UNI Drops Missouri State on Senior Day, 71-56

Saturday, February 24

Cedar Falls, Iowa

1 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

15-15 (7-11MVC)

Missouri State

17-14 (7-11MVC)

Missouri State

UNI

UNI Drops Missouri State on Senior Day, 71-56

2/24/2018 3:55:00 PM | Men's Basketball

Box Score UNI-MSU-boxscore-2018-2

By: Colin McDonough

BOX SCORE (PDF)

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - The University of Northern Iowa men's basketball squad sent its senior class out in style with a 71-56 victory over the Missouri State Bears on Saturday in the McLeod Center.

UNI (15-15 overall, 7-11 MVC) won its second straight game and shot better than 50 percent for the second successive contest. The Panthers shot 51.0 percent from the floor by draining 26-of-51 field goals. Missouri State (17-14 overall, 7-11 MVC) fell fo the ninth time in 11 games. The Bears shot 36.5 percent from the field on 19-of-52 shooting.

UNI trailed 20-16 with 10:31 left in the first half before locking in defensively against the Bears. Missouri State then missed its next 12 field goal attempts. UNI took full advantage of the Bears's shooting woes and capitalized with a 21-2 run to give the Panthers a 37-22 lead with 2:08 remaining in the half. The Panthers led at the break, 39-25.

Missouri State cut the UNI lead to eight on two occasions in the second half but could get no closer.

UNI seniors played a big role in Saturday's victory. Klint Carlson scored a game-high 16 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Hunter Rhodes drained three 3-pointers and scored 13 points to go along with four assists. Ted Friedman tallied a season-high seven points as he rocked a pair of dunks and drilled a three-pointer in the closing seconds.

UNI will head to St. Louis to take part in the 2018 Missouri Valley Conference Tournament held March 1-4 at Scottrade Center. The final MVC seedings will be set on Sunday morning with the release of the RPI. UNI will likely be the No. 9 seed and play No. 8 seeded Evansville pending the final RPI breakdown.

NOTES: UNI senior Bennett Koch did not dress for Saturday's game after suffering an ankle injury late in Tuesday's UNI win at Valparaiso ... UNI has made at least one 3-pointer in 591 straight games - the longest active streak in the MVC ... UNI finishes 12-4 in the McLeod Center this season ... Missouri State won the rebounding battle (30-29), but UNI improved from its previous effort at Missouri State where the Bears won the battle (51-26) ... UNI limited Alize Johnson, who ranks second in the nation in total rebounds, to five rebounds after Johnson came into the contest having posted four straight double-figure rebound games ... it marked only the second time in MVC play this season that Johnson was held to five rebounds (previously at Bradley on Jan. 23).