MANHATTAN, Kansas – Trailing by 12 early in the third quarter, Kansas State rallied to take a two-point fourth quarter lead but perimeter shooting by Northern Iowa sent the Wildcats to a 72-71 defeat on Thursday night at Bramlage Coliseum.
Northern Iowa (4-7) finished the night 16-of-31 (.516) from beyond the arc, just one made 3-point field goal from tying the opponent record against K-State of 17 set by South Dakota on Nov. 19, 2015. K-State was just 4-of-17 (.235) from the 3-point line, but registered a 17-of-23 (.739) effort from the foul line to close the margin.
Kansas State (8-3) was led by the duo of junior guard Kayla Goth and sophomore forward Peyton Williams with a combined 47 points. Goth registered a career-high 26 points while also handing out five assists, pulling in four rebounds and adding two blocks and two steals. This was the fourth career game of 20 or more points for Goth including her second this season. She has also dished out five or more assists in nine games this season.
Williams also notched her second game of 20 or more points this season, as she tallied 21 points, six rebounds, two steals and a block. The product of Topeka, Kansas, has 16 career games with five or more rebounds, including eight this season.
The Panthers had three players in double figures led by Kennedy Kirkpatrick with 24 points, Mikaela Morgan with 18 points and Ellie Howell with 11 points. UNI’s bench outscored the K-State bench, 51-12.
The teams exchanged the lead four times in the opening quarter, as Northern Iowa held a 16-14 lead after the first. K-State was paced by Goth with five points and freshman center Ashley Ray, who made her first career start on Thursday, with four points.
Northern Iowa built an eight-point lead, 28-20, with a 12-4 run in the opening four and a half minutes of the second quarter. K-State ended its dry spell with a 9-0 run to take a 29-28 lead with 3:08 to play and force a Panthers’ timeout.
Goth scored K-State’s final 11 points of the first half, but Northern Iowa would hold a 40-35 lead at halftime. The Wildcats shot 12-of-26 from the field in the first half, but the Panthers were 14-of-31 including a 9-of-19 effort from beyond the arc in the opening 20 minutes.
After Northern Iowa took its largest lead of the night, 49-37, with 6:39 of the third quarter, Kansas State proceeded to end the third stanza on a 15-2 run and take a 52-51 lead entering the fourth quarter.
Williams scored eight points during the rally, including a pair of 3-point plays. K-State held the Panthers without a field goal for the final 6:38 of the quarter.
In the fourth quarter, K-State came back from a five-point deficit, 60-55, with 6:16 remaining to go in front by two, 62-60, following a transition layup from Kaylee Page to force a UNI timeout with 4:25 to play in regulation.
After the timeout, the Panthers scored nine quick points to go back in front by five, 69-64, with 2:11 left. Kirkpatrick was responsible for seven of the nine points during the rally including her sixth and seventh 3-pointers of the night.
K-State mounted a late comeback, as Williams made a layup with 27 seconds following a pair of missed free throws by the Panthers. After UNI made two free throws for a 71-66 lead with 16 seconds left, Karyla Middlebrook drove the length of the floor to finish a layup with 11 seconds to bring K-State to within three, 71-68. Middlebrook finished with eight points and three assists in 20 minutes off the bench.
Northern Iowa then made just one of two free throws and K-State raced up the floor after the second attempt missed. Goth drained her third 3-pointer of the night with four seconds left. The Panthers attempted to inbound the ball following the make, but were tied up by Shaelyn Martin on the wing with the possession arrow favoring K-State with just 8 tenths of a second left.
Page inbounded the ball under K-State’s own basket and lobbed a pass to Goth in the lane. On Goth’s field goal attempt with a tenth of a second left, she was fouled. Both free throw attempts were long to send K-State to its first home loss of the 2017-18 season.
K-State finished the night shooting 41.0 percent overall (25-of-61) which included a 32-10 advantage in points in the paint. UNI tallied a 41.5 percent effort (22-of-53). UNI registered an assist on all 22 made field goals, while K-State handed out 11.
K-State held a 23-9 lead in points off turnovers, as the Wildcats forced the Panthers into 16 turnovers compared to just eight by K-State.
Following a break for the holidays, Kansas State begins Big 12 action on Thursday, December 28, as the Wildcats host (6/6) Baylor at 7 p.m. The Wildcats and Lady Bears will meet in the league season opener for the third time in the last five years, as the teams opened the 2013-14 Big 12 season in Manhattan and the 2016-17 season in Waco.
— K-State Athletics —