Recap: Northern Iowa vs. Toledo

Cedar Falls, IA (Sports Network) - Deon Mitchell scored 27 points to lead the Northern Iowa Panthers to a 84-81 overtime victory at the McCleod Center.

For the Panthers (2-0), Seth Tuttle posted a double-double with 21 points and 10 rebounds, while Jake Koch and Marc Sonnen each finished with 11 points.

Julius Brown paced the Rockets (0-3) with 23 points and Dominique Buckley added 19 points. Rian Pearson chipped in 18 points as Toledo lost its third straight game to open the season

Both teams shot well to start the contest. Toledo connected on 48.5 percent from the field, including 5-of-11 from three-point range. Northern Iowa was even better, hitting 52.2 percent of its shots. The Panthers also held a 13-1 advantage from the free-throw line that helped them to take a 41-38 lead into halftime.

Both sides played much better on the defensive end of the floor after the break, with Northern Iowa hitting only 37.5 percent and Toledo shooting somewhat better at 40.7 percent. While the Panthers led for most of the second half, the Rockets continued to chip away before finally taking their first lead of the second stanza with less than three minutes left in regulation. A jumper by Brown with 44 seconds on the clock gave Toledo a two-point advantage, but Mitchell countered with a jump shot of his own just ten seconds later to send the game into overtime.

In the extra session, the Panthers jumped out to an early lead and never trailed again. UNI connected on 10 of 11 free throws to secure the overtime victory. Toledo had a chance to force a second overtime, but the potentially game-tying three-point attempt by Brown as time expired was off the mark.

Northern Iowa outscored Toledo at the free-throw line 32-10. The Panthers had a slight edge on the boards, 39-35.