Panthers Make it Four Straight; Defeat Aces, 61-54

Wednesday, January 25

Cedar Falls, Iowa

7 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

9-11, 4-5MVC

Evansville

10-12, 1-8MVC

Evansville

UNI

Panthers Make it Four Straight; Defeat Aces, 61-54

1/25/2017 9:44:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The University of Northern Iowa men's basketball team ran its win streak to four in a row with a 61-54 home win over the Evansville Purple Aces.

UNI (9-11 overall, 4-5 MVC) got a double-double fromredshirt freshman Luke McDonnell as he posted 14 points and 12 rebounds in the victory. Bennett Koch led all scorers with 17 points and three blocked shots. Klint Carlson added 11 points, while Jeremy Morgan nabbed five steals on the defensive end of the floor.

Evansville (10-12 overall, 1-8 MVC) lost its seventh straight game and fell to 2-9 all-time in the McLeod Center. The MVC's leading scorer Jaylon Brown was limited to 13 points and seven assists.

The Panthers never trailed in the contest and jumped out to an 18-point first-half lead at 33-15. McDonnell secured his double-double in the first half as he recorded 10 points and 11 rebounds off the bench. UNI would take a 35-22 lead into the intermission.

Evansville used a 16-4 run to cut the UNI lead to 37-31 with 15:28 left in the game. On UNI's ensuing possession, Koch grabbed a loose ball near the Panther basket, secured it and dropped in a bucket while getting fouled. Koch's three-point play gave UNI a 40-31 lead with 14:34 remaining. Evansville trimmed the UNI advantage to five points at 40-35 following a Ryan Taylor basket with 13:35 to go.

UNI responded with an 11-2 run that was capped by a runner off the glass from redshirt freshman Spencer Haldeman with 7:04 left in the game that gave the Panthers a 51-37 lead. It would prove to be UNI's final field goal of the game as the Panthers scored their final 10 points at the foul line over the final 7:04. Evansville would close to within 52-46 and 54-48, but could not get the margin under six in the closing minutes.

UNI will head to Drake on Saturday to matchup with the Bulldogs in the Knapp Center. Tip is set for 1 p.m.

NOTES: Jeremy Morgan drained two three-pointers and moved into No. 8 on UNI's all-time three-point list - ahead of former Panther Ali Farokhmanesh (152 from 2008-2010) ... Morgan's five steals give him 173 in his career and seven away from the Panthers' all-time steals leader Brent Carmichael, who posted 180 from 1981-1983) ... UNI has won a season-best four games in a row ... UNI blocked a season-high eight shots ... UNI, after starting 0-5 in the MVC, has won its last four league games ... only two teams in MVC history have lost their first five league games and rebounded to win their next five. (Washburn started 0-5 in 1936 and won its next five; Iowa State started 0-5 in 1915 and won its next five.) ... before UNI this year, North Texas, in 1973, was the last MVC team to lose its first five then win its next four.