No. 18 UNI Wins First Top 25 Battle At McLeod Center

UNI came up big in the biggest men's basketball game ever played in Cedar Falls. In the first match-up of two Associated Press top 25 teams at the McLeod Center, the 18th-ranked Panthers dominated No. 12 Wichita State, 70-54.

Senior Seth Tuttle (Sheffield, Iowa) made a strong case for player-of-the-year honors in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC), scoring a career-high 29 points on 9-of-13 shooting and grabbing a team-high seven rebounds for UNI. Teammate Wes Washpun (Cedar Rapids, Iowa) added 16 points off the bench.

The win moves the Panthers (20-2, 10-1 MVC) into a tie with the Shockers for first-place in the league race. The victory also extended UNI's home-court winning streak to 14 games and snapped Wichita State's impressive 30-game winning streak against conference opponents (including 2014 MVC Tournament).

Playing in front of a national television audience on ESPN2 and 7,050 fans packed into the 6,650-seat McLeod Center, UNI fed off a raucous atmosphere. The Panthers blistered the nets with 60-percent shooting in each half (24-40 for the game) and controlled Wichita State with lock-down defense.

UNI took control of the game with 8:34 left in the first half. With the score deadlocked at 18-all, Nate Buss (Charles City, Iowa) and Matt Bohannon (Marion, Iowa) each hit three-pointers on back-to-back possessions, giving the Panthers a six-point lead. UNI held the Shockers to just three points in the next 6:43, a defensive performance that allowed the Panthers to grab a double-digit lead they never gave up.

UNI's advantage climbed to 14 points late in the first half and got as high as 19 in the second half.

Fred VanVleet led the Shockers with 18 points, but made just 3-of-10 field goal attempts while shooting 10-of-11 at the free three line. As a team, the Shockers shot just over 35-percent (17-of-48) from the floor.

Saturday's game was the first head-to-head meeting of ranked Missouri Valley Conference opponents in 33 years. The rematch between UNI and Wichita State is scheduled for Feb. 28 in Wichita, Kansas. With eight league games remaining, the second meeting likely will have MVC championship implications.

Next up for UNI is a trip to Indiana State Tuesday night (Feb. 3).

NOTE: The Panthers hosted one of three games involving Top 25 teams in the state of Iowa on Saturday. No. 5 Wisconsin beat Iowa 74-63 in Iowa City and No. 15 Iowa State thumped TCU 83-66 in Ames.