Carlson, Koch help N. Iowa defeat S. Illinois 49-41 (Feb 08, 2017)

By AP
Published

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa (AP) Klint Carlson scored 14 points with eight rebounds and Bennett Koch scored 12 points with eight boards as Northern Iowa eked out a low-scoring, wire-to-wire win over Southern Illinois 49-41 on Wednesday night.

Jeremy Morgan hit a 3-pointer, Koch added a pair of free throws, and Northern Iowa opened the second half with a 5-0 run to gain some separation as Southern Illinois missed its first three shots. The Panthers (12-12, 7-6 Missouri Valley Conference) led by as many as 11 after halftime.

Leo Vincent scored nine points to lead Southern Illinois (14-12, 7-6) and Sean O'Brien eight as the Salukis made only 30 percent of their shots (18-60). Leo was 3 of 11 and O'Brien 4 of 14. Northern Iowa blocked four shots (Morgan with two), and had eight steals and 34 defensive rebounds to hamper Southern Illinois' shooting.

The Panthers held a 41-35 edge on the boards overall.