Wednesday, February 18, 2015 7:00 p.m.
Gentile Arena, Chicago
In Loyola’s last time out against Northern Iowa, the Panthers were ranked #23 and coming off a tough three point loss at Evansville to start the conference season 0-1. They beat Loyola 67-58 in Cedar Falls to begin their current 13-game winning streak that finds them at 24-2, 13-1 MVC, and ranked #11 in the nation. UNI’s closest call since then was a one-point win at Illinois State, where they came back from a 12-point deficit in the middle of the second half to win on missed ISU free throws and a cold-blooded three pointer with :06 left.
UNI has had some trouble playing Loyola in Chicago, losing last year in OT 93-87, and in their previous trip to Chicago in 2006-07. Their last win at Loyola was on Dec. 4, 2004, when UNI was also en route to a 20-plus win season and an NCAA tournament bid.
The Panthers will start Seth Tuttle, Jeremy Morgan, Deon Mitchell, Marvin Singleton, and Matt Bohannon. As remaining games fall off the schedule, Tuttle is playing with a fire in his belly to make the last two months of his senior season something very special. He has been named MVC Player of the Week the past two weeks. Over his last five games, he’s averaging 21.0 ppg, and 3.6 assists on 69% field goal and 70% three point shooting; UNI has won their last five games by an average of 14.4 points. Mitchell has scored in double figures the past two games, and ranks tops in the league in three point percentage in conference play at 60%. UNI’s extremely deep and talented bench is playing their best ball of the season, knowing and embracing their various roles, and adding exactly what’s needed to defeat team after team with systematic precision.
In conference play through 14 games, UNI leads the league in scoring defense, field goal percentage, field goal percent allowed, three point field goal percentage, and defense on three point field goals—a nearly unbeatable combination of excellence on offense and defense, particularly when they control the game tempo. They’re also tops in rebounds allowed to their opponents, and rank third in rebounding margin.
Loyola’s last win against a ranked team was a Feb. 15, 2009 win over #15 Butler in Indianapolis. Wednesday’s game will be Loyola’s fifth game this season versus a ranked opponent (Michigan State, and two times each against UNI and WSU)-- the most for Loyola in one season since 1984-85. If Loyola happens to play UNI or WSU again in the MVC tournament, it will tie the 1978-79 season for the last time the Ramblers faced six ranked opponents in a season.
In order to beat UNI for the third time in a row in Chicago, the Ramblers will have to play slightly better than in their 67-58 loss in Cedar Falls earlier in early January. In that game, the Ramblers outrebounded the Panthers, hit nine three pointers, and limited UNI to less than 30% three point shooting. The difference was 19 Rambler turnovers and 19 Rambler fouls that sent UNI to the free throw line 27 times. In both of UNI’s losses and their close call at Illinois State, Panther opponents forced more turnovers than they committed, and limited UNI’s trips to the free throw line. If Loyola can walk the fine line of dictating tempo, playing great defense on the perimeter, keeping the Panthers off the line, taking care of the ball, and creating high percentage shots on offense, they have a chance to keep the game close enough for an upset at crunch time. The difficulty of balancing all those things together for 40 minutes to have a chance to beat them is why these guys are ranked #11 in the country.
Loyola game notes:
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/loy ... 217aaa.pdfNorthern Iowa game notes:
http://grfx.cstv.com/photos/schools/loy ... a_niwa.pdfTV/Streaming video, Audio:
http://www.loyolaramblers.com/collegesp ... dia=488395Vegas odds: Northern Iowa by 8.5
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