CEDAR FALLS, Ia. — Perhaps it was the raucous crowd behind him, or the purple blazer on his back — but it was abundantly clear Ben Jacobson wanted this one. It wasn’t forced emotion, but rather embracing the latest moment in a season full of big ones, and it showed with each forceful fist-pump and noise request.
This is how Jacobson wants his Northern Iowa product to be. Intense, exciting — full of life even if things on the court don’t start perfectly. The Panthers took a circuitous route to Sunday’s 64-52 win over Southern Illinois at McLeod Center — dominating, then sputtering, before suffocating the Salukis in the second half.