University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
1-4,0-0MVC
Texas Tech
4-1,0-0Big 12
Panther men’s basketball comes up short in 72-70 loss to Texas Tech
11/23/2023 3:17:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UNI ties the game with 27 seconds to play, but falls to Red Raiders. Panthers to play either Michigan or Stanford on Friday.
PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas --- UNI men's basketball held Texas Tech to 32% shooting in the first half, but could not slow the Red Raiders down in the second period and final seconds in a 72-70 loss on Thanksgiving Day at the Battle 4 Atlantis in the Bahamas.
The Panthers led for the first 32 minutes of the game with 47% shooting, but struggled to find the bottom of the net in the final ten minutes as Texas Tech outscored Northern Iowa by 11 points in a key second half run.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Panthers opened the game and led from the opening tip to the halftime horn with Nate Heise and Trey Campbell riding hot shooting hands. Forcing early Red Raider turnovers, Northern Iowa capitalized on excellent ball movement along the three-point perimeter to open up looks inside as the Panthers outscored Texas Tech 16-6 in the paint. UNI stretched its lead to as many as 12 points as Texas Tech shot just 32.1% from the floor, holding the Red Raider scoring offense to only Pop Isaacs and Joe Toussaint for the first 14 minutes of play. Texas Tech would cut UNI's lead down to single-digits in the final minutes of the half before Bowen Born would sink a three-point basket and draw contact for a four-point play, while Heise sank a triple in the final seconds of the period to take a 40-31 lead into halftime.
Northern Iowa maintained its leads for much of the second half with another strong period, distributing the ball with seven second half assists. Shooting 45.5% from the field in the second stanza, the Panthers extended their lead to as many as 15 points, but saw the Red Raiders penetrate inside and gradually cut away at UNI's lead. Texas Tech would use a 21-3 run to tie the game at 64-64, and then take the lead. A Heise free throw and Anderson three-point bucket would tie the game at 70-70 with 27 seconds to play, but Isaacs would win the game for the Red Raiders with a pullup jumper with two seconds remaining.
Heise led the Panthers with a team-high 18 points, eight rebounds and two blocks in the loss, while Anderson matched his season-high with a 14-point effort with four points. Born posted 11 points and four boards, with Campbell tallying nine points on four-of-ten shooting and Jacob Hutson notching seven points.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- Wednesday matchup was the first all-time meeting between Northern Iowa and Texas Tech on the basketball court.
- UNI drops to 23-20 all-time in multi-team events (MTE's) with its loss to the Red Raiders.
- The Panthers are 13-9 all-time against teams from the State of Texas.
UP NEXT
UNI returns to action for its final game of the Battle 4 Atlantis on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT against the loser of Thursday night's Michigan-Stanford game.. Live coverage will be available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
