Men's Basketball at UNI (Game 15)
Date // Time	Tuesday, January 11 // 8 p.m. ET
Location // Venue	Cedar Falls, Iowa // McLeod Center
Preview Notes // Information	Indiana State Game Notes/Media Center // MVC Weekly Notes
Live Stats	Live Stat Feed
Watch // Listen	ESPN Plus via Watch ESPN // 105.5 The Legend // GoSycamores.com/Listen
Social Media	@IndStBasketball / @IndStAthletics

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Indiana State basketball puts its four-game winning streak on the line Tuesday night on the road against Northern Iowa. Tipoff is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET with the Panthers on ESPN+. The game will also be available on the radio on 105.5 The Legend in the Wabash Valley and on GoSycamores.com/Listen worldwide.
 
ISU will take on the Panthers with just seven players available due to COVID-19 protocols.
 
UNDER NEW LEADERSHIP
» First-year head coach Josh Schertz takes over the reins of the Sycamore basketball program. Schertz takes over after a 13-year run at NCAA Division II Lincoln Memorial University where he had a career record of 337-69 (.831) en route to four national coach of the year honors. Schertz led the Railsplitters to 10 NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, won 14 total conference championships and three Southeast Regional titles, and had five seasons of 30-or-more victories.
 
A LOOK AT THE SERIES
» Indiana State leads the all-time series with Northern Iowa 33-29 and has won six of the last 10 meetings between the two programs. The two squads split their meetings last season at UNI.
 
LOOKING AT UNI
» UNI enters the contest at 7-7 overall and 3-1 in the MVC action. The Panthers are led by AJ Green who averages 17.6 points, 3.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game. Noah Carter adds 12.7 points while Nate Heise rounds out the double-digits scorers for UNI with 10.5 points a game. In 14 games, UNI is averaging 74.6 points while holding its opponents to 69.1 points and 44.2 percent from the field. 
 
HOBBS EARNS MVC NEWCOMER OF THE WEEK
» Zach Hobbs took advantage of playing time this past week as the Sycamores were down three starters due to COVID-19. The guard averaged 18.5 points, eight rebounds and 1.5 steals per game as ISU went 2-0, including their first MVC win of the season after taking down Bradley, 76-71. Hobbs was lights out in a 107-51 win over Midway where he put in a career-high 23 points on 9-for-16 shooting while finishing 5-for-9 from behind the arc. Hobbs also brought down seven rebounds against the Eagles. The 6-foot-5 guard continued where he left off on Sunday when he played all 40 minutes against the Braves -- finishing with 14 points and a career-high nine rebounds in the win.
 
THOMAS STRONG DURING LAST WEEK
» Micah Thomas was dominant as he helped the Sycamores a 2-0 week on the hardwood. The guard averaged 17.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and six assists while also recording a trio of steals. Thomas put together one of his most complete games of the season during a 76-71 win over Bradley Sunday to give ISU its first MVC win of the season. He put in 18 points in the win while recording a career-high eight rebounds to go with four assists. Thomas also shot 4-for-9 from distance as the Trees made 15 3-pointers in the win. Thomas was also strong in ISU's 107-51 win over Midway – a replacement game for Coppin State – where he scored 17 points on 6-for-11 shooting while grabbing five rebounds and dishing out a career-high eight assists while recording just one turnover.
 
PASSING THE CENTURY MARK
» Indiana State put on a rare scoring performance in a 107-51 win over Midway. The 107-point mark is the first time ISU has surpassed the century mark since 1999 with a 102-91 double-overtime win over Eastern Illinois and the first time ISU has done so in regulation since scoring 113 in a win over Millikin in 1984.
 
» Six Sycamores scored in double-digits in the win -- the first time that had happened since 2017 against Ohio. ISU picked up career performances from three players including Zach Hobbs (23), Cameron Crawford (14) and Nick Hittle (11).
 
NEESE IS A PROBLEM FOR OPPOSING DEFENSES
» After posting career highs across the board during 2020-21, Cooper Neese has picked up where he left off. The junior is averaging 16.3 points to lead ISU and rank fifth in the MVC. Neese has scored in double-figures in 10 games this season, scoring 15 or more in nine games. His 29 makes from distance leads ISU and ranks seventh in the MVC.
 
» Neese scored a game-high 19 points and hit five 3-pointers in a win over Bradley Sunday. With the shots from deep, Neese moved into a tie with Chad Adkins (1996-99) for eighth all-time in career 3-pointers (149). Guard Tyreke Key sits in seventh with 153 career threes.
 
HENRY A MATCHUP NIGHTMARE
» Cameron Henry has either made or assisted on 29 percent of all Indiana State field goals. He is averaging 14.1 points, 6.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game. His scoring output is 12th, rebounding ranks seventh, while his assist average ranks sixth in the MVC.
 
» Henry has scored in double-figures in nine games for Indiana State -- including a pair of double-doubles. Over three games at the Myrtle Beach Invitational, Henry put up All-MVC like numbers. The 6-foot-6 guard averaged 17.3 points, nine rebounds and 5.7 assists per game while going for a career-high 25 points against Oklahoma in the semifinals. For his performance, he was named to the All-Tournament Second Team.
 
BLEDSON DOES IT ALL
» You have to see it in person to truly appreciate the offensive awareness of Xavier Bledson. The guard leads the Sycamores with 42 assists, recording multiple assists in all games he has seen action including a season-high 10 assists against Alabama A&M. Bledson leads the MVC with 4.7 assists per game. To go with his passing, Bledson is also averaging double-figure scoring at 12.1 points per game, scoring 15 points or more in five games.
 
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