Washpun's defense, dunk lift UNI past Evansville

CEDAR FALLS — It was a Wes Washpun game.

On both ends of the floor, the Cedar Rapids Washington grad and Northern Iowa senior was the driving force for the Panthers in an old school game with the Missouri Valley Conference's second place team.

He ferociously dunked in the face of the league's leading rebounder, Egidijus Mockevicius, and locked down the league's leading scorer, D.J. Balentine — including in the Aces' final full possession, where Balentine was forced to give up the ball before Jeremy Morgan blocked Jaylon Brown's final shot. Oh, and not to mention he hit the game winner over Balentine with 0:27 left.

All of it combined to lead UNI to a 57-54 victory against Evansville. The most impressive feat? Depends on who you ask.

'I'm going to have to go with his defense. That was quite a play offensively, and obviously we needed it. It got the crowd going and gave our guys a little life,' said Coach Ben Jacobson. 'But boy, defensively, for us that was the difference in the game.

'He's always been capable of doing it. He's done it at some different times. It's going to show up more when you play against (Southern Illinois' Anthony) Beane and you play against Balentine, and that's your assignment.'

Of course his teammates were impressed with the defensive effort Washpun put forth, but the dunk was what got everyone buzzing.

Fellow senior Matt Bohannon deadpanned a joke when asked how impressive the 6-foot-1 guard's physical feat was.

'Wes is a pretty athletic guy, and we just love when he takes the opportunity to show it every once in a while,' Bohannon said.

Jokes aside, the dunk was vital for more than just the highlight reels. UNI had gone two full minutes without scoring, and had five points in the previous six minutes of game play before the dunk.

The Panthers (13-11, 5-6 MVC) made just six field goals in the whole second half, as the Aces (18-6, 7-4) locked down defensively themselves. Washpun's dunk lifted the McLeod Center fans out of their seats and preceded a big Bohannon 3-pointer.

Washpun has traditionally been good for a jolt of energy, and Wednesday night he did it again.

'It was a great play, a really great play, and got the crowd going. We got in a lull in the second half, and were trying to find ways to score,' said Bohannon, who had 13 points on 5 of 8 shooting. 'He just took off, and once you see him take off, you know something cool is going to happen.'

For Washpun's part, he wouldn't take all the credit. Both he and Jacobson pointed out his teammates' much improved backside help defense went a long way toward the success they had in holding Balentine to a season-low in points and tying a season-low in made field goals at four.

He'd drawn the same assignment of the opposition's best player Sunday against Southern Illinois' Anthony Beane, and though Beane had 16 points, it took 16 shots to get there.

'(It was just) trying to stay close to DJ and make it as hard as I could for Beane. (Balentine) runs off a lot of screens and is a good player at reading screens and using his body to get where he needs to go,' Washpun, who finished with 14 points, four assists and four rebounds. 'It was really a team effort. The guys jumped back in the gaps, so when he caught it, he saw two bodies and stuff like that helped me out a ton. It wasn't just me, it was all these guys.'

Now winners of three straight after losing four in a row, the Panthers have played a lot like the Panthers of old with their defensive performances.

Whether it was Washpun on Balentine and Beane, or Morgan and Bohannon sneaking in to help on a slashing guard or post on the block, UNI has made strides that seemed a long way off just a few weeks ago. That's the sign that's most encouraging for Jacobson and Co. as UNI heads to Drake on Saturday.

'That's two games in a row for us now where it's felt more like what we've wanted to get to defensively,' Jacobson said. 'What Wes did with Beane Sunday and Balentine today was terrific. That's as good as a guy can defend either one of those two. But our rotations have also improved; our team defense is better. And that feels good. That's fun to watch and fun to be a part of.'

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