Reversal of fortune for UNI at Wichita State

WICHITA, Kan. - When No. 11 Wichita State visited Cedar Falls on Jan. 31, everything seemed to go right for No. 10 Northern Iowa. The rematch between the two top teams in the Missouri Valley Conference played out just the opposite.

The last time the Panthers and Shockers met, UNI was quick and precise on defense, and efficient on offense. Minus a 16-2 UNI run in the middle of the second half that briefly cut the WSU lead to four, the rematch showed the Panthers to be anything but. Lapses in transition defense, 10 turnovers and an inconsistent offense in a deafening environment of 10,506 fans at Charles Koch Arena marred the day.

As a result, the Panthers ended the regular season with a 74-60 loss - with an exclamation point from Tekele Cotton on a windmill dunk - and watched the Shockers celebrate a regular season MVC title.

'Wichita was playing great, the crowd was crazy like they always are, and our guys answered. For 15 minutes of the first half, they answered,” said Coach Ben Jacobson. 'They were more aggressive with their press, they were more aggressive on the ball screen, and they guarded Seth (Tuttle) differently. Those are things that we talked about - each of those things - and what we would do, what we wouldn't do.

'As that went on for 15 or 16 minutes, the game was (close). Watching and seeing where we need to make some adjustments to what they were doing, started to get some thoughts as to what we would come out with in the second half and how we would attack them; then (Tekele) Cotton's 3 (went in with 1:58 left in the first half), we missed a layup and they hit another 3. Then all of a sudden instead of a three or four-point game, now you've got 10 or 12. That's just a different deal.”

Crowd noise got its just due from Jacobson and his players in postgame interviews, but certainly acknowledged their opponents had a few things to say about it, too.

WSU's full-court pressure, as Jacobson mentioned, and steadfast confidence - playing angry, as their mantra states - got to UNI within that hostile environment and created a recipe for which there didn't end up being a cure.

'There was a couple-minute stretch there where we as a team, I don't really want to use the word, but I think we got a little soft,” Tuttle said. 'Their pressure got to us a little bit and we turned and threw the ball away a couple times, let them get away in transition. I think we just got a little flustered there and lost our way a little bit.”

The streaks in execution on both ends of the floor were evident for the Panthers (27-3, 16-2 MVC) in both halves.

The Shockers (27-3, 17-1) forced eight first-half UNI turnovers from which WSU got 17 points, and led to a 12-point deficit at halftime that the Panthers were never able to fully recover from. Throughout most of the game, WSU sharpshooter Ron Baker, Cotton and point guard Fred VanVleet were able to find the shot they wanted on offense - often an open one.

That wasn't the case in the first game, and something guard Paul Jesperson chalked up to UNI having breakdowns in some crucial areas at the wrong time.

'I think it was some lapses in communication sometimes (that got WSU shooters open),” Jesperson said. 'Just some scouting report stuff. We wanted to crowd certain guys a little bit more. We didn't get to that a couple times and that let them get a rhythm shot. It was a couple communication things that we need to get back.”

Overall, Jacobson liked how his team communicated on defense, and Tuttle (who led UNI with 16 points, seven rebounds and six assists) added he and his teammates could still hear each other despite the raucous environment created by a Shockers crowd that was still hyped from the ESPN College GameDay appearance earlier Saturday morning.

It was in transition where Jacobson thought Wichita State hurt UNI the most.

'I think it (the defensive communication) was pretty good in the half court. Our transition defense, they got two for sure, but seems to me there was probably a third or fourth, where they got it in, ran it up the sideline and laid it in,” Jacobson said. 'Those three or four baskets and a couple offensive rebounds that turned into points, that's going to be hard against a team this good - especially on the road.

'There's a lot for our guys to learn from that.”

As Jacobson and his players have reminded media and fans all year long, the team focuses as hard as it can on learning from both good and bad in every game, regardless of outcome.

No one in purple was happy with how Saturday's game ended, and as disappointed as they all were with not taking a trophy home, they reminded everyone the loss doesn't take away what they've accomplished this season.

If anything, the loss galvanizes a team headed to St. Louis with something to prove.

'We did a lot of good things in this game. We've got a team that understands taking the good things along with the couple of things we have to do better as we get ready for Friday (at the MVC Tournament) are both very important,” Jacobson said. 'I would anticipate there being a little more fight when we get started Friday. As I say that, the level of fight these guys have shown every night is high. But I would anticipate a little bit more come Friday.”

UNI is the No. 2 seed and plays the winner of Drake and Bradley at the MVC Tournament on Friday at 6:05 p.m.

l Comments: (319) 368-8884; jeremiah.davis@thegazette.com