UNI men's basketball: Panthers square off with Towson in Chicago

UNI men's basketball vs. Towson (Legends of Basketball Showcase)

12 p.m. CT | Dec. 17, 2022
Chicago, Ill. | United Center (20,197)
Panther Sports Radio Network (J.W. Cox: Play-by-Play)

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- After concluding a four-game homestand earlier this week, UNI men's basketball returns to the road on Saturday afternoon as the Panthers battle Towson in the opening game of the inaugural Legends of Basketball Showcase at the United Center in Chicago. Meeting for the first time in program history, Saturday's matchup also marks the third consecutive game in which the Panthers have played a first-time opponent.

UNI PANTHERS
Following a tough 72-69 loss at the final horn to South Florida, UNI looks to snap its three-game skid in the Windy City in the first of two games in Chicago this year. The Panthers will play at UIC in conference play on Jan. 21.

In their game against South Florida, UNI shot 51% from the field and was able to tie the game with four seconds remaining thanks to a Bowen Born layup. The Bulls would end the game however on a three-point basket as time expired to hand the Panthers the difficult loss in front of the home crowd. In the loss, UNI scored 20 points of 14 USF turnovers, but the Panthers were unable to limit giveaways on their end, giving up 23 points to the Bulls of 17 turnovers.

Tytan Anderson finished the game with a team-high 16 points and seven rebounds, while Michael Duax, Cole Henry and Landon Wolf each scored 10 points. James Betz notched 8 points in the loss as Trey Campbell tallied 5 points with a pair of steals.

Held to a season-low 4 points on Monday night, Born leads the Panthers averaging 19 points per game, the fourth best mark in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). The third-year guard has averaged 19.8 points a contest in his last six games.

Anderson leads the league with four double-doubles this season, 23rd most in the nation. The third-year forward leads the MVC in rebounds per game (9.2), ranks second in defensive rebounds a game (6.6) and third in offensive boards per contest (2.6).

Head coach Ben Jacobson also continues his march toward MVC history, sitting third on the conference's all-time wins list with 324. Jacobson is four wins shy of passing former Creighton coach Dana Altman for second on the list.

TOWSON TIGERS
The reigning Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) champions seek to bounce back following a 71-69 loss in overtime on Sunday at home, their second consecutive loss after starting the season 8-1. Like the Panthers, Towson reached last year's NIT Tournament as an automatic qualifier before falling to Wake Forest in the opening round of play. The Tigers are the fourth of nine teams UNI will face this season that made a national postseason tournament a year ago.

Towson was picked as the overwhelming preseason favorite to win the CAA title, receiving 12 of 13 first place votes. Led by 12th year head coach Pat Skerry, the Tigers landed three players on the Preseason All-CAA First Team, including leading scorer Nicolas Timberlake, who has averaged 17 points per game to begin this season. Cam Holden has notched 15.7 points a game, while Charles Thompson has tallied 12.5 points and a team-high 7.6 rebounds per contest.

In their loss to Navy, the Tigers turned the ball over a season-high 18 times, allowing the Midshipmen to score 21 points off takeaways. Towson also struggled in the paint as Navy outscored the Tigers 29-18 inside the lane. Timberlake led the Tigers with 17 points in the loss, with Holden scoring 13. Thompson notched 11 points with 6 rebounds, as Nygal Russell led the game with 8 rebounds to compliment 7 points in 38 minutes.

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