UNI Stays Unbeaten At Home; Chills Southern Illinois, 55-39

On a bitterly cold night outside, Southern Illinois couldn't do much inside to heat up the McLeod Center on Wednesday (January 8, 2015). UNI's defense kept the Salukis on ice the entire game as the Panthers rolled to their 11th-straight home victory, 55-39, dating back to last season.

Senior forward Seth Tuttle (Sheffield, Iowa) led the offensive charge for UNI, scoring a career-high matching 24 points while grabbing a team-best eight rebounds. Teammate Nate Buss (Charles City, Iowa) added a season-high 15 points off the bench.

Defensively, the Panthers (13-2 overall, 2-1 MVC) held Southern Illinois to its second-lowest point total since 1950. UNI limited the Salukis (7-9 overall, 0-3 MVC) to under 30-percent shooting and kept the Missouri Valley Conference's third-leading scorer in a deep freeze. Junior guard Anthony Beane, who came into the contest averaging 17.9 points per game, was limited to just one point on 0-for-10 shooting from the floor.

Three players tallied double-figures for Southern Illinois (SIU), with Jordan Caroline's 13-points leading the way. Sean O'Brien and Bola Olaniyan each chipped in 10.

Both teams were cold to start the game. UNI opened the scoring at the 16:14 mark of the first half and owned a 25-18 advantage at intermission. The Panthers then took control early in the second half, using an 11-3 run to build a 16-point (43-27) edge with 11:00 remaining.

With the loss, Southern Illinois remains winless against UNI in games played at the McLeod Center. The Panthers have won the last 11 meetings between the schools in Cedar Falls. The series between UNI and the Salukis began 50 years ago.

The Panthers return to action on Saturday, when they travel to Des Moines for a 3 p.m. game against in-state rival Drake at the Knapp Center.

NOTES: Tuttle recorded his 15th career 20-point scoring game ... it's the fifth time in Tuttle's career that he has scored 24 points in a game ... UNI is 8-0 at the McLeod Center this season ... Wednesday's game marked the 34th time in head coach Ben Jacobson's tenure that the Panthers held an opponent to 50 points or less ... UNI is 33-1 when holding the opposition to 50 or less ... UNI has won 26 straight games when holding the opposition to 50 or less ... Coach Jacobson improved to 13-6 all-time vs. SIU ... UNI has now held nine of its opponent to less than 40 percent shooting - SIU shot 29.5 percent.