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SEASON 7

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Epilogue, The Ninth: Only Love Can Break Your Heart

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So We Meet Again

Rte. 139 - End of the Line

Hanging On

A Championship in Pictures

This Time of Year

Dotson Leads Ducks to the Sweet Sixteen

Grizzlies Overwhelmed by Orangemen

Empire

Challenge 11: Final Four Memories

By George, UConn is Dead

Butler and Us

Donning the Black and Gold

Challenge 10: Tourney Memories

The Madness of the Horizon League

The Rare Ivy League Conference Tournament

MAC Madness

Anything Can Happen in the MAAC

Challenge 9: Shock The Neighborhood

A Youthful Surprise

From Worst to First

Peers and Seers

Game 7-037: Southern Illinois at Northern Iowa
January 18, 2011 12:59 pm ET by Kyle Whelliston

Southern Illinois Salukis at Northern Iowa Panthers

January 15, 2011 8:00 pm
McLeod Center
BBState Stats/Recap

Of all the times we've been to Cedar Falls, there's one consistent memory: feeling like every extremity is going to freeze and fall off on the walk from the car to the arena (whether the old UNI Dome or new McLeod Center), and then experiencing how warm it is inside. From a logical perspective, I know that it's 68 degrees inside, just the same as any other basketball gym. But it's that contrast between bone-chilling cold -- and by bone-chilling, I mean that I want to take them all out of my body and stick them in an ice bucket to warm them up -- and room temperature. There's no hot quite like it.

Game time temperature on Saturday night: 6 Fahrenheit degrees, not counting the windchill. I hear Cedar Falls is great in the summer, and that there are a lot of Twins fans to talk to there, but it's sort of out of the way seven months out of the year.


Hello Iowa!


Sitting in the end section right under the basket, you get a really good close-up alternating look at the two teams' offense and defense that you don't get from the side. There's also more opportunity to experience the emotion and intensity of the players. You can also see pretty girls. Bally doesn't complain about any of that.


Here, a UNI student section leader prepares to run out on the floor with two compatriots, where they will wave lettered flags (U, N and I) to coax the crowd into chanting the school's acronym. This could easily be done with cards, but flags are much cooler. Another thing about the Valley is that many in the student sections wear striped overalls. We've seen this at Bradley too, and a few other schools too, I think. Anybody know if there's a secret history here?


At halftime, there was a drumline that wore cowboy gear. We were out in the hallway when they marched back off the court playing, and I still have a splitting headache from it. The good kind of splitting headache!


Kansas-killer Ali Farokhmanesh is gone (although there's a 10-foot blowup of his Sports Illustrated cover near the ticket office). So is Jordan Egelseder, the paint-chewing behemoth that neutralized Cole Aldrich in that same game. Several favorite players are still playing in Cedar Falls. Lucas O'Rear was one of the more interesting guys on that team, looking less like a hooper than a baseball player... from 1915. The RHP was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds in last year's MLB Draft, even though UNI dropped its baseball team a year earlier. He's pretty good at this, too; he scored a career-high 18 and was mobbed by autograph-seeking kids afterwards. O' Knows Basketball!

Oh yeah, and that happened.

@midmajority Game Tweets

19:56 Game 7-037: Southern Illinois at Northern Iowa. From tropical Cedar Falls.
20:03 The McLeod Center. http://img.ly/2OnT
20:10 Our view of the game. C'mon, UNI, score that first basket! Or don't. http://img.ly/2OnZ
20:10 Yes! We're back! RT @ValleyHoops: #MVCHoops with @ballybasketball? Is it true? RT @midmajority: Game 7-037: Southern Illinois at No. Iowa.
20:11 RT @donpot: @midmajority My friend @karamoran likes to say she's McLeod and proud! She's prob. there tonight too!
20:13 #superhoops by Kwadzo Ahelegbe (2) and Carlton Fay (1) open the scoring. UNI 6, SIU 3 after four minutes.
20:13 RT @mwmiller20: @midmajority if it makes you feel warmer, the temperature is 260 Kelvin in Cedar Rapids (10 F)
20:16 7-0 UNI run cut off by a Mamdou Seck jumper, but UNI is pouring on the Panther power. 12-5, Lowery calls TO.
20:20 RT @ValleyHoops: Sounds like a star-studded event at McLeod tonight. @midmajority, @kellyatcourier, @Todd_Hefferman, @AndrewMLogue all tweeting from the game
20:20 It was one of those right-before-the-MTO wasted time outs. We are up close and personal with the UNI student section! http://img.ly/2Oot
20:24 Um, we knew that? But we'll pass that along. RT @uni4d: @midmajority UNI in Cedar Falls NOT Cedar Rapids
20:25 Sounds evil! I'm waving! RT @KraigW: Northern Iowa vs Southern Illinois is on XBOXelvilsion. I'm looking for you @midmajority
20:28 At the second MTO, the Salukis offense has put together six points and has not made it to the "shot" phase that much. 16-6 UNI.
20:31 The Salukis used to travel really well, everywhere. About 20 fans behind the bench tonight, and they look regretful already. Hard times.
20:34 Jake Koch (the younger) a 3, and it's 21-10 UNI at 7:52 1H. SIU super-tentative on D. "You'll give me that shot? Okay." Hard times.
20:42 Lucas O'Rear, he of the baseball Honkers, has very angular hair (both facial and mane) this year. Two FTs put UNI up 24-12.
20:44 Good time to point out the Panthers' sharp new unis. They'd been wearing their Valley centennial patches for several years. Thanks, Nike!
20:46 3-way in the CAA. JMU has size. RT @midmajority360: UNC-Wilm. 54 James Madison 63 | UNCW 9-8 (3-3) JMU 15-3 (5-1) | http://tmm7.me/8s7 #CAA
20:49 Soph Panther Anthony James, with one of the tallest 'hawks in D1, dipsy-doodys to the hoop with a sick finish. 27-15 UNI, 2 to go in 1H.
20:53 During Floorburn U days, SIU's offense was horrible, but it didn't matter. They'd beat the hell out of you & make YOUR offense horrible too.
20:55 This team fouls a lot (UNI dubl-bonus with 5 to go in half) but it's all clumsy touch fouls. Hard times.
20:56 Ahelegbe with a lonng #superhoop before the HT buzzer, and he runs to the locker room. UNI 33, SIU 18.
21:08 RT @MattnotDonovan: @midmajority midwest directional schools never fail to entertain!
21:11 It's Saturday. All the good refs are in the Big 6. RT @briandfrancis: #socon officiating leaves a lot to be desired. cc: @midmajority
21:11 RT @SethHunt105: @midmajority my back hurts, but I'm in the band and it's a WCC game. Gotta play (trumpet) through the pain. #AllOfUs #EachOfUs
21:14 We are back for more Valley action!! Early second half in Cedar Falls with UNI up on SIU 37-24. Now, tumbling runs! http://img.ly/2OpC
21:15 A. James is the 6th man! RT @MattnotDonovan: @midmajority O'Rear has to be starting on the midmajority all-hair team S7 edition, right?
21:19 O'Rear with a handy layup, James with a flying tipin +1. Hair! Blow it, show it! UNI up 45-29.
21:21 Another O'Rear layup, another burnt SIU time out, a standing ovation in McLeod. 47-30 Panthers.
21:27 This game is getting boring; as good a time as any to retell the "UNI beats Kansas at the NCAAs" story. You know, the one from 2005.
21:30 So back in 05, UNI was in Oklahoma City playing Wisconsin in the 1st round. The Panthers lost. But the band stuck around for the late game.
21:31 Because they'd agreed to help 14 seed Bucknell. The Bison were on spring break then and didn't send a band to OKC.
21:33 So the UNI band learned "Ray Bucknell" & dressed in orange, and played their guts out for them. And the Bison won! They beat 3-seed Kansas.
21:34 So the next year, UNI and Bucknell played in the BracketBusters. Bucknell's band made the trip with the team, and played the UNI fight song.
21:36 I was there! Well, down the street at the UNI Dome. Was there a dry eye in the house? No. All of us, each of us. The end.
21:38 Here in 2011, UNI leads SIU 56-37, and we are near the end of the third quarter.
21:38 RT @tourneytrip: @midmajority I love that story
21:41 O'Rear another layup. Fay has 17 for SIU. 58-41 UNI. In the old days, playing SIU required ice packs and chiropractors afterwards.
21:43 These days, it must feel like a pedicure and a spa facial, with a complimentary glass of champagne. 63-44 UNI, 7:17 2H.
21:43 RT @donpot: @midmajority karma, thy name is Farohkmanesh!
21:44 Another day!! RT @PTNetherton: @midmajority Ooh, Ooh, tell the story about you screaming in the media room in 2006 when the 14-seed won!!
21:46 Elsewise: Whatever Belmont is doing to Campbell right now, I expect the state of Tennessee will soon make it illegal.
21:49 RT @UTEPMiners: @midmajority Someone needs to get in touch with SC lawmakers and make what Coastal Carolina is doing to the Big South illegal, as well.
21:52 An SIU team that whines incessantly about slap-foul calls? Now I've seen everything. 68-49 Panthers at 3:38 2H.
21:53 RT @jfreeze13: @midmajority Belmont is doing it to all of the ASun. Crazy carnage.
21:56 SIU experts inform us that a decent incoming class of four is coming in next season, but no guards. Interesting...? 70-50 at 3:04 2H.
21:59 Two minutes left, and the striped-overalls students are singing "If You're Winning and You Know It." Otherwise, #peopleareleaving.
22:01 oh my RT @campbell_camels: Belmont 63 CU 26, 11:56 2nd
22:02 We have a final in Cedar Falls! The Sweet 16 team of 2010 beats the Sweet 16 team of a whole bunch of other years, 72-52.
22:05 Scary cat! http://img.ly/2OqS
22:05 RT @midmajority360: Southern Illinois 52 Northern Iowa 72 | SIU 9-9 (3-4) UNI 13-6 (4-3) | http://tmm7.me/8t0 #MVC

Boxscore

at NORTHERN IOWA 72, SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 52
01/15/2011

SOUTHERN ILLINOIS 9-9 (3-4) -- M. Seck 3-6 6-8 12; C. Fay 6-12 5-7 19; C. Fay 6-12 5-7 19; K. Brown-Surles 4-9 1-2 11; K. Brown-Surles 4-9 1-2 11; M. Cleveland 0-2 1-2 1; J. Bocot 0-3 0-0 0; J. Bocot 0-3 0-0 0; J. Freeman 0-2 1-2 1; T. Long 2-5 0-0 6; J. Crowder 1-3 0-0 2; J. Freeman 0-2 1-2 1; J. Crowder 1-3 0-0 2; D. Drinkard 0-1 0-0 0; N. Mitchell 0-1 0-0 0; N. Mitchell 0-1 0-0 0; D. Taylor 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-75 21-32 85.
NORTHERN IOWA 13-6 (4-3) -- K. Ahelegbe 6-7 6-8 21; L. O'Rear 6-7 6-6 18; J. Moran 3-7 0-0 7; A. James 3-9 1-1 7; M. Sonnen 2-4 0-0 5; J. Koch 2-4 2-2 7; K. Dunham 1-1 3-3 5; C. Rank 0-1 0-0 0; A. Pehl 1-1 0-0 2; M. Morrison 0-0 0-0 0; T. Lange 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 24-41 18-20 72.

Three-point goals: SIU 10-25 (C. Fay 2-5; J. Bocot 0-1; K. Brown-Surles 2-4; J. Crowder 0-1; T. Long 2-3), UNI 6-13 (K. Ahelegbe 3-3; A. James 0-1; J. Koch 1-2; J. Moran 1-4; M. Sonnen 1-3); Rebounds: SIU 37 (M. Seck 5), UNI 24 (L. O'Rear 10); Assists: SIU 11 (M. Cleveland 2), UNI 15 (J. Koch 7); Total Fouls -- SIU 31, UNI 20; Fouled Out: SIU-None; UNI-None.