Freshman AJ Green stepped up big for the Panthers in their win on Sunday, Feb. 17, over the University of Evansville. UNI outscored the Purple Aces 73-58.

From the very beginning, Green caught fire, scoring the Panthers’ first six points off two three-pointers. Green led the way for the Panthers in the first half scoring 13 points.

The Purple Aces struggled hard to keep up in the first half, only shooting a low 31 percent from the field. UNI outscored the Aces 36-22 before the intermission.

The Panthers did not let up at all in the second half of the game as they maintained a 13-point advantage over the Aces throughout the latter half. AJ Green continued his dominance on the offensive side of the floor.

Green would tally up 21 points at the end of the contest and would end the game 8-15 from the field.

Trae Berhow had a major impact in this game as well, having finished the game with 14 points and 11 rebounds after 36 minutes of play.

In a team effort, the Panthers would walk away with a road win over the bottom team in the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC). Now, sitting at 7-7 in the conference, UNI keeps their MVC championship hopes alive.

The cats currently find themselves in a three-way tie in the MVC with Southern Illinois and Illinois State for the fourth spot.

Drake sits atop the MVC, followed by Missouri State and Loyola, who are tied at second.

“You look at all the leagues around the country, I don’t think you’re going to find the seven teams within two games of first. It’s different that way, it’s [going to] make a for a fun two weeks,” said UNI Coach Ben Jacobson.

The Panthers take on the likes of Missouri State in a conference rematch on Wednesday, Feb. 20, in Springfield, Mo. Having faced the Bears once already this season, UNI was able to walk away victorious in the McLeod Center, 64-59 in a hard-fought, defensive contest.