University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
11-7,5-2MVC
Evansville
6-12,3-4MVC
Panther men’s basketball rolls past Evansville, 73-56
1/14/2025 10:14:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Jacobson collects 200th career conference win in double-digit home victory. UNI visits Southern Illinois on Saturday.
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The UNI men's basketball team led for all but 53 seconds on Tuesday night as the Panthers took down the Evansville Purple Aces by a score of 73-56 inside the McLeod Center in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) play.
Despite a tough shooting night from one of the nation's top shooting teams, Northern Iowa's bench and pursuit of points in the paint and from three-point range helped the Panthers snag their 11th consecutive home victory over the Purple Aces.
Tuesday night was also a milestone win for head coach Ben Jacobson, who became the first coach in MVC men's basketball history to reach 200 wins in conference play, an achievement coming one year after he became the league's all-time leader in conference only victories.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After a slow start offensively from both teams, UNI jumped out to a healthy lead while stifling the Evansville offense to just 22% shooting in the first half. Tytan Anderson applied pressure in the paint for the Panthers with ten first half points along with five rebounds, while Max Weisbrod knocked down two of UNI's first four three-point baskets of the game for eight first period points. Northern Iowa stretched its lead to double digits thanks to an 18-2 run during a ten minute stretch of the half went multiple stretches without scoring as UNI took a 32-18 lead into halftime.
UNI would have to overcome turnovers and shooting woes in the second period, but maintained a double-digit lead on the Purple Aces for the final 20 minutes of the game. With Evansville struggling with foul trouble that saw four players foul out, UNI added to its lead with Will Hornseth attacking the paint with ten second half points on four-of-five shooting, with Trey Campbell knocking down two of the Panthers' three second half three pointers. Controlling the rebounding battle in the second period and pulling down six offensive boards, Northern Iowa would cruise to a 17-point victory.
Anderson closed the night with 15 points, eight rebounds and four assists, while Hornseth's pressure inside resulted in a career-high 12 point game. Schwieger also posted a career night with ten points and a personal-best 12 rebounds for his first career double-double, as Campbell also notched ten points on three made three pointers. Jacob Hutson tallied nine points in the UNI win, with Weisbrod recording eight points.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- UNI improves to 37-30 all-time against Evansville. Tuesday night was the lone regular season matchup between the two programs this year.
- Northern Iowa's defense held the Purple Aces to 18% from three-point range (4-for-22), the lowest shooting clip from beyond the arc by an UNI opponent this year.
- The Panther bench outscored Evansville by a 23-9 margin.
- Tytan Anderson surpassed 700 career rebounds in the win over the Purple Aces. He is now just 15 assists shy of joining Seth Tuttle (2011-15), Eric Coleman (2004-08) and Ron Lemons (1975-79) as the fourth player in team history to score 1,000 points, grab 700 rebounds and dish out 200 assists in a UNI career.
- Ben Schwieger is 35 points away from scoring his 500th career point. The Aurora, Illinois native previously scored 290 points in his two seasons played at Loyola-Chicago (2022-24).
UP NEXT
Northern Iowa returns to action on Saturday, Jan. 18 as it travels to Carbondale to take on the Southern Illinois Salukis. Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT at the Banterra Center, with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network.
UNI men's basketball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Men's Basketball), X (@UNImbb) and on Instagram (@uni_basketball). The full 2024-25 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
