University of Northern Iowa
19-10,13-5MVC
Drake
25-3,15-3MVC
Panther men’s basketball drops overtime thriller to Drake, 64-58
2/23/2025 7:13:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UNI sits in a tie for second in the MVC standings with two games to play. Panthers host UIC in home finale on Wednesday night.
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- UNI men's basketball pushed the league-leading Drake Bulldogs to the brink on Sunday afternoon, but ultimately came up short in a 64-58 overtime loss inside the McLeod Center in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) action to snap a six-game win streak.
In the 88th edition of the Panther-Bulldog rivalry, Northern Iowa and Drake both held each other's offenses under 40% shooting and turned the pivotal battle for first-place in the conference standings into a defensive struggle. UNI would take a two-point lead in the final seconds, but were unable to stop the Bulldogs on their final possession of regulation after a foul on a three-point shot with less than a second to play.
HOW IT HAPPENED
After an explosive start to the game on a Trey Campbell to Ben Schwieger alley-oop dunk, the Panthers struggled to find the bottom of the net in the opening period, shooting just 30% from the field and being held scoreless for a six and a half minute stretch. Despite struggling to score off turnovers and rebounds against the Bulldogs, the Panthers chipped away at Drake's eight-point lead down the stretch, with Tytan Anderson leading the way for Northern Iowa with 11 first half points. Jacob Hutson added eight points for the Panthers at the free throw line, cutting Drake lead down to a single possession and heading into halftime trailing 30-27.
UNI would stay with the Bulldogs in the second stanza and hold Drake to 27.6% shooting and overcoming an eight-point deficit. Schwieger gave the Panthers their first lead since the start of the game by scoring on three consecutive possessions with a three-point bucket, one-handed dunk and layup to put UNI up 46-45 with just under nine minutes to play. After five lead changes down the stretch, Campbell put UNI ahead on a critical three-point basket with Hutson adding a free throw in the final seconds, but Drake's Mitch Mascari would be fouled in the act of a three-point shot with one-tenth of a second remaining, making two of three free throws to force overtime.
In its first overtime contest of the season, Northern Iowa would face a tough blow as Anderson, its leading scorer, fouled out of the game with three minutes, 20 seconds to go as the Bulldogs outscored the Panthers 9-3 in the bonus period.
Anderson finished the afternoon with a team-high 21 points, plus six rebounds and a pair of steals in the loss, with Hutson tallying 14 points and nine rebounds. Schwieger posted 12 points, seven boards, while Campbell scored ten points and dished out a team-leading three assists, along with two steals and a block.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
- UNI falls to 53-35 all-time against the Bulldogs in the all-time series.
- Sunday's attendance of 6,652 fans marked the highest attended Northern Iowa men's basketball game since Nov. 21, 2015 when the Panthers upset No. 1 North Carolina in front of 7,018 fans.
- Tytan Anderson recorded his fifth game of 20+ points on Sunday and tenth of his career. UNI is 14-5 this year when Anderson scores at least 15 points.
- Anderson passed Anthony James (2008-13) for 14th on UNI's all-time scoring list with his 1,324th point in Sunday's loss. He also moved ahead of Jason Reese (1986-90) for seventh on the program's all-time rebounds list (778).
- Will Hornseth continues to maintain a single-season shooting percentage of .692 on the season (63-of-91), currently on pace to set a new single-season program record.
UP NEXT
UNI will close out the home portion of its schedule on Wednesday night when it welcomes the UIC Flames to the McLeod Center. Tip off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT with live coverage available on the MVC TV Network, as well as the Panther Sports Radio Network.
Tickets can be purchased online through the UNI Ticket Office, by calling 319-273-4849 or through email at tickets@uni.edu.
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.
