CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Roberts Berze came off the bench to lead McNeese with 12 points while Johnathan Massie added 11, including scoring the last seven points for the Cowboys as McNeese defeated Northern Iowa 52-49 here Friday night.
 
The win snapped a three-game losing streak for the Cowboys as they improve to 3-6 while also picking up their first win on the road on the young season. UNI dropped to 3-5 and lost for just the second time at home this year.
 
The lead changed hands 10 times in the second half with the largest margin being four points.
 
The Cowboys led 45-42 following a Zach Scott three with 6:25 to play but UNI scored six straight to go up 48-45 after a Bowen Born 3 at the 4:50 mark. Born, the Panthers' leading scorer with 22 points per game, was held to seven points on the night after making just 2 of 12 from the field and was the focal point of McNeese's defense.

"We made a slight change to our zone and took one player out of it to just chase Horn around," said head coach John Aiken. "We felt like if we could take him out of the game then we could beat them, and we did. I told our guys to just come out an play very aggressive."

Massie and Donovan Oday were the two Cowboys appointed the task of sticking with Horn.

"John John and Oday did a great job taking him out of the game," said Aiken. "But also having Zach (Scott) and Ty (McMillan) back was huge for us. They made some big plays for us tonight."
 
Massie snapped the UNI run with a layup plus-1 to tie the game at 48-48 with 3:21 to go then after a Northern Iowa turnover, Massie put the Cowboys on top 50-48 after a couple of Ty McMillan offensive rebounds kept the ball in McNeese's possession.
 
Northern Iowa made one of two free throws to cut the gap to 50-49 with two minutes on the clock and Massie connected on two free throws after a Panther miss and a Trae English rebound.
 
The Panthers had several opportunities to tie the game in the final 45 seconds but missed all six shots including three 3-point attempts.
 
The Cowboys finished the game hitting 42 percent from the field (20 of 48) and 30 percent from long range (8 of 27). McNeese was 4 for 8 at the free throw line. Northern Iowa shot just 29 percent (16 of 55) for the game and 21 percent from long range (7 of 33). The Panthers sank 10 of 17 at the line and held a 39-33 advantage in rebounds including an 18-9 mark on the offensive glass.
 
Eight of the nine Cowboys to see the floor scored while Scott led the team with six rebounds and three assists, matching English's three dishes.
 
UNI was led in scoring by Trey Campbell's 17 points while Michael Duax added 16 points and 11 rebounds.
 
McNeese led 27-23 at the half and held an 11-point lead at 27-16 before Northern Iowa went on a 7-0 run in the final 3:18 to close the gap.
 
The Cowboys' defense gave the Panthers trouble for much of the half, forcing the home team into 11 turnovers and just 35 percent shooting from the field, including 23 percent from long range.
 
Harwin Francois scored the first points of the game with a three-pointer to put McNeese up before UNI scored seven straight to go up 7-3 in the first two minutes of the game. Another Francois 3 gave the Cowboys an 8-7 lead at the 15:30 mark and after a 15-15 tie, McNeese went on a 10-0 run over a two-minute span in a time where Berze ignited the run with back-to-back three-pointers.
 
A Christian Shumate layup gave the Cowboys their largest lead at 27-16 with 3:45 to play before the Panthers began to rally to end the half.
 
The Cowboys will close out the road trip on Sunday after at 5 against No. 20 Iowa State.