For several years now U.N.I. has been the most successful of the Big Four men’s basketball programs in the state it appears as though that run will continue. For the third straight time the Panthers walked into Hilton Coliseum and left with a victory.
U.N.I. closed the game with a 17-8 run in a 69-62 win over the Iowa State Cyclones on Wednesday night. The Panthers overcame a slow start that saw the Cyclones jump out to a 14-4 lead.
Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg says he’s disappointed that they came out with a swagger and got off to a great start, but they didn’t handle adversity well. “You’ve got to play the same way through good times and bad, and we’re not there right now,” he said.
Hoiberg says you can see it in the player’s faces during a bad stretch and they have to find a way to fight through the tough spots and stay even and still play as a team. Hoiberg says the Cyclones cannot afford to play well in just stretches of games.
“You’ve got to have five guys out there compete for 40 minutes,” Hoiberg says. Royce White and Chris Allen both had 15 points to lead Iowa State while senior guard Scott Christopherson chipped in with nine.
Christopherson says the Panthers are well-coached and disciplined and his team did not meet the challenge. Iowa State falls to 5-2.
Anthony James led U.N.I. with 17 points. The Panthers improve to 6-1 and have now won five of the last six against the Cyclones.