CEDAR FALLS - The University of Northern Iowa basketball team didn't make the same mistake twice.

A week ago on their homecourt, the Panthers let a sluggish offensive performance in the first half dictate their defense. The result was a loss to 2-9 Indiana State.

Saturday night, UNI labored on offense for much of the opening half versus Wichita State. This time, the Panther defense held up before the offense found its groove. The outcome was UNI's most lopsided victory of the year.

Ignited by 8-for-11 shooting from beyond the arc and a season-best 50 second-half points, the Panthers cruised to a 78-54 rout over the Shockers at the McLeod Center in front of 3,261 fans.

"You can't control the ball every night," UNI guard Ali Farokhmanesh said, "but you can control your defense no matter what. You can control your toughness.

"That first half didn't turn into Indiana State because we played our defense and stuck to what we wanted to do. Our defense needs to be there every night."

The Panthers (8-6, 2-1 MVC) had just 19 points with 2 1/2 minutes remaining in the first half. Still, they only trailed by seven as the Shockers (6-8, 0-3) went more than six minutes without a point.

"We didn't let the fact that our offense was pretty slow in the first half slow us down defensively," said UNI head coach Ben Jacobson, who singled out reserve guard Brian Haak for his play on that end. "We continued to be aggressive."

UNI finished the half with nine consecutive points, including a jumper from Kwadzo Ahelegbe in the final second, to give it a 28-26 halftime lead.

The Panthers, who won consecutive games for the first time since Nov. 25, blew it open in the second half. Farokhmanesh buried three 3-pointers in a 90-second span as UNI ran off a 32-5 flurry to grab a 20-point lead.

"From that point on (the last two minutes of the first half), they dominated us," WSU coach Gregg Marshall said. "They did a great job defensively and on the glass. They shot the ball phenomenally.

"That's as bad as it's been for us. They deserve a lot of credit."

It was UNI's largest margin of victory over WSU in the teams' 37 meetings, and the Shockers most lopsided defeat this season.

Farokhmanesh paced UNI with five 3-pointers and 17 points, while Ahelegbe finished with 13 and freshman Johnny Moran had 10 points, five assists and three steals.

The Panther bench accounted for 25 points and 15 rebounds.

"(That second half) was as explosive as we've been at the offensive end," Jacobson said.

UNI excelled in transition, thanks to a season-high 11 steals.

"We're at our best when we're getting the ball up in transition, and the big guys are getting extra possessions," Ahelegbe said.

UNI shot 17 of 30 (56.7 percent) in the second half and was a season-best 11-for-19 from the 3-point line. In the last four games, the Panthers are 33 of 66 (50 percent) from the arc after shooting nearly 31 percent in their first 10 outings.

"The guys have continued to get in and shoot extra," Jacobson said. "That's a real key."

Meanwhile, WSU missed nine of its first 11 shots to start the second half and shot 36 percent for the contest. The Shockers finished with a season-high 21 turnovers.

"I give (UNI) all the credit," Marshall said. "I was disappointed in our effort in the second half. We had some horrible decision-making with the ball, in terms of when to drive and when not to."

UNI returns to action Tuesday night at Creighton, which suffered a 22-point loss at Illinois State Saturday.

"We're still the same team we were a week ago," Farokhmanesh said. "We're just playing a lot better in games.

"We've still got a long ways to go, but we're getting better."

SHORT SHOTS: Adam Rodenberg, who was the only UNI player to score in a 10-minute stretch during the first half, finished with a season-high six points and six rebounds in 15 minutes. "It felt good to get in there," he said. "I felt real comfortable out there. The team chemistry is real good right now." … WSU guard Clevin Hannah scored the team's first 11 points, but had just three points in the final 37 minutes.

Contact Matt Coss at (319) 291-1468 or matt.coss@wcfcourier.com

WSU Mn FG-A FT-A Rb As PF TP

Clemente 25 0-4 0-0 10 1 3 0

Hawkins 26 1-4 2-2 2 1 1 4

Stutz 17 1-4 2-2 5 0 4 4

Hannah 25 5-9 0-2 3 1 4 14

Murry 24 4-10 1-1 7 1 3 9

Ellis 12 0-3 2-2 4 0 1 2

Hatch 19 1-2 1-2 1 2 0 4

Chamberlain 16 1-3 2-2 2 1 0 5

Kyles 7 0-0 0-0 0 0 1 0

Durley 17 4-9 0-1 1 0 3 8

Griskenas 8 1-1 1-2 0 0 2 4

Steven 2 0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0

Britton 2 0-1 0-0 0 0 0 0

Team 4

Totals 200 18-50 11-16 39 7 22 54

N. Iowa Mn FG-A FT-A Rb As PF TP

Koch 25 3-5 2-3 3 3 1 9

Eglseder 16 1-4 2-3 4 0 3 4

Farokhmanesh 24 5-10 2-2 1 2 3 17

Ahelegbe 21 5-11 0-0 4 2 2 13

Moran 31 4-10 1-2 2 5 1 10

Brown 7 2-4 2-2 4 0 1 6

Dunham 25 2-3 0-0 1 2 1 4

O'Rear 24 1-1 3-5 3 2 2 5

Rodenberg 15 3-7 0-0 6 0 2 6

Haak 12 1-2 1-2 1 0 1 4

Team 3

Totals 200 27-57 13-19 32 16 17 78

Wichita State 26 28 - 54

Northern Iowa 28 50 - 78

3-point goals - WSU 7-18 (Hannah 4-7, Chamberlain 1-3, Hatch 1-1, Griskenas 1-1, Murry 0-3, Hawkins 0-1, Stutz 0-1, Durley 0-1); UNI 11-19 (Farokhmanesh 5-8, Ahelegbe 3-3, Moran 1-4, Koch 1-1, Haak 1-1, Brown 0-1, Dunham 0-1). Turnovers - WSU 21 (Murry 5, Hannah 4); UNI 10 (Rodenberg 3). Steals - WSU 6 (Hawkins 2); UNI 11 (Dunham 4, Moran 3). Blocks - WSU 3 (three players with one); UNI 4 (Eglseder 3).

Officials - Higgins, Gladden, Kissinger. Att. - 3,261.

RUNOUTS

Score: Northern Iowa 78, Wichita State 54

Leaders of the pack: UNI's Ali Farokhmanesh buried five 3-pointers and finished with 17 points. Johnny Moran had 10 points, five assists and three steals.

Off the bench: Adam Rodenberg had a season-high six points and six rebounds in 15 minutes for the Panthers.

Game-changer: The Panthers went on a 32-5 surge, spanning 12 minutes, to turn a seven-point deficit into a 20-point advantage.

Next up: UNI (8-6, 2-1) travels to Creighton for a 7:05 p.m. tip Tuesday.