UNI men’s basketball squares off with Drake in MVC clash

UNI men's basketball vs. Drake

5 p.m. CT | Jan. 22
Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center (6,650)
ESPNU (Robert Lee: Play-by-Play / Kevin Lehman: Analyst)
1540 KXEL: Panther Sports Radio Network (Gary Rima: Play-by-Play / Kevin Boyle: Analyst)

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- UNI men's basketball returns home to the McLeod Center late on Saturday afternoon as the Panthers host in-state conference rival Drake in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) action.

During the game, former members of the UNI men's basketball program will be recognized as part of the program's alumni game.

The Panthers look to rebound following a tough 83-80 overtime loss at Valparaiso on Wednesday night. UNI led by 5 points at halftime and by as many as 9 points, but the Beacons rallied off a strong offensive performance to drop the Panthers to 5-2 in league play, UNI's first loss in nearly a month. Noah Carter led the Panthers with an impressive performance against Valparaiso with a career-high 33 points, as well as 10 rebounds and five assists to notch his third career double-double. Trae Berhow recorded 14 points off of 4 three-point field goals and 4 assists in the loss, while Bowen Born scored 11 points. Nate Heise posted 9 points, including the game-tying layup to force overtime, as Austin Phyfe notched 7 points.

Drake (13-6; 4-2 MVC) comes to Cedar Falls coming off an 83-71 home loss to Bradley on Wednesday in Des Moines. The Bulldogs, who will play their third game in 6 days on Saturday, are led by former Panther Darian DeVries, who played for UNI from 1994 to 1998. DeVries, a two-time recipient of the MVC's Coach of the Year Award in 2019 and 2021, helped lead the Bulldogs to an at-large berth in the NCAA Tournament last season, where Drake defeated Wichita State in the First Four round in West Lafayette, Indiana.

The Bulldogs were selected as the MVC's preseason favorite to win the league's regular season title, receiving 29 of 37 first place votes. A roster built with depth, Drake boasts three players averaging over 10 points per game, led by freshman Tucker DeVries, who has posted 13.4 points with 4.5 rebounds a game in 12 starts this season. Senior guard and First Team All-MVC Preseason selection Roman Penn averages 10.4 points per game leading the Bulldogs with 3.7 assists a game, while Garrett Sturtz, one of the MVC's leading rebounders, averages 10.5 points and 7.1 rebounds per game for Drake. The Bulldogs also lean on the talents of senior forward ShanQuan Hemphill, a Second Team All-MVC Preseason honoree posting 9.4 points in just over 25 minutes per game. Defensively, Tremell Murphy sits right behind Sturtz in rebounding for Drake, and leads the team with 14 blocked shots.

UNI leads the all-time series against the Bulldogs 50-30. Drake swept both regular season matchups last season and has won the last three meetings overall. The two programs were scheduled to meeting in last year's MVC Tournament quarterfinal in St. Louis, but the game was ruled a no contest due to COVID-19 protocols in the area with Drake advancing, eventually reaching the championship game before falling to Loyola-Chicago.

PANTHER NOTES

UNI is 21-12 against Drake under head coach Ben Jacobson. The Panthers are also 13-5 at home against the Bulldogs in the Jacobson era (since 2006-07).
Noah Carter has recorded at least 15 points in each of UNI's 7 conference matchups this season. The sophomore forward is averaging 19.7 points per game in MVC play, the 8th best average in the league.
The Panthers have averaged 8.1 more points on offense in league play (79.7) than against non-conference opponents (71.6).
When shooting 50% or better from the field, UNI is undefeated (5-0).
UNI is 72-9 when scoring at least 80 points under Ben Jacobson.
The Panthers have made at least 10 free throws in their last 4 games, including at least 19 in 3 of their last 4 contests.
AJ Green is 30 points shy of joining the 1,500-career point club. The 9th leading scorer in UNI history would become just the 7th player to reach 1,500 points, and first since Seth Tuttle in 2015.
Trae Berhow is 12 points away from passing former Panther and current Drake head coach Darian DeVries for 32nd on the program's all-time scoring list. Berhow has scored 1,073 points since transferring to UNI from Pepperdine in 2018.
Austin Phyfe is 48 points from passing his father Steve on UNI's all-time scoring list. Steve Phyfe, who played at UNI from 1987-90, was a member of the program's first NCAA Division I Tournament team in 1990.

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