Shockers can’t shake slide as MVC play opens

By Dave Skretta - Associated Press Writer     Dec 31, 2006

? Here’s a shocker: Northern Iowa, not Wichita State, might be the class of the Missouri Valley Conference.

The inside duo of Grant Stout and Eric Coleman took over late in the game, and the Panthers handed No. 16 Wichita State its third straight loss, 63-59 on Saturday night.

It was the Panthers’ third straight win over Wichita State, and the third consecutive time they’ve come into hostile, sold-out Charles Koch Arena and walked out with a victory. Northern Iowa has won seven of its last nine against the Shockers and coach Mark Turgeon.

“They’ve come in and they’ve beat us every time,” Turgeon said, shaking his head. “But every time they come in we’re in a little drought.”

The Shockers began the season 9-0, which tied for the best start in school history and included road wins over ranked teams LSU and Syracuse. But two losses in the Las Vegas Holiday Classic and a blown lead against the Panthers suddenly have the mid-major darlings reeling.

“We’re just not very good right now,” Turgeon said. “We have to get better.”

Especially against teams such as Northern Iowa (11-2, 2-0 Missouri Valley Conference), which has gone to three consecutive NCAA Tournaments and has barely skipped a beat following the departure of coach Greg McDermott to Iowa State after last season.

Northern Iowa already has knocked off Iowa and beaten McDermott’s Cyclones this season.

The victory over Wichita State is the first against a ranked team on the road since the program turned Division I in 1981.

“This gives us some confidence,” first-year coach Ben Jacobson said. “This is a huge win – to come on the road and get our first road win in Valley play is huge.”

Stout was the difference, pulling down nine rebounds and scoring 11 of his 17 points in the final 10 minutes of the game.

The 6-foot-8 forward from tiny New Sharon, Iowa, jump-started an 18-4 second-half run that gave Northern Iowa its first lead of the game. Stout’s turnaround jumper with 1:34 left that gave Northern Iowa a 58-53 lead.

“I think he won the game, basically,” Turgeon said. “He made two huge fade-away jump shots late.”

Kyle Wilson scored 18 points to lead the Shockers (9-3, 0-1 MVC), who made a trendy splash on the national radar last March with their improbable run to the NCAA round of 16.

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