CEDAR FALLS – UNI redshirt sophomore Leon Bond III has been named the Missouri Valley Conference’s (MVC) Player of the Week, as announced by the league office on Monday afternoon.
The selection is the first weekly conference honor for Bond, and the first by a Panther since Nate Heise earned league player of the week recognition last December.
A native of Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, Bond (pictured at top via UNI Athletics) set new career highs last week in points scored (37), field goals made (12), three-point field goals made (4) and free throws made (12) to help UNI roll past Montana at home, 104-76. His 37 points against the Grizzlies were the most recorded by an MVC player this season and third-most in UNI single-game history. Bond’s 37 points were one point shy of Jeremy Morgan’s single-game home record (38) and three from tying UNI’s all-time scoring record (40), a mark held by both Jerry Waugh and Cam Johnson. His showing against Montana also marked the most points scored by a UNI player since Morgan’s 38-point performance against North Dakota in Dec. 2016.
Bond also recorded 17 points, including nine in the first half for Northern Iowa in its 76-68 loss against Washington State on Saturday in Las Vegas at the Holiday Hoops Classic, tying Tytan Anderson for the team scoring lead.
Bond joined the Panther roster this season after two seasons at Virginia, which included a redshirt year in 2022-23. This season he has averaged 11.9 points per game on 60.2% shooting with 5.3 rebounds, 1.5 assists, one steal and 0.4 blocks per contest.
Bond and the Panthers return to action on Sunday, Dec. 29 when they host the Southern Illinois Salukis in the resumption of MVC play. Tip-off is scheduled for 1 p.m. CT inside the McLeod Center with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.