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Wichita St beats Northern Iowa to win Missouri Valley title

Sports

February 28th, 2015 by Ric Hanson

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Ron Baker scored 17 points to help No. 11 Wichita State beat No. 10 Northern Iowa 74-60 on Saturday and win the Missouri Valley Conference regular season championship. Fred VanVleet added 13 points for the Shockers (27-3, 17-1 Missouri Valley) while Tekele Cotton and Evan Wessel scored 11 each. Seth Tuttle scored 16 points to lead Northern Iowa (27-3, 16-2), which had a 16-game winning streak snapped. No other Panther scored in double figures.

Northern Iowa entered the game allowing 53.8 points a game, fourth best nationally. Up 12 at halftime, Wichita State extended its lead in the first five minutes. A Baker layup, VanVleet jumper and Shaquille Morris dunk equaled a quick 6-0 run that give the Shockers a 51-33 lead with 15:20 remaining. The Panthers shot their way back into the game behind the 3-point line, but it wasn’t enough.