off against one of the top-15 scoring defenses in the nation, the Panthers missed their first 7 shots from the field, despite holding the Salukis to a limited number of shot attempts. After being held to just 4 points in the opening minutes. Tytan Anderson scored 6 straight points for UNI while the Panther defense held Southern Illinois scoreless on 4 straight possessions with 3 turnovers. A trio of Landon Wolf free throws pulled the Panthers within 4 points at 15-11, but UNI struggled to defend the three-point arc against an SIU team that shot 8-of-14 from distance in the opening period. Wolf knocked down a three-point basket for UNI with under a minute to play in the period as the Panthers went into the halftime break trailing 34-23.
Southern Illinois shot 63% in the second stanza and cruised to the final horn despite the Panther offense shooting 50% from the floor. Limited offensively without Bowen Born for much of the game (injury), the Panthers gave up 9 three-pointers in the final 20 minutes as part of a season-high 17 shots allowed from three-point range. Anderson and Wolf helped pace UNI attack despite facing double-digit deficits for most of the half as the Panthers outscored the Salukis 32-24 in the paint.
Anderson led the Panthers with a team-high 21 points, his second 20+ point game of the season, along with 5 rebounds and a game-high 4 steals defensively. Wolf drained three baskets from three-point range to finish with 17 points, as Trey Campbell scored 7 points. Cole Henry and Drew Daniel both finished with 5 points each. Michael Duax led the Panthers on the glass with a game-high 6 rebounds with 4 points.
PANTHER NOTES
Southern Illinois leads the all-time series 39-36 after Wednesday night’s game.
UNI was outrebounded by the Salukis 34-28, but pulled down 11 offensive boards in the loss.
With 2 points on the night, James Betz reached 300 total points in his career.
Landon Wolf surpassed 200 points in his first season on the floor with his 17-point effort on Wednesday. All three of UNI’s freshmen playing for the first time this year have now surpassed 200 points this season (Duax, 281 / Campbell, 222).
Tytan Anderson’s 21-point game put him 50 points shy of joining UNI’s 500 career point club.
UP NEXT
The Panthers return home on Sunday morning to close out the regular season against the Belmont Bruins on Senior Day. Opening tip is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. CT at the McLeod Center, with the game being broadcast on CBS Sports Network and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
