Game 7 - #6 UNI 74, #3 Illinois State 52
Friday, March 6, 2026
Third Session Attendance: 8,897
MVC TOURNAMENT NOTES — UNI coach Ben Jacobson became the winningest coach in MVC Tournament history with 22, surpassing former Creighton head coach Dana Altman who had 21. The No. 6 seed improved its MVC Tournament record 15-49 while advancing to the semifinal round for the first time since 2023. This marked the first time the numbers 1,3 and 4 seeds have lost in the same quarterfinal round of the MVC Tournament.
NORTHERN IOWA NOTES — The Panthers, earning their third straight victory, improved to 21-12 - the most wins at the school since going 25-6 during 2019-20 season...UNI moved to 31-27 in the MVC Tournament, including a 13-13 record in quarterfinal round games and an 8-6 record against Illinois State.
Panthers Player Plaudits — Redshirt junior Leon Bond II led the Panthers with 19 points, including 11 in the second half. Senior guard Trey Campbell added 12 points, while becoming the first player in UNI history with 1,000 points (1,353), 500 rebounds (503) and 300 assists (301) in a career. Senior forward Ben Schwieger contributed 11 points, a game-high eight rebounds, and three assists. Sophomore forward Will Hornseth registered nine points, five rebounds and a team-high six assists. Campbell moved to No. 12 on the UNI’s career scoring list with 1,353 points. He is also fourth all-time at UNI with 212 three-point baskets and third on UNI’s career steals list with 166.
ILLINOIS STATE NOTES — The Redbirds, who had a two-game winning streak snapped, slipped to 20-12. Illinois State’s MVC Tournament is 47-41 including a 24-13 mark in quarterfinal round games and a 10-9 record as No. 3 seed. ….First time this year the Redbirds have trailed the entire game…Their 52 points is the second fewest they’ve scored all season…they set a season lows in field goals (15), made 3-pointers (3), and 3-point % (.150)...The 22-point loss was their second-largest defeat this season.
Redbirds Player Plaudits — Junior forward Chase Walker struggled from the field, going just 2-for-7 from the field, but still finished with a team-high 11 points, his 21st game in double figures this year. He pulled down five rebounds to give him an even 400 in his career at Illinois State. Junior guard Johnny Kinziger scored eight, and added three assists, giving him 101 on the season. He also had a career-tying best four steals.
First Half Recap — UNI led the entire first half, starting off with a 5-0 lead. Trailing 10-2, the Redbirds responded with a 6-0 surge…Klabo with six points for Redbirds, matching his entire output of six against UNI on Feb. 25. UNI’s Pock collected two fouls in eight seconds, going to the bench with his second foul at 13:43 mark. UNI used late baskets by Max Weisbrod and Will Hornseth to take a 35-27 halftime lead. The Panthers held the Redbirds to 36 percent shooting (9-25), including 16.7 percent (2-12) from the three-point arc. Bond, who made just three of 12 shots in Thursday's win against Evansville, made 4 of 7 shots to score eight points along with Trey Campbell. A free throw by Hornseth with 2:29 left gave UNI its biggest lead at 30-20.
Second Half Recap — A combination of hot shooting by UNI (62.5 percent) and cold shooting by the Redbirds (28.6 percent) was the difference. UNI scores the first five points to open the second half with a three-point basket by Bonds giving the Panthers their biggest lead at 40-27.With the Redbirds trailing 46-34, Walker picked up his fourth foul with 12:38 left and UNI went on 8-3 run expanding the lead to 54-37 with 9:08 left. The Panthers also owned a 15-12 rebounding margin and points in the paint (20-8). Panther reserves outscored the ISU bench, 13-7.