Nov. 20, 2005

Final Stats

Des Moines, Iowa - Wooden Award candidate Ben Jacobsen scored 10 first-half points and Eric Coleman led all scorers with 17 points as Northern Iowa (1-0) handed Western Carolina (1-4) a 68-46 setback Sunday night. The contest was played on a neutral site and was game two of the Mediacom Two Rivers Shootout at the new Wells Fargo Arena.

Jacobsen finished with 12 points, five rebounds, three assists and two steals for the Panthers, who were ranked 17th in Sports Illustrated's preseason basketball poll. Coleman was 7-of-9 from the field and pulled down six assists. Other key factors in the UNI win were the Panthers out-rebounding Western Carolina 37-28 and the Panthers dishing out 20 assists on 25 field goals made.

Western's Corey Muirhead made the first basket of the game, but Northern Iowa answered with a 12-2 run, capped by a Coleman jumper. The Catamounts battled back and tied the game at 12-12 thanks to a 3-pointer by Kyle Greathouse, a 3-pointer by Negus McKenna and a McKenna layup. The Panthers' Jacobsen broke the tie with a jumper as Northern Iowa finished the first half with a 25-8 run, taking a 37-20 lead at the break, and never relinquished the lead the remainder of the contest.

Northern Iowa pushed its advantage to 24 with 12 minutes left in the game. At that point, WCU head coach Larry Hunter looked to his bench for a spark, both offensively and defensively. The group responded and cut the Catamounts' deficit to 16 with 10 minutes remaining. However, that is a close as Western would get.

For the fourth time in five games this season, Antonio Russell was Western's leading scorer, making 7-of-7 free throws en route to his 11 points. Stan Johnson, who sank two 3-pointers, scored eight second-half points. McKenna finished with five points and a career-high rebounds, which was also a game high.

Western Carolina will quickly return to action, hosting Atlanta Christian on Tuesday (Nov. 22) at 7:00 pm.