Panther men's basketball opens two-game road swing at Missouri State

UNI men's basketball at Missouri State

3 p.m. CT | Feb. 18, 2023
Springfield, Mo. | Great Southern Bank Arena (11,000)
ESPN3 (Tom Ackerman: Play-by-Play / Danan Hughes: Analyst)
Panther Sports Radio Network (J.W. Cox: Play-by-Play)

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- UNI looks to snap its recent skid on Saturday afternoon as the Panthers take on the Missouri State Bears in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play at Great Southern Bank Arena. The Panthers have won 8 of their last 10 matchups with the Bears, including their last two trips to Springfield.

UNI and Missouri State last met on Dec. 28 in Cedar Falls, where the Bears shot over 50% from the field in a 79-67 win over the Panthers during the early portion of the MVC schedule. Bowen Born led UNI with a team-high 23 points on 7-of-12 shooting from the field, and shot 5-of-8 from three-point range.

UNI PANTHERS
The Panthers battled back from down as many as 14 points to pull within one possession, but were unable to overcome a high-powered Drake offense in their last outing on Wednesday in an 82-74 home loss.

After a slow shooting start, UNI's shooting improved into the second half as the Panthers drained 65.2% of their shots. UNI was able to draw the Bulldogs into 11 fouls, including putting Drake's Roman Penn into serious foul trouble down the stretch while gradually chipping away the Bulldogs' lead. Ege Peksari played a key role with 16 minutes off the bench and a career-high 5 points and a team-high 5 rebounds, helping the Panthers put together key stops to slow the Drake offense. Despite a furious rally, UNI would be unable to match the Bulldogs in the final minutes as Drake pulled away late for the 8-point win.

Born finished the night with a team-high 16 points and a pair of steals, as Trey Campbell notched 15 points on 4-of-7 shooting from the field. Tytan Anderson posted a 12-point game with 2 steals and a block, while Betz scored 11 points with a career-high 3 made baskets from beyond the three-point arc. Henry finished the game with 10 points, his sixth game in double-digit scoring figures this season.

Born has averaged 17.0 points per game in league play this season, and ranks fourth in the MVC in total points scored (484) and fourth in overall average (also 17.9 points per game).

Born's 10 highest scoring games of his career have all come this season.

30 points at Drake (Feb. 1)
30 points vs. Northern Illinois (Nov. 26)
29 points vs. Evansville (Dec. 3)
27 points vs. Southern Illinois (Jan. 7)
27 points vs. Towson (Dec. 17)
27 points vs. Toledo (Dec. 6)
25 points at Illinois State (Dec. 31)
23 points vs. Missouri State (Dec. 28)
23 points vs. Murray State (Jan. 10)
22 points at Bradley (Nov. 30)

Anderson's 10 double-doubles lead the MVC and rank 28th most in the nation. He also leads the league in rebounds per game (8.9) and defensive rebounds per contest (6.7). Anderson's league-best 240 total rebounds this season are 29th most in the country. The Eldridge, Iowa native entered the season averaging 1.9 points and 2.0 rebounds per game.
Seven freshmen in the MVC this season have scored 150+ points in their first season on the floor, including three Panthers in Michael Duax (260 points), Trey Campbell (207 points) and Landon Wolf (193 points).
Collectively, the Panthers lead the nation in points per game scored by in-state players, as Iowa-born players have accounted for 68.7 points a game.

The Panthers have averaged 15.1 personal fouls per game, third fewest in the MVC this year. As a result, UNI has also averaged 17.1 free throw attempts per game, fifth most in the conference.

Head coach Ben Jacobson can surpass former Creighton coach Dana Altman as the second-winningest coach in MVC history in conference only games with a victory. Both Jacobson and Altman have won 182 games in league play. Former Oklahoma State coach Henry P. Iba won 187 games against conference opponents from 1934-70.

MISSOURI STATE BEARS
The Bears enter Saturday's matchup following a 10-point loss at Bradley on Wednesday night, 64-54. Missouri State fell behind by 12 points in the first five minutes of the game, and later in the second half by as many as 18 points as Bradley's defense held the Bears to 33% from the floor. Donovan Clay led with 16 points for Missouri State, while Alston Mason scored 14 points. Chance Moore added 11 points, as N.J. Benson notched a career-high 12 rebounds off the bench.
Noted for their depth this season, the Bears lead the MVC with 23.2 points from their bench and their ability to rebound the ball offensively. Missouri State leads the league with 11.2 offensive boards per game.

Clay leads MSU with 11.6 points per game while shooting 46.9% from the field and 5.6 rebounds, with Chance Moore averaging 11.2 points a game with 44 made three-pointers this season (35.5%). Jonathan Mogbo has been a defensive anchor for the Bears with a team-high 36 steals and 29 blocked shots on the year.

Like the Panthers this season, Missouri State has struggled at the free throw line, shooting a league-worst 62.7% from the charity stripe.

The Bears collectively have scored 65.1 points per game, but are 1-4 this season when scoring 60 or fewer points in a game.

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