Panthers, Bears Square off Thursday in Springfield

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UNI (8-6, 0-2) at Missouri State (12-3, 2-0)
Thurs., Jan. 4, 2018 • 8 p.m.
Springfield, Missouri (JQH Arena)

AUDIO | STATS

BROADCAST INFORMATION
Television
CBS Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Brent Stover
Analyst: Bob Wenzel
The game can be streamed by going to to cbssports.com/watch/cbssportsnetwork and choosing your TV provider.

Radio, TuneIn App
Panther Sports Network
Play-by-Play: Gary Rima
Analyst: Kevin Boyle
Flagship Station - KXEL 1540-AM
On the Web - www.UNIPanthers.com

Stats
http://www.sidearmstats.com/missouristate/mbball/media/

SERIES NOTES
All-Time Series: Missouri State leads 43-31
Last Meeting: Missouri State 70, UNI 64 (March 3, 2017)
UNI is 7-2 all-time at JQH Arena, while Panther head coach Ben Jacobson has recorded an overall mark of 16-7 against the Bears.

UNI MEN'S BASKETBALL STORYLINES VS. MISSOURI STATE
• The University of Northern Iowa men's basketball team (8-6 overall, 0-2 MVC) will make its journey to Springfield, Missouri, to match up against the Missouri State Bears (12-3 overall, 2-0 MVC) on Thursday. Tip is set for 8 p.m. at JQH Arena.

• UNI head coach Ben Jacobson has posted a mark of 15-6 vs. Missouri State. Jacobson holds a record of 8-3 in games played in Springfield, Mo. Jacobson is 7-2 in JQH Arena.

• Thursday's game will feature the Missouri Valley Conference's top two rebounders in Missouri State's Alize Johnson (10.6 rpg) and UNI's Tywhon Pickford (8.9 rpg).

• It will also feature the top-three bench scorers in the MVC. Missouri State's Reggie Scurry leads the league in bench scoring at 9.9 ppg, while UNI's Wyatt Lohaus (9.1 ppg) and Spencer Haldeman (8.4 ppg) ranks No. 2 and No. 3 among players without a start this season.

• UNI has played the ninth-toughest schedule in nation. UNI's opponents have combined for a record of 101-53 (.656).

• Freshman Tywhon Pickford (6'4") is the nation's top rebounder (8.9 rpg) under 6'5". Pickford ranks No. 8 in the nation among all freshmen.

UNI MEN'S BASKETBALL NOTES VS. MISSOURI STATE

MISSOURI STATE BEARS
Missouri State has won 10 of its last 11 games after opening the season at 2-2.
   The Bears are 6-1 at home this season with their only loss coming Nov. 17 vs. North Dakota State, 57-54.
   Alize Johnson leads the Bears in scoring (14.5 ppg) and rebounding (10.6 rpg).
   Missouri State is under the direction of sixth-year head coach Paul Lusk. Lusk began his collegiate playing career at the University of Iowa before breaking his leg and transferring to Southern Illinois. Lusk also gained his first year of head coaching experience in the state of Iowa at the University of Dubuque in the 2002-03 season.

ALL-TIME SERIES VS. MISSOURI ST
Missouri State holds a 43-31 lead over UNI in the all-time series.
   UNI is 7-2 all-time at JQH Arena, while Panther head coach Ben Jacobson has posted a 16-7 record against Missouri State.
   The Bears won the rubber match last year between the two teams in the quarterfinals of the MVC Tournament, 70-64.

VALLEY'S TOP TWO REBOUNDERS
The top two rebounders in the Missouri Valley Conference will be in display Thursday when Missouri State's Alize Johnson and UNI's Tywhon Pickford take the floor.
   Johnson is averaging 10.6 rebounds per game, while Pickford is pulling down 8.9 rebounds per contest.

MVC'S BEST BENCH SCORERS
The top three bench scorers in the Missouri Valley Conference will also be in action Thursday at JQH Arena.
   Missouri State's Reggie Scurry (9.9 ppg) and UNI's Wyatt Lohaus (9.5 ppg) and Spencer Haldeman (8.4 ppg) are the top three scorers in the conference that have yet to start a game in 2017-18.

END IT AT HALFTIME
UNI has either been tied or has held the halftime lead in each of its last seven games. UNI has been ahead at the half in each of its first two Missouri Valley Conference games this season.

Last 7 Games - Halftime Scores, Final Scores
34-27 vs. UNLV (W, 77-68 OT)
29-25 vs. UT Arlington (W, 62-58)
47-19 vs. Dubuque (W, 80-47)
33-30 vs. Iowa State (L, 76-65)
29-29 vs. Xavier (L, 77-67)
25-22 vs. Southern Illinois (L, 56-53)
33-32 at Bradley (L, 72-53)

KOCH GOES AT A HIGH LEVEL
Senior Bennett Koch leads the Panthers in scoring (13.6 ppg), field goal% (57.0%), free throw% (80.3%) and blocked shots (10) through their first 14 games.
   Koch ranks second on the squad in rebounding (7.1 rpg).
   Koch poured in 26 points on 8-of-12 shooting from the field and 10-of-12 at the foul line vs. No. 9-ranked Xavier (12/22).

Active 20-Plus Point Scoring Games
Bennett Koch (7)
Klint Carlson (3)
Hunter Rhodes (1)

NATION'S BEST REBOUNDER
UNDER 6'5"
UNI freshman guard Tywhon Pickford is the nation's top rebounder under 6'5". Pickford (6'4") is averaging 8.9 rebounds per game.
   UMass Lowell's Jahad Thomas (6'2") is the nation's next best rebounder under 6'5". Thomas is averaging 8.2 rebounds per contest.

FRESHMEN REBOUNDERS
UNI's Tywhon Pickford ranks No. 8 in the nation in rebounds among freshmen at 8.9 per game.

Freshman Rebounders
1.    Deandre Ayton (Arizona)   11.9
2.   Marvin Bagley III (Duke)   11.6
3.   Brandon McCoy (UNLV)   10.9
4.   Mohamed Bamba (Texas)   10.3
5.   Oshae Brissett (Syracuse)   9.9
6.   Eric Williams Jr. (Duquesne)   9.7
7.   Wendell Carter Jr. (Duke)   8.9
8.   Tywhon Pickford (UNI)   8.9
9.   Romello White (Arizona St.)   8.6
10.   Omari Spellman (Villanova)   8.1

PICKFORD TO THE GLASS
Pickford ranks second in the Missouri Valley Conference in rebounding (8.9 rpg). He ranks fifth in the MVC in offensive rebounds (32).
   Pickford has reached double figures in rebounds in six times this season.
   Pickford ranks fifth on the team in scoring at 8.7 points per game.

MCCLOUD SOARS
UNI sophomore point guard Juwan McCloud leads the squad in assists (34) and steals (18).
   McCloud ranks third on the team in scoring at 9.1 points per game.
   McCloud has reached double-figure scoring six times this season. Last year, McCloud had four double-figure scoring games as a true freshman.
   McCloud has drained 17 three-pointers this season after making nine three-pointers during the 2016-17 season.

TWO SPARKS OFF THE BENCH
UNI is getting a pair of scoring bursts off the bench from junior Wyatt Lohaus and sophomore Spencer Haldeman.
   Lohaus is scoring 9.5 points per game, while Haldeman is averaging 8.4 points per game.
   Lohaus ranks second and Haldeman ranks third among MVC players in scoring without making a start this season.
   Missouri State's Reggie Scurry is averaging 9.9 points per game and has not started a game this year.

HALDEMAN ZONES IN
UNI sophomore guard Spencer Haldeman is draining 50 percent of his three-point shots this season.
   Haldeman has drained a 27-of-54 from three-point range.

COUNTLESS 3-POINT BOMBERS
Through 14 games, UNI has five players who have made at least 14 3-pointers this season.
   Spencer Haldeman (27), Isaiah Brown (20), Juwan McCloud (17), Klint Carlson (14) and Tywhon Pickford (14) have all made at least 14 shots from 3-point land this season.
   UNI is averaging 8.2 made 3-pointers per game.

UNI'S 3-POINT STREAK
UNI has made at least one 3-pointer in 575 straight games – the longest active streak in the Missouri Valley Conference. It also ranks as the 32nd-longest active streak among all NCAA Division I teams.
   The last time UNI failed to make a 3-point basket came Feb. 3, 2000, vs. Southern Illinois in a 72-58 Panther victory in the UNI-Dome. UNI went 0-for-4 from 3-point land vs. the Salukis in that contest.

RESUME BUILDING
UNI built a strong resume during its non-conference play with a mark of 8-4.
   The Panthers posted wins over SMU (61-58), North Carolina State (64-60), UNLV (77-68 OT) and UT Arlington (62-58).

NINTH-TOUGHEST SCHEDULE
UNI has played the ninth-toughest schedule in nation. UNI's opponents have combined for a record of 101-53 (.656).

Rk.   Team   W/L (Pct.)
1.   Savannah State   111-44 (.716)
2.   Temple   113-47 (.706)
3.   Texas Southern   124-53 (.701)
4.   Duke   116-51 (.695)
5.   Dayton   104-46 (.693)
6.   Tennessee   95-45 (.679)
7.   Buffalo   100-50 (.667)
8.   Alabama   108-55 (.663)
9.   UNI   101-53 (.656)
10.   USC   112-62 (.644)

UNI IN NCAA RPI STRENGTH OF SCHEDULE RANKING
UNI's non-conference schedule was ranked No. 9 in the nation in the NCAA RPI listing.

NCAA Non-Conf. Strength of Schedule
1.   Texas Southern
2.   Savannah State
3.   Temple
4.   Dayton
5.   Buffalo
6.   Duke
7.    New Orleans
8.    Rhode Island
9.    UNI
10.    Prairie View

NO. 11 IN SCORING DEFENSE
UNI ranks No. 11 in the nation in scoring defense. The Panthers are giving up 61.0 points per game.

Rk.   Team   Pts Allowed/Game
1.   Virginia   52.8
2.   Texas Tech   58.2
3.   Miami (Fla.)   58.5
4.   SMU   58.9
5.   Cincinnati   59.1
6.   Rutgers   59.5
7.   UCF   60.5
8.   Michigan   60.7
9.   Bradley   60.7
10.   Old Dominion   60.8
11.   UNI   61.0

NO. 11 IN FEWEST FOULS
UNI is ranked No. 11 in the nation in fewest fouls per game (14.9).
   Fellow MVC squad Loyola is tied with UNI at No. 7 with 14.5 fouls per game.

Rk.   Team   Fouls/Game
1.   Notre Dame   13.1
2.   Elon   13.3
3.   Western Illinois   13.7
4.   George Washington   13.7
5.   Michigan   14.1
6.   Central Michigan   14.4
7.   Loyola   14.5
8.   Virginia   14.6
9.   Kansas   14.7
10.   Mississippi St.   14.8
11.   UNI   14.9

NO. 21 IN FG% DEFENSE
UNI is ranked No. 21 in the nation in field goal percentage defense (38.5).

EIGHT NCAA TRIPS FOR UNI
UNI made its eighth appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 2016. The Panthers are 5-8 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.

UNI's All-Time NCAA Tourney Results
1990 - W, 74-71 vs. #3 Missouri
1990 - L, 84-81 vs. #6 Minnesota
2004 - L, 65-60 vs. #3 Georgia Tech
2005 - L, 57-52 vs. #6 Wisconsin
2006 - L, 54-49 vs. #7 Georgetown
2009 - L, 61-56 vs. #5 Purdue
2010 - W, 69-66 vs. #8 UNLV
2010 - W, 69-67 vs. #1 Kansas
2010 - L, 59-52 vs. #5 Michigan State
2015 - W, 71-54 vs. #12 Wyoming
2015 - L, 66-53 vs. #4 Louisville
2016 - W, 75-72 vs. #6 Texas
2016 - L, 92-88 (2OT) vs. #3 Texas A&M

7TH NCAA TOURNEY SINCE 2004
The Panthers have made seven NCAA appearances since the 2004 season. Only 27 other teams have made more than seven NCAA Tournament appearances since 2004.
   That is the most NCAA Tournament apperance since 2004 for any current member of the MVC. New MVC member Valparaiso has made three NCAA Tournaments in that same time frame (2004, 2013, 2015).

Current MVC NCAA Appearances Since 2004
UNI (7) - 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, 2010, 2015, 2016
Southern Illinois (4) - 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
Valparaiso (3) - 2004, 2013, 2015
Indiana State (1) - 2011
Drake (1) - 2008
Bradley (1) - 2006

TOP-FOUR FINISHES IN MVC
UNI extended its streak of top-four finishes in the Missouri Valley Conference to a ninth straight season with its third-place finish in 2016-17.

IN THE UPPER HALF
UNI recorded its 14th straight upper-half finish Missouri Valley Conference.
   It is the longest active streak in the league.
   Prior to the 2003-04 season, when the current streak began, UNI had finished in the top half of the MVC on two occasions (1993-94 - 5th, 1996-97 - 4th) since joining the league in 1991-92.

14 STRAIGHT YEARS OF 9 OR MORE MVC WINS
UNI also extended its streak of nine or more MVC victories in a season to 14 straight years. It is the longest active streak in the league.

UNI in the MVC Since 2003-04
2003-04 - 12-6 (T-2nd)
2004-05 - 11-7 (T-3rd)
2005-06 - 11-7 (T-5th)
2006-07 - 9-9 (5th)
2007-08 - 9-9 (T-5th)
2008-09 - 14-4 (T-1st)
2009-10 - 15-3 (1st)
2010-11 - 10-8 (T-4th)
2011-12 - 9-9 (T-3rd)
2012-13 - 11-7 (3rd)
2013-14 - 10-8 (3rd)
2014-15 - 16-2 (2nd)
2015-16 - 11-7 (T-4th)
2016-17 - 9-9 (T-3rd)

PANTHERS PICKED SECOND IN MVC PRESEASON POLL
UNI has been slotted to finish second in the preseason 2017-18 Missouri Valley Conference poll.
   UNI received eight first-place votes in the preseason poll. It is the most preseason first-place votes in a year that the Panthers were not picked as the preseason favorites.

MVC Preseason Poll
School (First-Place Votes) Total
1.   Missouri State (30)   381
2.   UNI (8)       337
3.   Loyola (1)       321
4.   Illinois State (1)       256
5.   Southern Illinois       226
6.   Valparaiso       214
7.   Bradley       182
8.   Indiana State       116
9.   Evansville       88
10.   Drake       79

KOCH, CARLSON EARN ALL-MVC PRESEASON HONORS
University of Northern Iowa seniors Bennett Koch and Klint Carlson have been named to the Preseason All-Missouri Valley Conference teams.
   Koch earned first-team all-MVC honors, while Carlson was selected to the second team.
   Koch is UNI's top returning scorer at 11.0 points per game. In his last 14 games last season, Koch averaged a team-best 14.3 points and 5.6 rebounds in 24.9 minutes per game.
   Carlson averaged more points per game for the third consecutive season (8.3 ppg). He ranked No. 4 in the league at 36.6 minutes per game.

JACOBSON AGAINST THE LAND OF LINCOLN
Ben Jacobson has taken full advantage of the four schools representing the state of Illinois in the Missouri Valley Conference in his 12 seasons as UNI's head coach.
   He has an overall mark of 62-30 vs. Southern Illinois, Illinois State, Bradley and Loyola.

Jake Overall vs. MVC's Illinois Schools
Bradley    21-7
Southern Illinois   18-8
Illinois State    17-10
Loyola    6-5

COACH JAKE AMONG THE MVC'S ALL-TIME BEST
UNI head coach Ben Jacobson ranks No. 6 in MVC coaching victories with 242 triumphs heading into Sunday's game at Bradley.
   Jacobson ranks No. 7 in league history in MVC games only with 123 wins.
   Henry Iba tops both lists with 486 total wins and 187 league wins.

MVC Coaching Victories
1.    Henry P. Iba (Oklahoma State)   486
2.    Eddie Hickey (Creighton/St. Louis)   337
3.    Dana Altman (Creighton)   327
4.   Gregg Marshall (Wichita State)   261
5.   Barry Hinson (Missouri State/SIU)   257
6.   Ben Jacobson (UNI)   242
7.   Rich Herrin (Southern Illinois)   225
8.   Ralph Miller (Wichita State)   220
9.   Maury John (Drake)   211
10.   Joe Stowell (Bradley)   197

MVC Coaching Wins (Conf. Games Only)
1.    Henry P. Iba (Oklahoma State)    187
2.    Dana Altman (Creighton)    182
3.    Eddie Hickey (Creighton/St. Louis)    163
4.   Barry Hinson (Missouri State/SIU)    135
5.   Gregg Marshall (Wichita State)    134
6.    Dr. F.C. Allen (Kansas)    126
7.   Ben Jacobson (UNI)    123
8.    Rich Herrin (Southern Illinois)    111
9.    Jim Molinari (Bradley)    110
10.   Maurice John (Drake)    95

RADIO INFORMATION
This year's UNI men's basketball games can be heard on the UNI Sports Radio Network, with KXEL (1540 AM, Waterloo, Iowa) serving as flagship station. Affiliates include KBGG (1700 AM, Des Moines), KGYM (1600 AM, Cedar Rapids), KQCR (98.9 FM, Hampton), KILJ (105.5 FM, Mount Pleasant), KFXE (1160 AM, Decorah-Waukon) and KVFD (1400 AM, Fort Dodge).
   Long-time Panthers announcer Gary Rima handles play-by-play duties, while Kevin Boyle serves as analyst. Head coach Ben Jacobson's weekly radio call-in show will air on Thursdays, beginning in December at 6 p.m., live from The Other Place in Cedar Falls.

UNI INKS TOP-100 RECRUIT GREEN
University of Northern Iowa head men's basketball coach Ben Jacobson has announced the signing of consensus top-100 recruit A.J. Green to a National Letter-of-Intent to play for the Panthers beginning in the 2018-19 season.
   Green (6'4", 175 lbs., Guard – Cedar Falls, Iowa/Cedar Falls HS) is ranked among the top-100 recruits by ESPN (No. 74), 247 (No. 77), Scout (No. 77) and Rivals (No. 88). He is a four-star recruit and a first-team all-state pick by the Iowa Newspaper Association in both 2016 and 2017.
   "A.J. has a tremendous work ethic and drive to be the absolute best. It has been a lot of fun watching him work and grow as player over the course of all these years," Jacobson said. "In A.J., we are getting a player who knows our program, comes in with lofty goals and has made himself one of the best players in the country. Most importantly we are getting a terrific young guy. This is an exciting day for our basketball family and for Panther Nation as A.J. officially becomes a Panther."
   Green has scored 1,120 points entering his senior season at Cedar Falls High School. Green averaged 21.5 points per game and grabbed 4.2 rebounds per game, while he shot 47.4 percent from the floor (43.4 – 3-point range) as a junior. He averaged 17.8 points per game and made 44 percent of his three-point shots as a sophomore. Green scored 186 points and averaged 8.0 points per game as a freshman.
   Green played AAU basketball for the Iowa Barnstormers. He is the son of Kyle and Michele Green.

FOLLOW THE PANTHERS ON FACEBOOK, TWITTER & YOUTUBE
Fans of UNI Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube will have access to updates, score recaps and special announcements.
   UNI Athletics on Facebook will give fans the chance to connect with other Panther fans, as well as providing information on upcoming events. Followers on Twitter will be able to access news and scoring updates. Followers on YouTube will be able to access game highlights and press conference footage.

FACEBOOK
www.facebook.com/UNIAthletics
www.facebook.com/UNIMensBasketball

TWITTER
www.twitter.com/UNIAthletics
www.twittercom/UNIMBB

YOUTUBE
www.youtube.com/UNIAthletics

INSTAGRAM
www.instagram.com/UNIAthletics

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Panthers, Bears Square off Thursday in Springfield

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