The University of Northern Iowa mens basketball team couldnt have asked for a better start to a new season. The Panthers used two big runs one in each half to dismantle Wartburg College 103-50 on Saturday. The Panthers 103 points are the most points ever scored in the McLeod Center, beating the previous record of 99 points, also against the Knights.
UNI opened the game on a 24-9 run capped by a Nate Buss dunk and never looked back. The Panthers (1-0) extended their lead to 27 points before Wartburg cut the lead to 20 heading into the second half.
It was much of the same in the second half as UNI outscored the Knights 56-23, shooting 78.6 percent for the half.
Marc (Sonnen) got us off to a great start, said UNI head coach Ben Jacobson. Tonight he came in and knocked in a couple shots right from the start. Then in the second half we were able to get a couple right around the basket. Thats a great way to start the second half.
I suppose if you go back over the course of six years maybe once or twice (weve shot 80 percent) in a half, but not very often, Jacobson said of the Panthers hot shooting.
The Panthers outrebounded Wartburg 44-29 and held the Knights to just 30.8 percent shooting for the game.
Sophomore point guard Deon Mitchell led the way for UNI, scoring 18 points on four 3-point shots and dishing out six assists, all tying career highs.
Weve been working a lot on defense, but a lot of us have been getting in the gym lately and working on our jump shot, Mitchell said. Last year it was more of a setup so weve been trying to pick up the pace. When we got an open jump shot we were more prepared to shoot it.
In their first regular season games as Panthers, redshirt freshmen Matt Bohannon and Chris Olivier scored 11 and five points, respectively.
I think (Matt) was more comfortable today than he was against Briar Cliff. He was moving around a little better and not thinking nearly as much, Jacobson said. I think with a guy like him that shoots the ball so well, the less he thinks about what he should be doing and the more he just plays, the better it is for our team.
The Panthers return to action Wednesday when they host the University of Toledo at 7 p.m.
