Panthers Pounce on Redbirds with late rally

Image Courtesy of Redbird Athletics 

NORMAL, Ill. – Even with Johnny Kinzinger scoring 16 points for the Redbirds Men’s Basketball team, the University of Northern Iowa Panthers would snuff out the Redbirds flame and close the game in dominating fashion to steal a 68-65 victory from the Birds on the road.

Along with Kinzinger’s performance, ISU enjoyed a surprise performance from Caden Boser off the bench, scoring 10 points in relief, providing the birds with some much-needed aid under the rim. Even though the Redbirds got balanced production on the day, both offenses were stimulated by strong defense on both sides of the ball, and it ended up coming down to which team went on a run when they needed it most. And even though Illinois State led at the half by a narrow margin of 36-32, the Panthers would finish the game strong and take the win from the Birds to end their win streak.

ISU led in the turnover margin for most of the contest, with Kinzinger and Chase Walker each picking up three steals on the afternoon.

It was another monster game for Johnny Kinzinger. It was the 20th time he had scored double digits this season alone, with 33 in his career overall. He has already lapped his career high, as he has seen an increased role this season, especially shooting from the 3-point line. In addition, Malachi Pointdexter tied his season high in rebounds, as the big man has started to find his way back onto the court and receive more playing time.

Despite these performances, ISU had trouble limiting the damage from UNI’s Tytan Anderson, who scored 18 points in the matchup. He did most of his damage late in the second half, alongside three other panthers who all reached double figures in the contest, as the Redbirds struggled to stop the late-half onslaught.

Despite the disappointing loss in the anticipated rematch from earlier this season, Illinois State is still in good shape in the MVC standings. After a rough January, the Birds have rebounded in February and sit 5th in the MVC standings at (7-7 in conference and 15-10 overall).

However, it doesn’t get any easier from here for the Redbirds as they will return home to host the MVC’s top dog, both literally and figuratively, as Drake arrives at the CEFCU arena. The Bulldogs come in (12-2 in conference and 22-2 overall). ISU has a chance to pull off quite the upset and shake up the MVC with a win this Wednesday as we rapidly approach Arch Madness in beautiful St. Louis, Missouri.