University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Indiana State
Panther men’s hoops host Indiana State in New Year’s Day clash
12/31/2025 10:38:00 AM | Men's Basketball
UNI aims for third MVC win of the season taking on the Sycamores on Thursday night. Tickets now available for purchase.
UNI men's basketball (10-3 / 2-0 MVC) vs. Indiana State (8-6 / 1-2 MVC)
- 7 p.m. CT
- Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026
- Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center (6,650)
- WATCH (ESPN+) | [Brad Wells: Play-by-Play / Kevin Lehman: Analyst)
- LISTEN (Panther Sports Radio Network) [J.W. Cox: Play-by-Play / Kevin Boyle: Analyst]
- LIVE RESULTS
- TICKETS
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- The UNI men's basketball team will ring in 2026 on Thursday night as it plays host to the Indiana State Sycamores in a Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) matchup on New Year's Day.
Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT inside the McLeod Center with live coverage available on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network (93.5 The Mix) with J.W. Cox and Kevin Boyle on the call.
Single-game and season tickets for the 2025-26 men's basketball regular season can be purchased online through the UNI Ticket Office, by calling 319-273-4849 or through email at tickets@uni.edu.
College students from any school can receive free admission to the game by showing their school IDs at the gate. Additionally, fans will be treated to $1 Day, with $1 off all tickets, as well as $1 hot dogs, sodas and popcorn.
The Panthers and Sycamores are locked in a dead heat in the all-time series with Indiana State leading 37-33, with UNI sweeping both regular season matchups last year. Northern Iowa is also an even 19-19 all-time against the Sycamores under head coach Ben Jacobson.
UNI returns home after a strong second half showing to top the Valparaiso Beacons on Monday night in league play, 58-48. The Panthers overcame a sluggish first period and tough rebounding performance to hold the Beacons to a season-low 48 points and three-of-23 shooting from three-point range to grab their second win of the year in MVC action.
Will Hornseth finished with a career-high tying 16 points, plus seven rebounds and three assists against the Beacons, with Trey Campbell posting 12 points and three assists. Ben Schwieger notched nine points, six rebounds and two blocks, while Leon Bond III also scored nine points and four boards. Tristan Smith tallied four points with seven rebounds as Geon Hutchins also added four points.
UNI ranks second in all of Division I with a 57.3 points per game scoring defense, allowing 60 or fewer points in all but three games this year, going 8-0 when doing so.The Panthers are also in the top-ten in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.363) and third three-point field goal percentage defense (.249), with no opponents shooting over 50% from the field against UNI this season.The Panther defense has forced 13.5 opposing turnovers per game through the first 12 games of the season, third-most in the MVC.
The Panthers are 17th in the nation in assist/turnover ratio (1.79), rankings third in the league with 16.8 assists per game. Northern Iowa also boasts the MVC's third-best scoring margin (12.8) and have committed just 9.4 turnovers per game.
Campbell looks to continue to add to the record book against Indiana State. Having scored his 1,000th career point in December, Campbell's 109 career starts at UNI, tied for ninth most in program history alongside Cedrick McCullough (1988-92) and one away from tying Jeremy Morgan (2013-17) for seventh all-time. Campbell also boasts the most career starts among all active players in the MVC.
Sophomore forward Will Hornseth looks to continue to be a strong presence inside the paint, recently taking over as UNI's career shooting percentage leader (63.8%) with a minimum of 100 made shots. Schwieger meanwhile looks to continue his march to 500 points in his UNI career, looking to become the 116th player in team history to reach the milestone as Bond sits just 12 points shy of 500 for his career.
SCOUTING INDIANA STATE
The Sycamores roll into Cedar Falls on New Year's Day after topping league-leading Belmont at home on Monday night in an 81-80 overtime victory in Terre Haute. Indiana State has dropped its other two league contests to Bradley and Illinois State to begin league play.
Led by second year head coach Matthew Graves, the Sycamores are coming off a 14-18 campaign a year ago that ended with a first round loss to Southern Illinois in the opening round of the MVC Tournament by one point.
The most fouled team in the league with 15.4 fouls committed per game, Ian Scott leads Indiana State with 13.9 points per game as well as 17 steals, as well as leading the MVC in total rebounds (104), defensive rebounds per game (6) and double-doubles (4). Camp Wagner has also posted 13.2 points a game with 5.1 rebounds. Sterling Young, Derek Vorst and Xavier Hall have all also notched at least nine points a game for the Sycamores this year.
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). Schedule and roster information, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
