DENVER, Colo. - Northern Iowa's basketball team survived a major road test Friday by turning to what it has the most of - size and experience.

The Panthers weathered Denver's perimeter sharpshooting, got their inside game going in the second half and made key plays in the closing minutes of both halves to kick off their season with a 71-65 victory at Magness Arena.

Kwadzo Ahelegbe scored 18 points to lead UNI, including five points in the final two minutes of the first half when the Panthers shook off a sluggish start to grab a 23-21 lead at the intermission.

"We just weren't very sharp offensively the first 10 minutes," said coach Ben Jacobson. "I think some of it had to do with it being our first game of the year, and some of it had to with Denver. They did a nice job with their match-up zone.

"The last five minutes of the first half may have been the stretch that was the difference in the basketball game. Denver did not score on their last seven or eight possessions, our offense picked up some tempo, and Kwadzo made some important baskets."

UNI's offense picked up where it left off after the break, and the Panthers built a seven-point lead on Ali Farokhmanesh's 3-point bucket early in the second half. However, the Pioneers made five of their first six 3-point attempts after halftime and charged back to take a 45-44 lead with 9:38 remaining.

That's when the Panthers' veterans stepped up again.

Farokhmanesh buried another 3-ball for a 58-54 lead and Johnny Moran's first basket of the night was a key 3-pointer that gave UNI a 61-56 lead. A power move inside by Jordan Eglseder made it 63-58 with less than two minutes to play, and the Panthers held on.

"Ali made two important 3s, and Adam Koch and Jordan were good in the second half," said Jacobson. "Our perimeter players did a good job getting it down to them."

Farokhmanesh added 16 points, Koch had 13 and Eglseder finished with 12 for the balanced Panthers, who owned a 22-8 scoring edge from the free-throw line. UNI also controlled the rebounding by a 34-24 margin with Eglseder pulling down a dozen.

Denver shot 50 percent from the field and made 11 of 22 3-point attempts.

"Denver's an experienced team," said Jacobson. "They run their offense so well. It's the Princeton offense, and you're constantly defending back cuts. What they've added is some guys who can really make 3-point shots. They are a team that's hard to defend."

In the end, UNI's experience won out.

"The last 25 minutes of the game, our experience was very important," said Jacobson. "The guys making the plays were Kwadzo, Ali, Johnny ... and Adam and Jordan were tough on the block. Kerwin Dunham played 25 minutes and he had a nice game. We played our experienced guys in the second half, and they came through.

"Any time you win on the road, that's a great win."

UNI has a few days to work out some of the kinks in its game before the Panthers head to the Virgin Islands where they play DePaul in the Paradise Jam next Friday.

NORTHERN IOWA (1-0) - A. Koch 2-2 9-9 13, Eglseder 5-11 2-6 12, Farokhmanesh 5-9 3-3 16, Ahelegbe 5-10 6-9 18, Moran 1-6 1-2 4, J. Koch 0-0 0-0 0, Dunham 2-2 0-1 5, Sonnen 0-1 0-0 0, O'Rear 1-3 1-3 3, Rodenberg 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 21-44 22-33 71.

DENVER (0-1) - Coughlin 1-3 0-0 2, Rohnert 3-8 8-11 15, Hallam 1-5 0-1 3, Stafford 8-10 0-0 20, Lewis 4-6 0-0 10, Thalken 1-1 0-0 2, T. Hallam 0-0 0-0 0, Chen 0-0 0-1 0, Hooper 5-13 0-0 13. Totals 23-46 8-13 65.

Halftime - Northern Iowa 23, Denver 21. 3-point goals - Northern Iowa 7-17 (Eglseder 0-1, Farokhmanesh 3-7, Ahelegbe 2-4, Moran 1-4, Dunham 1-1); Denver 11-22 (Coughlin 0-2, Rohnert 1-3, C. Hallam 1-3, Stafford 4-4, Lewis 2-4, Hooper 3-6). Rebounds - Northern Iowa 34 (Eglseder 12); Denver 24 (Rohnert 10). Assists - Northern Iowa 6 (Ahelegbe 2); Denver 15 (Rohnert 5). Turnovers - Northern Iowa 13 (Ahelegbe 4); Denver 10 (Lewis 2, T. Hallam 2). Blocks - Northern Iowa 2 (Moran, O'Rear); Denver 3 (C. Hallam, Thalken, Hooper). Steals - Northern Iowa 4 (Moran 2); Denver 5 (Stafford 2). Total fouls - Northern Iowa 19, Denver 26. Fouled out - none. Att. - 2,082.