Cyclone Comeback Falls Short vs. UNI, 81-79

DES MOINES, Iowa –No. 5 Iowa State (9-1) fell for the first time this season, losing to Northern Iowa (7-3), 81-79 Saturday night at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines.

Iowa State was down by as much as much as 10 points in the second half before another valiant comeback fell just short. The Cyclones had the chance to tie the game with the final possession, but a Monte Morris tear drop was off the mark.

Wes Washpun spoiled ISU's unbeaten season by tallying 28 points on 9-of-14 shooting. He also had 11 assists. Paul Jesperson added 21 points on 7-of-9 shooting from long range, as the Panthers shot a blistering 58.0 percent from the field.

Georges Niang paced the Cyclones with 30 points (10-17 FG, 9-10 FT) and Jameel McKay added 18 points on 9-of-12 shooting.

Deonte Burton scored seven points in his first outing as a Cyclone.

How it Happened
UNI couldn't miss from the opening tip. The Panthers made 13-of-17 shots from the floor and 7-of-9 from 3-point range to forge ahead 34-26 with 6:46 left in the first half. Jesperson helped the Panthers take control by going 4-of-4 from downtown and Washpun made his first six shots from the field.

UNI went into the half with a 46-37 lead while making 65.4 percent of its shots. Niang was a bright spot for the Cyclones in the opening period, tallying 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting.

ISU briefly cut the lead to five points with two straight buckets from Niang, but the Panthers quickly got the lead back up to double digits, as UNI led 60-50 with 12:52 left in the game.

The Cyclones began to chip away, going on a 16-6 run to tie the game at 66-66 with 7:16 left in the game. ISU forced four turnovers in the run, as Monte Morris scored a pair of buckets in the run.

UNI then answered with two big 3-pointers by Jesperson, as UNI went back up by seven points.
The Cyclones kept fighting, cutting the lead to two points on multiple occasions, but the Panthers always responded. Jameel McKay closed the gap to 75-73 with 3:05 left, but Matt Bohannon buried a big trey to move UNI back up 78-73.

ISU trimmed the lead to a point (78-77) with four free throws and had a chance to take its first lead, but Morris missed in the lane and Washpun was fouled after corralling the rebound. Washpun made both foul shots to give UNI an 80-77 lead with 1:11 remaining.

The Panthers then held on.

Cyclone of Note
Georges Niang: Niang was the star of the game for the Cyclones, posting his third career 30-point game with 30 points. Niang was 10-of-17 from the field and 9-of-10 from the free-throw line. He also had four boards and four assists. Niang moves to No. 10 on ISU's career scoring list with 1,697 points. His 30 points ties the Wells Fargo Arena record for points with Iowa's Devyn Marble, who scored 30 points against UNI in 2012.

Cyclone Quick Hits
*Iowa State is now 3-1 all-time in the Hy-Vee Big Four Classic.
*Georges Niang scored 30 points to move into ISU's career top-10 in scoring with 1,697 points.
*Niang now has 90 career games scoring in double figures.
*Niang has three 30-point games in his career, two this season.
*ISU shot 52.5 percent for the game, the sixth time this season making over half of its shots in a game.
*Monte Morris had six assists, the 43rd career game with five or more assists.

Up Next
Iowa State travels to Cincinnati on Dec. 22. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. on ESPN2.

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Team Stats

Georges Niang

Jameel McKay

Abdel Nader

Monte Morris

Players Mentioned

Deonte Burton

Georges Niang

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics