Kansas
City, Mo.
? The UMKC men's basketball battled back from an 11-point second half
deficit to force overtime, but the squad dropped a 64-60 decision to Northern Iowa on Wednesday night at Municipal Auditorium.
Northern Iowa opened the
game by jumping out to a 12-4 lead through the first nine minutes of the contest. The Panthers limited the Kangaroos to just
2-of-11 shooting over the first 11:19 of the game, as UMKC was adjusting to the
pressure defense.
Senior Tim Blackwell then scored 9-of-10 points to spark a
10-2 Kangaroo run that evened the game at 14 with 6:24 remaining in the
half. UNI responded with a quick 8-0
spurt to take a 22-14 lead before taking a 29-20 advantage into the break.
Junior Dane Brumagin, who was held scoreless in the first half,
scored eight of the team's first nine points of the second half, as UMKC
climbed to within a field goal at 31-29.
Northern Iowa, however, answered the
spurt again with a 9-0 run to stretch their advantage to 11 points with 12:08
remaining.
The Kangaroos, however, wouldn't fold as they used a 14-3
run over the next six minutes to even the tally at 43. A Reggie Hamilton three-point closed the gap to
two (43-41) at the 6:27 mark, and Blackwell evened the game with a lay-up with
5:40 left.
With 3:52 remaining, UMKC took its first lead of the game
courtesy of a Brumagin jumper, but the teams then traded buckets down the
stretch as the game went into overtime tied at 50.
The Panthers pounded the ball down low in the overtime
period, as Eric Coleman helped UNI take a 57-52 lead with 2:25 remaining. The Kangaroos wouldn't get any closer than
two points, as Northern Iowa made eight-of-nine
OT free throws to secure the win.
UMKC shot just .333 (18-54) from the floor and a .348 (8-23)
percentage from three-point land in the game.
UNI, meanwhile, finished with a .467 (21-45) mark from the field and a .250
(4-16) from long range. The Panthers won
the battle on the boards, 36-30, but UMKC forced UNI in 15 turnovers to just
nine for the Kangaroos.
Three UMKC players finished the contest in double
digits. Blackwell led all scorers with
21 points on 5-of-8 shooting, which included an 8-of-10 night from free throw
land. Brumagin and Hamilton, meanwhile,
both finished with 12 points.
UNI also had three players finish in double figures. Center Jordan Eglseder paced the team with 19
points on 8-of-12 shooting. Forward Eric
Coleman, meanwhile, tallied his fourth career double-double against UMKC with 11
points and 11 rebounds.
UMKC (4-8) will return to action on Saturday afternoon against
Loyola Chicago. Tip is set for 12:05
p.m. at Municipal Auditorium.
