Northern Iowa Panthers at Belmont Bruins
· NCAA Men's Basketball
Sheppard puts up 22, Belmont defeats Northern Iowa 76-72
Sheppard was 6 of 10 shooting, including 4 for 6 from distance, and went 6 for 7 from the line for the Bruins (13-6, 6-2 Missouri Valley Conference). Drew Friberg scored 15 points while going 6 of 12 (3 for 9 from distance), and added six rebounds. Ja'Kobi Gillespie finished 6 of 8 from the field to finish with 14 points.
Trey Campbell finished with 16 points and two steals for the Panthers (9-9, 5-3). Michael Duax added 12 points for Northern Iowa. Tytan Anderson also had 11 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals.
Belmont went into the half leading Northern Iowa 44-31. Sheppard scored 12 points in the half. Belmont turned an eight-point second-half lead into a 15-point advantage with a 7-0 run to make it a 51-36 lead with 14:55 left in the half. Sheppard scored 10 second-half points in the win.
NEXT UP
Belmont's next game is Tuesday against Murray State at home, while Northern Iowa hosts Illinois State on Wednesday.
How can I watch Northern Iowa vs. Belmont?
Recent Plays
| 2nd 0:00 | End of Game | 72 - 76 |
| 2nd 0:00 | End of 2nd half | 72 - 74 |
| 2nd 0:01 | Northern Iowa Offensive Rebound. | 72 - 76 |
| 2nd 0:01 | James Betz missed Three Point Jumper. | 72 - 76 |
| 2nd 0:02 | Ben Sheppard made Free Throw. | 72 - 76 |
Statistics
 UNI |
 BEL |
|
|---|---|---|
| 29-60 | FG | 27-53 |
| 48 | Field Goal % | 51 |
| 5-16 | 3PT | 14-31 |
| 31 | Three Point % | 45 |
| 9-14 | FT | 8-9 |
| 64 | Free Throw % | 89 |
| 30 | Rebounds | 28 |
| 8 | Offensive Rebounds | 5 |
| 22 | Defensive Rebounds | 23 |
| 9 | Assists | 15 |
| 8 | Steals | 3 |
| 0 | Blocks | 3 |
| 6 | Turnovers | 14 |
| 0 | Team Turnovers | 1 |
| 6 | Total Turnovers | 14 |
| 0 | Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Total Technical Fouls | 0 |
| 0 | Flagrant Fouls | 0 |
| 21 | Points Off Turnovers | 0 |
| 2 | Fast Break Points | 3 |
| 44 | Points in Paint | 24 |
| 15 | Fouls | 16 |
| 2 | Largest Lead | 16 |
Game Information
Location: Nashville, TN
Attendance: 2,700 | Capacity:
2025-26 Missouri Valley Conference Standings
| TEAM | CONF | GB | OVER |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belmont | 16-4 | - | 26-6 |
| Bradley | 13-7 | 3 | 21-13 |
| Illinois State | 12-8 | 4 | 23-12 |
| Murray State | 12-8 | 4 | 20-13 |
| UIC | 12-8 | 4 | 19-16 |
| Northern Iowa | 11-9 | 5 | 23-13 |
| Valparaiso | 11-9 | 5 | 18-15 |
| Southern Illinois | 10-10 | 6 | 16-16 |
| Drake | 6-14 | 10 | 14-20 |
| Indiana State | 4-16 | 12 | 11-21 |
| Evansville | 3-17 | 13 | 7-25 |