Senior forward Maxie Rosenbloom (St. Paul, Minn.) needs to increase his role on the offensive end for the Bemidji State University men’s basketball team to be successful in 2013-14. Despite a 71-48 exhibition loss at NCAA Division I University of Northern Iowa Friday, one major positive that came out of the game was the play of Rosenbloom, as he posted 17 points on an efficient 5-of-10 shooting from the floor.
The 17 points by Rosenbloom would be a career-high if not for the game being an exhibition, as would the 10 field goals made. More importantly, Rosenbloom hit on seven of nine free throws (77.8%), a vast improvement from his 58.8 percent free throw shooting a season ago. He also added six rebounds, two steals and a block.
Both teams showed early season rust, as neither team shot well through the first five minutes. Senior guard Jake Schalow (Kaukauna, Wis.) knocked down a 3-pointer to move the Beavers within one at 9-8 with 14:34 remaining in the first half. The bucket would be the last for the road team in a drought that nearly lasted eight minutes of game clock. Bemidji State was shooting just 16 percent from the floor at that point in the half, until a senior Zach Noreen (F, Avon, Minn.) jumper ended the lull and – fortunately for BSU – just a 6-0 UNI run.
With the Panthers leading 15-10, Noreen hit on his first 3-pointer of the season for his fifth straight point, which jump started an 11-2 run by the Beavers. The streak saw five points from Rosenbloom, who converted on a layup with 4:43 left to hand BSU the 19-17 lead – its first of the game.
UNI responded with an 8-0 run to take the 25-19 advantage until free throws from Rosenbloom with 2:47 left started a 4-1 Beaver run that would close out the half.
BSU trailed 26-23 at the break, despite shooting just 27.6 percent and turning the ball over nine times. The Beavers held UNI to 37 percent from the field and forced six Panther turnover. Rosenbloom posted nine points and six rebounds in the first half.
Northern Iowa came out of the locker room firing on all cylinders and jumped out to an 11-point lead at 34-23 just 1:36 into the second frame. Just 25 seconds later, the Beavers got their first bucket of the second half on a junior transfer Brock Lutes (G, Portland, Ore.) 3-pointer.
After trading scores, BSU posted a 7-0 run on baskets from three different players to get within one at 36-35 with 15:34 remaining in regulation. With the scoreboard reading 43-40 and 13:18 on the clock, the Panthers started to show their Division I prowl and rattled off a12-2 run that drained three minutes off the clock and extend the home team’s lead to 55-42.
The Beavers got within 10 at 55-45 with 8:52 remaining on another Lutes 3-pointer, but that would be as close as it would get in the 23-point exhibition loss.
Lutes was the only other Beaver in double figures, as he posted 12 points. He went 3-for-8 from downtown. Schalow posted a 3-for-3 performance from beyond the arc for nine points, but the Beavers were only able to covert seven of 27 attempts from 3-point land for a 25.9 percentage. Overall BSU was 28.6 percent from the field, while allowing the Panthers to shoot 45.2 percent. UNI dominated the paint by a 42-12 margin and converted 18 Bemidji State turnovers into 21 points.
Bemidji State now has about two and a half weeks before its next competition, as the Beavers begin the 2013-14 regular season Nov. 13. The contest against Mayville State University begins a four-game nonconference homestand. Tip for the season opener is set for 8 p.m.