Northern Iowa student awarded full $10,000 prize following half-court shot controversy

Dalton Hinsch is getting his full prize after all.

The Northern Iowa student who many felt was robbed from receiving $10,000 after completing an in-game basketball shooting challenge Wednesday will, in fact, get the entire amount.

UNI athletics made the announcement Friday with a release quoting Hinsch and contest sponsor CB Seeds.

Hinsch had 24 seconds to make a layup, a free throw, a 3-pointer and a half-court shot during a timeout in the UNI-Illinois State game at McLeod Center. He seemingly completed the four-shot task in time, only to have his half-court swish ruled too late after confusion in exactly how much time had elapsed.

The contest's rules stated a 24-second limit, but the arena emcee's 3-2-1 countdown, audibly heard in a Twitter video, lined up with a 27-second time frame. UNI athletics director David Harris confirmed the arena shot clock was not allowed to be used in the course of a game — only before the game or during halftime.

Hinsch previously was going to receive $2,000, a trip to the MVC Tournament and apparel as consolation gifts. He'll now still receive a package to watch the Panthers at Arch Madness, which includes tickets and a hotel stay, along with the full $10,000.

"Thank you to UNI and CB Seeds for the prize," Hinsch said in a UNI release. "I understood the rules prior to the contest, and am truly grateful for UNI and CB Seeds going above and beyond and awarding me the $10,000. I look forward to seeing the Panthers win it all in St Louis!"

The crowd roared when Hinsch's half-court heave swished, then booed when the ruling was made. A Thursday morning tweet from UNI athletics outlined the official stipulations and clarified why the shot was considered late.

But a steady stream of criticism, coupled with the timing confusion and the story's viral trajectory, led to Friday's decision. Harris said he weighed input from all angles.

"It's interesting," Harris told the Register Friday afternoon. "We got feedback from both sides. From people who say, 'You have to give this young man the money. There was confusion. There was an issue. He certainly deserves it.' And then there were people who felt that what we had done to this point has been very generous. 'We understand he didn’t really make it within 24 seconds, so the fact that you’re willing to do the $2,000 and send him to Arch Madness is really a great gesture.'

"For us over the past 48 hours, it’s just been fielding feedback from fans and people who were at the game and seeing the stories and having some conversations about, 'OK, we’re in a position where we feel like we want to resolve it in the best way possible.' And so having conversations, we arrived at a conclusion we felt comfortable with and we felt was the right thing to do."

CB Seeds, a Parkersburg company that focuses on premier channel dealership and treating operation as a climate fieldview dealer and seed adviser, sponsors the contest and also commented on the matter.

"We love UNI Athletics and are excited to be associated with Panther basketball," CB Seeds' Chuck Becker said. "We are sorry about the confusion that took place Wednesday night, but we are happy to reward Dalton for an amazing effort. We look forward to enjoying the rest of this great season and watching the Panthers continue their successful year."

The Panthers have two more home games left, both of which will include the $10,000 shot promotion.

Moving forward, Harris said UNI will explore bringing in a portable shot clock that makes the time remaining clear and visible.

"That’s where we’re going to start with trying to figure out if that’s allowed," Harris said. "If that doesn’t work, then we’ll look at doing something. The bottom line is we want to find a solution that gives both the participant, as well as the crowd, an opportunity to be able to see what’s happening with the clock so we can all count down.

"Because the way it happens right now, only the person who has the timer knows what’s going on. So if we can change that, maybe we can figure out a way to keep this from being an issue."

Ultimately, though, Harris and UNI didn't want this issue to overshadow the Panthers' resurgent season. UNI (22-3, 11-2) heads into Saturday's game at Loyola atop the Missouri Valley Conference, with eyes on the NCAA Tournament.

"We want to keep the focus where it should be," Harris said. "So being able to resolve this and move forward is important for all of us."

Dargan Southard covers Iowa and UNI athletics, recruiting and preps for the Des Moines Register, HawkCentral.com and the Iowa City Press-Citizen. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.