University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Illinois State
Panthers close weekend with a rematch against Illinois State
2/8/2025 3:56:00 PM | Women's Basketball
UNI women’s basketball looks to avenge a loss at Illinois State inside the McLeod Center.
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — The UNI women's basketball team welcomes the Redbirds of Illinois State to the McLeod Center on Sunday, Feb. 9.
This will be the 92nd meeting between these two squads after the Panthers fell in Normal, Illinois earlier this season. In that matchup, Illinois State took home a 79-66 victory inside CEFCU Arena. Emerson Green led all Panthers in that game with 13 points off the bench.
UNI is coming off a 69-51 victory over Bradley to open the Panthers' first "Panthers in Paradise Weekend." In that matchup, Maya McDermott finished the night with a game-high 17 points, five rebounds and four assists, while Emerson Green recorded 13 points and four assists. Taryn Wharton tallied 13 points and two boards and Shateah Wetering notched a 12-point, six rebound night. Maya McDermott finished with 17 points, her 20th double-figure matchup of the season.
UNI continued an active program-record 554-game three-pointer streak that started December 6, 2008, versus Green Bay (6-of-19) following a 0-of-14 outing from behind the three-point arc December 3, 2008, against Northern Illinois. The Panthers knocked down 11 threes against Bradley to continue the streak.
Emerson Green made her first start of the 2024-25 season after coming off the bench for her first 16 games this year. The senior guard recorded 13 points in her first start of the season which ties a season high. She has recorded 13 points in three outings now this season.
Kayba Laube continues to eye the 1,000-point club as she sits with 990 points, just 10 short of being UNI's 31st member and fourth member in the last two seasons after Grace Boffeli, Maya McDermott, and Emerson Green joined last season. Laube currently holds UNI's third spot in three-point percentage with a career mark of 41.8%.
On Tuesday, Maya McDermott was named to the 2025 Women's College Basketball All-Star Game Midseason Watch List. The list includes 68 players for a game that will occur on April 5 in Tampa, Florida. Earlier this season, McDermott was named to the 2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award midseason watch list, as announced by Her Hoop Stats. The team included 15 players over 10 conferences. Katie Dinnebier was the other MVC athlete to be named on both lists.
As of Feb. 8, the Panther team leads the Valley in a number of statistical categories including three-point percentage (38.1), turnover margin (4.27), and turnovers per game (13). UNI also ranks second in the Valley in steals per game (9.3). The Panthers' 38.1% from beyond the arc is the fifth-best mark in the nation. Individually, multiple Panther athletes are among the tops in the Valley. Maya McDermott leads the MVC in assist/turnover ratio (2.67), field
goal attempts (354), field goals (161), and free throw percentage (94.3). McDermott's 94.3% from the free throw line is ranked fourth in the country while her 2.67 assists per turnover are 14th. McDermott is second in the conference in assists (104), total points (438), and three-point percentage (45.5) and is third in assists per game (4.7) and points per game (19.9). Kayba Laube leads the MVC in three-point percentage (46.7) and is second in three-pointers (63), and threes per game (2.86). Laube's 46.7% from deep is the fourth-best mark in the country while her 2.86 threes per game are 13th and her 63 total threes are 17th. Ryley Goebel is third in the Valley in blocks (45) and blocks per game (2.05).
UNI women's basketball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Women's Basketball), X (@UNIwbb), and on Instagram (@uni_wbb). The 2024-25 schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
