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Northern Iowa upsets No. 5 Iowa State 81-79
Posted On Dec 20 2015
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Northern Iowa guard Jeremy Morgan (20) drives past Iowa State… Iowa State shot over 50 percent from the field, but hit on just 2-of-9 3-point attempts.
It was a tough night for No. 5 Iowa State at home, as the Cyclones took an unexpected 81-79 loss to in-state opponent Northern Iowa on Saturday.
DES MOINES | And another top five team bites the dust, thanks to Northern Iowa.
But unlike they did against Iowa, the Cyclones were unable to complete the second-half comeback, and UNI went on to win, 81-79, against the previously undefeated Cyclones.
Northern Iowa led almost the entire game, but Iowa State kept coming back behind 30 points from forward Georges Niang, 18 points from forward Jameel McKay and 14 from forward Abdel Nader.
Paul Jesperson added a career-high 21 points on seven 3-pointers for the Panthers (7-3), who also stunned then-No. And star point guard Monte Morris was largely silent in the half, scoring just two points and dishing out a pair of assists.
“It wasn’t acceptable. We were basically giving some guys things, but that’s something we’re working on and looking to adjust”, Niang said. Northern Iowa has lost two of their last games (both of the road) and has struggled a bit offensively as they averaged just 65.6 ppg in their last three games.
Iowa State was playing for the first time without senior guard Naz Mitrou-Long who is out for the rest of the season because of lingering pain in his hips following surgery in the offseason.
Iowa State: The Cyclones had only four assists on 16 baskets in the first half…. Deonte Burton scored seven points in his Cyclones debut.
Morris had one of his worst games in recent memory – though it was still a decent outing. He was 3 of 10 from the floor, including that miss at the buzzer, but still finished with eight points, six assists, five rebounds, three steals and no turnovers.
The Northern Iowa Panthers dropped to 6-3 (0-0 MVC) on the season after being defeated by the New Mexico Lobos, 76-57, this past Saturday.
ISU plays at Cincinnati on Tuesday.
