University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Illinois State
Panther men’s basketball set to battle Redbirds in home finale
2/24/2026 8:50:00 AM | Men's Basketball
UNI takes on Illinois State to kick off final week of the regular season. Tickets available for purchase.
UNI men's basketball (18-11 / 10-8 MVC) vs. Illinois State (18-11 / 10-8 MVC)
- 6 p.m. CT
- Wednesday, Feb. 25, 2026
- Cedar Falls, Iowa | McLeod Center (6,650)
- WATCH (ESPNU) [Clay Matvick: 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 final week of the 2025-26 regular season begins for the UNI men's basketball team on Wednesday night as the Panthers play host to longtime rival Illinois State in Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) action for the final home game of the year.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT with live coverage available on ESPNU and the Panther Sports Radio Network (93.5 The Mix) with J.W. Cox and Kevin Boyle on the call.
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. UNI students in attendance can enter a drawing to win a $1,000 scholarship during the game. Click HERE for rules and eligibility. The Panthers will also celebrate Educator Appreciation Night with free tickets for any educator who shows their employee ID at the gate.
Entering the 94th all-time matchup with the Redbirds, UNI holds a one-game lead in the all-time series (47-46), looking to avenge a 59-54 loss in Normal last month. Both teams enter Wednesday's game with identical league and overall records and in a three-way tie for third in the MVC standings with two games to play in the regular season, along with top-100 NET rankings and the top scoring defenses in the conference.
The Panthers rallied late but came up just short of a comeback win in a 59-57 loss to Southern Illinois on senior night last Saturday. UNI scored 13 of the game's final 17 points with its potential game-winning layup coming up short. Trey Campbell finished with a team-high 16 points with Will Hornseth scoring 14 points in the loss to SIU. Tristan Smith tallied eight points and four steals for UNI with Max Weisbrod notching six points and a team-high four rebounds.
UNI leads all of Division I men's basketball in scoring defense with 61.1 points allowed per game, giving up 70+ points just four times this season. The Panthers are 13-3 when holding teams to 60 or fewer points this year.
Northern Iowa also ranks fourth in Division I in three-point percentage defense, limiting opponents to just 28.1% from beyond the arc. Entering their game against Southern Illinois, the Panthers have held 13 of their last 19 opponents under 30% from three-point range.
UNI's scoring defense is currently on pace for the fourth-best mark since transitioning to a Division I program (1980-81). The Panthers have made the NCAA Tournament each of the previous three seasons when giving up 60 points or fewer. The Panthers are also 37th in the nation in field goal percentage defense (.409). UNI's opponents have shot over 50% only four times this year.
Campbell looks to continue to add to the record book against the Salukis. Having scored his 1,000th career point in December, Campbell's 125 career starts at UNI are third-most in program history, and the most among all active players in the MVC. Campbell is also fourth in team history in career steals (161), sixth in three-point field goal attempts (545) and sixth in made three-pointers (202). With 20 more rebounds, Campbell can also become the first player in UNI history to record 1,000 career points, 500 career rebounds and 300 career assists.
Hornseth looks to continue to be a strong presence inside the paint, recently taking over as UNI's career shooting percentage leader (64%) with a minimum of 100 made shots. He has also scored ten or more points in eight consecutive games, while also maintaining the fifth-highest single-season shooting clip in team history (.619).
At the three-point line, Max Weisbrod has also provided a spark for the Panther offense from three-point range. The DeForest, Wisconsin native is currently shooting 39.1% from beyond the arc this season, scoring a season-high 18 points in consecutive games against Belmont and Drake in February, including a UNI career-high six made three-pointers against the Bulldogs. He has also posted double-digit points in three of his last four games and made at multiple triples in his last four outings as well.
SCOUTING ILLINOIS STATE
The Redbirds visit Cedar Falls having dropped three of their last five outings, including a 74-60 loss at Bradley last Saturday in the second game of the "War on 74." Illinois State, the preseason favorite in the MVC, will play at Belmont in Sunday's regular season finale, who clinched the league's regular season title over the weekend.
Led by fourth year head coach Ryan Pedon, Illinois State's scoring defense, which has allowed 68 points per game, ranks second in the MVC behind only UNI. The Redbirds have also been a sharp shooting squad, hitting on 47% of their shot attempts from the floor, second-best in the league to Belmont.
Four Redbirds have averaged double-figures in scoring this year, led by Chase Walker's 13.7 points per game, with Johnny Kinziger (11.2) Ty'Reek Coleman (10.7) and Boden Skunberg (10) also contributing to Illinois State's offensive success. Skunberg and Kinziger have also been hot shooting hands from three-point range for the Redbirds this season, both shooting over 40% from beyond the arc.
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.
