Northern Iowa 60, Missouri State 46

[January 19, 2015]  No. 22 Northern Iowa 60, Missouri State 46: Seth Tuttle recorded 22 points and 10 rebounds to lead the Panthers past the visiting Bears in a Missouri Valley Conference contest.

Deon Mitchell added 11 points for Northern Iowa (16-2, 5-1), which extended its winning streak to five games and moved into a tie for second place in the conference with Indiana State. Marvin Singleton chipped in 10 points and nine rebounds for the Panthers, who won their 12th consecutive game at the McLeod Center - including nine this season.

Austin Ruder scored 13 points for Missouri State (8-10, 2-4), whose leading scorer - junior guard Marcus Marshall - quit the team Friday. Dorrian Williams chipped in 11 points for the Bears, who committed 12 turnovers and were outrebounded 37-26 in losing their fourth straight contest.

Tuttle scored 16 points in the first half on 7-of-10 shooting and grabbed five rebounds to power Northern Iowa to a 32-20 lead at the break. Missouri State, which trailed the entire game, was 7-for-18 from the field before intermission and did not have a player score in double figures.

Missouri State pulled within eight points at 37-29 after Ruder sank a pair of free throws with 15:41 remaining, but Tuttle countered with a layup and Wyatt Lohaus made a jumper to give Northern Iowa a 41-29 lead. The Bears’ Loomis Gerring sank a free throw, cutting it to 41-30, but the Panthers responded with a free throw from Wes Washpun, a 3-pointer by Lohaus and a jumper by Washpun for a commanding 47-30 advantage.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Northern Iowa has won seven of its last eight meetings with the Bears, including five straight, and improved to 28-40 in the series. … Tuttle has started all 119 games of his Northern Iowa career and is third on the school’s all-time starts list behind Ben Jacobson (120, 2002-06) and Johnny Moran (135, 2008-12). … The Panthers have made a 3-pointer in 478 consecutive games, the longest active streak in the MVC.

[© 2014 Thomson Reuters. All rights reserved.]

Copyright 2014 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.