I Finally Went to a UNI Basketball Game—Here’s What Made It Unforgettable

After being a proud member of the Cedar Valley community for four years, I've finally made it to an UNI sporting event.

Just like the rest of the world, over the past year or so I've gained a renewed interest in women's sports; specifically women's basketball.

The state of Iowa obviously played a key role in this with the Caitlin Clark phenomena.

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I used to love watching women's basketball when I was in college. Back in the day, I actually played trombone in the pep band at Syracuse University. We were able to travel with the teams and cheer 'em on during the games!

It was a major highlight for me during my college years!

Now, I've been following along with the NCAA women's league this season.

Players like Paige Bueckers of UConn, Juju Watkins of USC, and even Hannah Stuelke of Iowa are big names in collegiate basketball right now.

However, we got to give some flowers to the University of Northern Iowa team as well. Not only did they pull off an amazing upset against ISU, but they've got a star guard on their roster as well, Maya McDermott.

Last year, during her junior season with the Panthers McDermott had a 96.4% free throw percentage, making her the NCAA National free throw percentage leader.

UNI Panthers Take on Bradley on Friday, February 7th

UNI kicked off an exciting weekend of Panthers in Paradise on Friday night against Bradley. The Illinois team had a bit of a lead in the first quarter of the game.

While the Panthers started off slow, the team quickly built up some serious momentum. McDermott came through with the first points of the game for UNI.

As the ball swished through the net, the entire McLeod Center lit up. They knew this was going to be a good game.

The 5 foot 6 senior came in strong with a deep three, and kept the energy up during the first half.

Junior Taryn Wharton helped the Panthers catch up by landing a three, which helped the team catch up to the Braves.

While the visiting team was leading by one point by the end of the first quarter(14-13), that lead did not last for too long.

The second quarter saw some exciting game play.

Number 15 Elise Jaeger on the Panthers got shot down after a successful layup, and then was able to put some additional points on the board following a free throw.

By the end of the half the Cedar Falls team was leading by ten points (32-22).

During the second half, the Panthers were feeling 22 with Wharton moving in with some massive power behind her plays.

This power mixed with the great dynamic between this team lead them to a victory against the Braves (69-51).

I did a quick little vlog, so you can experience my very first UNI basketball game along with me!

Check it out down below!

@k92.3.fm A #FlannelFriday at the McLeod Center watching the Panthers 🏀⛹️‍♀️🏀 #uni #basketball #cedarfalls #iowa ♬ basketball positions - Sr.beats

The Panthers have some exciting matchups on the horizon as we get closer and closer to NCAA tournament.

February 13th: UNI vs. Belmont AWAY

February 15th: UNI vs. Murray State AWAY

February 20th: UNI vs. Missouri State HOME

February 27th: UNI vs. Evansville HOME

March 1st: UNI vs. Drake HOME

March 6th: UNI vs. UIC AWAY

March 8th: UNI vs. Valparaiso AWAY

Check out the official website here to check out information about upcoming games and ticket prices.

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