Panthers Suffer Worst Home Loss At McLeod Center

Five years ago, Wichita State handed the UNI Panthers their worst home loss at the McLeod Center. The Shockers did it again Wednesday night (Jan. 20, 2016).

Wichita State (13-5 overall, 7-0 MVC) led from start to finish and posted a 74-55 victory over the Panthers. The 19-point win margin was the largest by a visiting team at the McLeod Center. The previous standard was an 18-point victory by the Shockers in 2011.

Ron Baker scored a game-high 21 points for Wichita State and Markis McDuffie added 15 points off the bench. The Shockers shot 56.5 percent from the field.

UNI (10-10 overall, 2-5 MVC) had 14 points from Matt Bohannon, Wes Washpun and Bennett Koch. The Panthers shot 32.7 percent from field - the second straight game they shot less than 40 percent from the floor.

Wichita State used a 7-0 to take a 22-12 lead with 5:25 left in the first half. The Panthers closed to within 27-22 on a 3-pointer from Bohannon with 1:37 left before intermission. But the Shockers finished the half on a 5-0 run capped by Baker's half-court buzzer-beater to take a 34-22 lead into the break.

UNI trimmed the lead to 36-32 with 16:09 remaining in the game on a 3-pointer by Jeremy Morgan. But a 10-2 Wichita State run put the visitors on top 46-34 with 13:32 left in the contest.

The Panthers pulled to within 46-40 with 12:19 on the clock on a 3-pointer from Bohannon. However, UNI got three consecutive stops on the defensive end but could not convert points on the offensive end. Baker then scored on a layup with 9:22 to go, giving Wichita State a 48-40 advantage

UNI would climb back to within six at 58-52 after a trio of free throws from Bohannon with 4:24 left in the game, but the Panthers would get no closer.

UP NEXT: The Panthers travel to Illinois State on Saturday for a 3 p.m. game at Redbird Arena.