CEDAR FALLS – UNI men’s basketball struggled to find the bottom of the net in the first half and could not overcome a double-digit Sycamore lead in the final frame as the Panthers fell to league-leading Indiana State on Sunday at the McLeod Center, 77-66 to snap a four-game winning streak.
Struggling from beyond the three-point line, the Panthers would challenge the Sycamores in the second half and cut the Indiana State lead down to single-digits, but would not be able to stop the Sycamores’ high-powered three-point shooting attack that finished the day with 15 made baskets from range.
The Sycamores hit the Panther defense hard and quick out of the gate, knocking down eight first-half three-point field goals to put UNI into an early deficit. Struggling to find the net on just 28.6% shooting in the half, Northern Iowa found a spark midway through the period with a 7-0 run in which it held Indiana State scoreless for a four minute, 43 second stretch. The Panthers would get a number of second chance opportunities with five offensive rebounds in the period and put the Sycamores into foul trouble with nine first-half penalties. Indiana State would finish strong from range down the stretch as Bowen Born tallied 11 first-half points with Tytan Anderson notching five points as UNI would go into halftime trailing 44-27.
The Panther defense came to play in the second half, holding the Sycamores scoreless for the first three and a half minutes of the period, while also forcing seven turnovers while maintaining healthy ball control. Northern Iowa continued to pressure Indiana State to get to the free throw line, putting both Robbie Avila and Xavier Bledson into foul trouble late in the game and attacking the paint. Despite hitting on ten-of-14 free throw attempts, UNI continued to struggle from beyond the three-point arc deep into the second half until Born sank the Panthers’ lone basket of the game from range with five minutes remaining.
Born finished the afternoon with a game-high 27 points on eight-of-16 shooting and ten made free throws, while Jacob Hutson posted a 14-point performance with six rebounds. Anderson led the Panthers with seven rebounds to complement a seven-point game and season-highs in steals (3) and blocks (2), as Trey Campbell finished with seven points and four boards. Nate Heise closed the game with six points.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
Indiana State leads the all-time series 36-31 after its third straight victory over the Panthers on Sunday. UNI is 21-13 against the Sycamores all-time at home.
Northern Iowa’s lone three-point field goal of the game in the second half marked the fewest three-pointers the Panthers have made in a game since going 0-for-11 at Evansville on Jan. 2, 2021.
Tytan Anderson has scored at least one point in 47 consecutive games, extending his team-leading streak among active Panthers.
Bowen Born moved up to 14th on UNI’s all-time scoring list with his 27-point performance for his 1,285th career point, passing Ken Huelman (1966-69).
Born’s perfect day at the free throw line also moved the junior guard into third in career free throw percentage in school history at 85.9% (270-314).
Jacob Hutson surpassed 400 career points on Sunday, adding to his UNI total of 154 and Loyola-Chicago total of 254 from 2020-23.
UP NEXT
The Panthers return home on Wednesday, Jan. 10 as they host the UIC Flames. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT at the McLeod Center with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
