Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Wednesday, February 8
Cedar Falls, Ia.
7:00 PM
Southern Illinois University
14-12, 7-6MVC
41
at
49
Northern Iowa
12-12, 7-6MVC
1
2
F
Southern Illinois
17
24
41
UNI
22
27
49
Photo by: Tom Weber
Northern Iowa's defense turns back Men's Basketball, 49-41
02/08/2017 | 11:21:00 | Men's Basketball
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — Northern Iowa completed a series sweep of Southern Illinois with a hardscrabble 49-41 victory at the McLeod Center on Wednesday night.
After losing their first five games of the Missouri Valley Conference season, the Panthers (12-12, 7-6) have won seven of their last eight and climbed all the way from last place into a tie with SIU for third.
They did it tonight with a smothering defense that held Southern to its fourth-lowest point total in school history. SIU shot 30 percent from field, including 3-of-19 from 3-point. No Saluki player reached double figures in scoring.
"When you play Northern Iowa, you have to make outside shots, you have to make perimeter jumpers, and we had nobody tonight that could step up and do that," said SIU head coach Barry Hinson.
The Salukis (14-12, 7-6) lost their 14th-straight road game at UNI and dropped to 0-11 at the McLeod Center, which opened in 2006. If they finish tied with the Panthers in the league standings, the tiebreaker will go to UNI.
"It's a huge loss," Hinson said. "We know the ramifications. I think the way I look at the schedule, Northern Iowa is probably going to end up being third. We weren't ready for the pressure of that tonight."
Northern Iowa never trailed in the game but didn't push the lead out of reach until the final five minutes. That's because the Panthers also labored to make shots, connecting on 37 percent and going 2-of-18 from deep. Where they had the advantage was in the post, as forward Klint Carlson led all scorers with 14 points, while center Bennett Koch added 12. Between the two of them, they made 10-of-16 shots, while their teammates went 6-of-27.
"We set basketball back tonight 50 years," Hinson said. "Mr. Iba would have really been happy about this game. If I'm a fan, I'm leaving here tonight, going hmm, I don't know about that game. That was an ugly game."
The key to Southern's offense lately has been the dominant play of forward Sean O'Brien. The 6-foot-7 senior has been lethal in the low post — able to beat his man and finish with either hand, or pass to the open man if double-teamed.
The Panthers had a plan, though, and held O'Brien to eight points on 4-of-14 shooting. They defended him with Karlson, a burly 6-foot-7 forward. At times, they came with double-teams and forced him to make quick decisions that led to a season-high five turnovers, though he did have half of his team's eight assists.
"In the last three games, he was making every play, he was outstanding," said UNI coach Ben Jacobson. "So coming into this game, he was playing with a bunch of confidence and at a really, really high level. He got loose a couple times in the second half. He's a hard guy to mix it up on, because he has such a good feeling and does such a good job of making plays."
Hinson did not point the finger at O'Brien for the loss.
"I can't do that because Sean has been phenomenal for us," Hinson said. "He just had one of those nights."
The closest the Salukis came to challenging the lead was on a jumper by O'Brien with 6:37 to go that cut the deficit to 36-32. Southern didn't score during the next four-and-half minutes, however, and the Panthers pushed the advantage safely to double figures.
Leo Vincent came off the bench to lead SIU with nine points, as he connected on 3-of-8 from long range. Point guard Mike Rodriguez had seven points, but missed his first eight shots, and all three of his buckets were driving layups during the final 90 seconds when the game was out of reach.
"The (Panthers) have length," Hinson said. "We tell Mike continuously — you can't attack the basket — you have to attack the logo. When you attack the basket you have to get in and get out. In his defense, he gets fouled so much in all the other games, but he can't differentiate between the teams."
Northern Iowa's record is back to .500 for the first time since December.
"I tell the team, your record doesn't have anything to do with how you're going to practice today or anything to do with how you're going to play on game night," Jacobson said.
The Salukis will look to bounce back at home on Saturday against Evansville, on a day when the program will welcome home superstars Walt Frazier, Dick Garrett and others, in honor of the 50-year anniversary of its NIT championship.
"We've gotta find a way now to finish better than what we were picked, and that next slot would be fourth and try to hang in there," Hinson said.
After losing their first five games of the Missouri Valley Conference season, the Panthers (12-12, 7-6) have won seven of their last eight and climbed all the way from last place into a tie with SIU for third.
They did it tonight with a smothering defense that held Southern to its fourth-lowest point total in school history. SIU shot 30 percent from field, including 3-of-19 from 3-point. No Saluki player reached double figures in scoring.
"When you play Northern Iowa, you have to make outside shots, you have to make perimeter jumpers, and we had nobody tonight that could step up and do that," said SIU head coach Barry Hinson.
The Salukis (14-12, 7-6) lost their 14th-straight road game at UNI and dropped to 0-11 at the McLeod Center, which opened in 2006. If they finish tied with the Panthers in the league standings, the tiebreaker will go to UNI.
"It's a huge loss," Hinson said. "We know the ramifications. I think the way I look at the schedule, Northern Iowa is probably going to end up being third. We weren't ready for the pressure of that tonight."
Northern Iowa never trailed in the game but didn't push the lead out of reach until the final five minutes. That's because the Panthers also labored to make shots, connecting on 37 percent and going 2-of-18 from deep. Where they had the advantage was in the post, as forward Klint Carlson led all scorers with 14 points, while center Bennett Koch added 12. Between the two of them, they made 10-of-16 shots, while their teammates went 6-of-27.
"We set basketball back tonight 50 years," Hinson said. "Mr. Iba would have really been happy about this game. If I'm a fan, I'm leaving here tonight, going hmm, I don't know about that game. That was an ugly game."
The key to Southern's offense lately has been the dominant play of forward Sean O'Brien. The 6-foot-7 senior has been lethal in the low post — able to beat his man and finish with either hand, or pass to the open man if double-teamed.
The Panthers had a plan, though, and held O'Brien to eight points on 4-of-14 shooting. They defended him with Karlson, a burly 6-foot-7 forward. At times, they came with double-teams and forced him to make quick decisions that led to a season-high five turnovers, though he did have half of his team's eight assists.
"In the last three games, he was making every play, he was outstanding," said UNI coach Ben Jacobson. "So coming into this game, he was playing with a bunch of confidence and at a really, really high level. He got loose a couple times in the second half. He's a hard guy to mix it up on, because he has such a good feeling and does such a good job of making plays."
Hinson did not point the finger at O'Brien for the loss.
"I can't do that because Sean has been phenomenal for us," Hinson said. "He just had one of those nights."
The closest the Salukis came to challenging the lead was on a jumper by O'Brien with 6:37 to go that cut the deficit to 36-32. Southern didn't score during the next four-and-half minutes, however, and the Panthers pushed the advantage safely to double figures.
Leo Vincent came off the bench to lead SIU with nine points, as he connected on 3-of-8 from long range. Point guard Mike Rodriguez had seven points, but missed his first eight shots, and all three of his buckets were driving layups during the final 90 seconds when the game was out of reach.
"The (Panthers) have length," Hinson said. "We tell Mike continuously — you can't attack the basket — you have to attack the logo. When you attack the basket you have to get in and get out. In his defense, he gets fouled so much in all the other games, but he can't differentiate between the teams."
Northern Iowa's record is back to .500 for the first time since December.
"I tell the team, your record doesn't have anything to do with how you're going to practice today or anything to do with how you're going to play on game night," Jacobson said.
The Salukis will look to bounce back at home on Saturday against Evansville, on a day when the program will welcome home superstars Walt Frazier, Dick Garrett and others, in honor of the 50-year anniversary of its NIT championship.
"We've gotta find a way now to finish better than what we were picked, and that next slot would be fourth and try to hang in there," Hinson said.
Team Stats
SIU
UNI
FG%
.300
.372
3FG%
.158
.111
FT%
.333
.625
RB
35
41
TO
11
16
STL
6
8
Game Leaders
Pts
9
FGM
3
3FGM
3
FTM
0
Pts
8
FGM
4
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
1
Players Mentioned
F
/ Men's BasketballG
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