UNI stuns No. 8 Iowa State women's basketball; hands Cyclones first loss

UNI stuns No. 8 Iowa State women’s basketball; hands Cyclones first loss

Posted by Admin November 21, 2024 Basketball

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CEDAR FALLS – The UNI women’s basketball team took the court without one of their biggest stars, Grace Boffeli, for the first time on Wednesday night.

The Panthers showed they can survive with her.

Northern Iowa rallied, knocking off eighth-ranked Iowa State and handing the Cyclones their first loss of the season during an 87-75 victory at the McLeod Center. It marked the win over a top-10 opponent in UNI program history.

Northern Iowa improved to 3-1 on the season while Iowa State fell to 4-1. The victory ended a four-game losing streak in the series for the Panthers, who hadn’t beaten the Cyclones since Dec. 22, 2019 in Ames.

Maya McDermott, a former Johnston standout, scored 37 points on 14-for-21 shooting from the field. She helped the Panthers rally from a three-point deficit at halftime with a huge third quarter.

The Panthers used a 13-0 run to take control of the quarter and the game. A 3-pointer Kayba Laube gave the Panthers a 54-53 lead.

Northern Iowa added a layup by Shateah Wetering and a 3-pointer by McDermott to extend the lead to five. The quarter ended on an even higher note for the Panthers, who closed it out with a pair of 3-pointers including one by Laube at the buzzer to give them a 64-53 lead.

Northern Iowa rolled from there, shooting 49.2% from the field for the game while dominating the second half.

It was a big boost for a Northern Iowa team that earlier in the day announced that it would be without Boffeli for the remainder of the season. Boffeli, a senior, averaged 8.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in the first three games this season before suffering a torn ACL.

While the Panthers will sorely miss her throughout the season, they managed to not only survive their first full game without her, but thrive. Laube finished with 21 points

Northern Iowa was able to keep some of Iowa State’s stars mostly in check. Addy Brown, who had 17 points in the first half for the Cyclones, finished with 21. Emily Ryan didn’t score in the second half.

Tommy Birch, the Register’s sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He’s the 2018, 2020 and 2023 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468