Nov. 19, 2006

Box Score |  Quotes

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa - Four starters scored in double-figures to lead Northern Iowa to a 69-58 victory over the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee on Sunday. The host Panthers (3-1) used a 17-2 run early in the second half to take control of the game against Milwaukee (1-4).

Paige Paulsen led Milwaukee with 14 points, all coming in the second half. For UNI, Eric Coleman had a game-high 15 points, with Brooks McKowen (12), Travis Brown (11) and Jared Josten (10) all in double-digits in the first game at the new McLeod Center.

"Well it's simple, points in the paint is the story of the game," UWM head coach Rob Jeter said. "They dominated us in the paint. We felt we could come away with opportunities in the paint and I think that was the biggest difference in how this game unfolded."

For the game, Milwaukee was outscored 44-30 in the paint. The Panthers shot 37.5% from the floor while UNI hit 57.1% in the second half and 54.7% for the game.

"I saw some things that I liked, and obviously I saw some things that I didn't like," Jeter said. "We have to get better at scoring in the post. We have to be better at defending the post. For the most part I thought we did that. We held (Grant) Stout under his average. We got Coleman in foul trouble early, but we just couldn't come away with opportunities to score around the basket. Everybody, not just our bigs, that's everybody."

Coming out of halftime, UNI added a free-throw to extend its lead to 29-20. UWM battled right back, getting a lay-up by Marcus Skinner and a three-pointer by Paige Paulsen to get back within four at 29-25 less than a minute into the second half.

At that point, UNI went on that 17-2 run to take a 46-27 lead at the 13:07 mark that essentially put the game away. The team made eight of 10 shots in the six-minute spurt, taking its largest lead of the game at the time.

Milwaukee battled back on several occasions, getting within 13 on numerous occasions, including at 56-43 on a lay-up by Paulsen with 6:24 remaining. Every time the Panthers would put a dent on the lead, UNI would battle back to rebuild the edge. They led 62-43 before UWM scored 15 of the game's final 22 points in the 69-58 decision.

A slow start hurt Milwaukee again, as it shot 30.8% in the first half to the 52.0% of Northern Iowa. The quick-paced game saw both teams go up and down the court in transition, with UNI holding a 22-to-eight edge in points in the paint in the first half.

After falling behind by 12 points at 26-14 with just under four minutes remaining in the half, the Panthers went on a quick 6-0 run, getting jumpers from Ricky Franklin, Avery Smith and Allan Hanson to climb back within six at 26-20.

The hosts had jumped out to a quick 10-4 start on the strength of 5-of-7 shooting from the floor. After a 30-second timeout UWM regrouped quickly, getting within two at 12-10 on three-pointers by Kevin Massiah at 12:51 mark and Hanson with 11:08 to play in the first half.

Just as quickly UNI went on a run of its own, outscoring UWM 10-2 in the next five minutes to take back a 10-point cushion at 22-12.

Paulsen's 14 led UWM, while Smith finished with nine. Massiah had seven points and five rebounds, while Sam Mauldin added five points and seven rebounds in just 11 minutes off the bench.

The Panthers return home Wednesday, taking on South Dakota State at the U.S. Cellular Arena starting at 7 p.m.