CEDAR FALLS — A grand opening this was not.
Despite having its star player suited up in McLeod Center for the first time in 622 days, Northern Iowa and its Valley preseason player of the year AJ Green had little to offer in terms of an emphatic welcome back. The Panthers were simply trying to survive by game's end.
A sour start to a season full of promise.
UNI couldn't hold off a Nicholls State upset, as the Colonels trekked west and left Cedar Falls with a 62-58 win. Beginning the year with a low-major picked to win its conference is less than ideal, but head coach Ben Jacobson certainly didn't expect his squad to be staring at a double-digit deficit down the stretch.