CEDAR FALLS – The Panthers rallied from down as many as 17 points, but fell short in the final minutes as UNI dropped its regular season finale to the Belmont Bruins, 83-75, on Sunday inside the McLeod Center.
UNI’s offense jumped out of the gate in a hurry from three-point range as Bowen Born scored the game’s first points. The Panthers were able to draw contact and find themselves in the bonus and at the free throw line just 9 minutes into the game, all while establishing an interior attack with Michael Duax. Landon Wolf opened the first half knocking down 4 of his first 8 shots attempts, including three baskets from beyond the arc to lead UNI with 14 first period points, while Trey Campbell established an effective mid-range game. Holding Belmont’s leading scorer Ben Sheppard to just 2 points in the opening stanza, the Panthers went into the halftime break with momentum, trailing 38-36.
The Panthers initially struggled to score to begin the second half, as the Bruins quickly extended their lead. Keishawn Davidson and Ja’Kobi Gillespie combined for 23 of Belmont’s 45 second period points as UNI fell behind by 17 points with 13 and a half minutes to play. UNI began to turn the tide with under 8 minutes to play as Wolf and Duax led the charge with a 16-2 Panther run to tie the game at 65 points apiece. Despite defending the three-point line and a late surge, turnovers and fouls would hurt the Panthers down the final stretch as Belmont iced the game away shooting 16-of-17 from the free throw line in the second half, sealing the 8-point loss for UNI.
Wolf finished the day registering a new career-high with 21 points, his first 20+ point game of his career on 7-of-13 shooting. Duax ended the game with 12 points and a team-high 8 rebounds in the loss, as Born tallied 11 points. Drew Daniel knocked down a trio of three-point shots to finish with 9 points, while Tytan Anderson and Campbell each finished with 6 points each.
PANTHER NOTES
Belmont leads the all-time series with UNI 2-0 after Sunday’s game.
UNI’s loss drops the Panthers to 12-5 in the final game of the regular season under head coach Ben Jacobson, and snaps their 3-game winning streak in season finales.
UNI narrowly outrebounded Belmont 37-35, including an 11-8 differential on offensive rebounds.
The Panthers close out the home portion of their schedule with an 8-8 record. UNI has not finished with a losing record inside the McLeod Center since the arena opened in Nov. 2006.
UP NEXT
With the regular season in the books, UNI turns its attention to the MVC Tournament beginning Thursday at Enterprise Center in St. Louis. The Panthers will be seeded eighth in the 12-team bracket and play at 12 p.m. CT on Thursday afternoon against an opponent to be determined.
