UNI basketball is still UNI basketball, which is good for UNI basketball - VIDEOS of UNI and ISU players and coaches

AMES - The team that knows who it is beat the team trying to find its identity.

Northern Iowa is the same Northern Iowa as last season, when the Panthers were the kings of men's basketball in the Missouri Valley Conference.

Purple and gold, skilled and tough.

Iowa State isn't the same Iowa State as last season. It's deeper, bigger, better. If healthy, UNI Coach Ben Jacobson said, the Cyclones “will play in postseason play.”

But they still need to figure out who's who, and who will step up late in a game against a ballclub of equal stature.

The Cyclones blew out to a 25-16 lead 12 minutes into Wednesday night's game in Hilton Coliseum, but UNI's five starters didn't lead the Panthers to the NCAAs by being intimidated by the road or any opposition. The 5-1 Panthers dictated the play for most of the duration and won, 63-60.

“It was pretty obvious to anyone who watched the game that Northern Iowa was the tougher team,” Cyclones Coach Greg McDermott said. “And that's disheartening.”

It's early, but with wins over the ACC (Boston College) and now the Big 12, Jacobson's guys appear comfortable being who they've been and doing what they've done.

“The positive experiences we had last year certainly played a role in the game tonight,” UNI Coach Ben Jacobson said.

“They've got a lot of confidence in their abilities, but more so the abilities of the teammates around them.” Craig Brackins, Iowa State's NBA power forward-in-waiting, was swallowed by the Panthers' defense in the second half.

Brackins had one basket after halftime, and missed the 3-pointer that would have sent the game to overtime. He had 13 points and 10 field goal tries.

Double-defended or not, the 6-foot-10 junior will have to come up bigger than that when the Cyclones play Duke and Texas within a week of each other a month from now.

“We threw a lot of different looks at him,” said forward Adam Koch, who along with fellow senior center Jordan Eglseder, stifled Brackins when it mattered most.

Koch played a beautifully smooth offensive game in getting 20 points and keeping his team afloat in the first half, which ended with ISU up 36-31.

Eglseder, on the other hand, had to be muttering at halftime. He had five offensive rebounds, but his put-backs were more like shot-put tosses. The 7-foot, 280-pounder was 3-of-11 in the half, leaving all sorts of points on the table.

He got his fill after halftime, with 14 of his 20 points. He also had 14 rebounds as UNI outboarded ISU by seven.

“Tonight,” Jacobson said, “was a big step forward for him, a real good step forward for him.

“He's had some great games over the course of three-and-a-half years, but there have been times when he allows a couple of missed shots to get to him a little bit. It isn't that he thinks he needs to score points. He thinks he's letting the team down, and that bothers him.”

“It's hard to defend (Eglseder),” Brackins said. “It's hard when you put your hands up and his hands are a little higher. He's a big guy.”

Iowa State is 6-2, but losers of two straight close games after this one and a 67-65 decision last Saturday to surprisingly good Northwestern.

“This team doesn't know how to win yet,” ISU Coach Greg McDermott said.

The Cyclones aren't all that far away. This was a good team that beat them Wednesday. No one in this state should be surprised by now.