Like a lot of schools in the Valley this summer, Northern Iowa took a foreign trip, and with six true freshmen, two redshirt freshmen and three sophomores, the timing was perfect. Head Coach Ben Jacobson talked to WBR at MVC media day last week about that trip, and his team’s prospects in 2011-12.
“After the practices and going on the trip, I’m really glad we decided to go. We’re going to count on some of those freshmen and sophomores. Those guys are now a long way ahead of where they would be on the first day of practice. We played against one of their professional teams and that game was highly competitive; their players were mostly 24, 25, but some were 32, 33, 34 years old. They were experienced. That game was great for us.”
On the summer trip to Brazil, the Panthers went 5-0 and beat their opponents by an average of 24 points a game. But most teams get as much out of the non-basketball activities on foreign trips than they ever do on the court — the team bonding, building team chemistry and off-court activities are just as important. Coach Jacobson said that was absolutely the case for UNI.
“We had a chance to go visit one of their schools and put on a little clinic for a couple of their classes. It was really an eye-opening experience for our players. For the guys to spend quality time together doing things other than basketball is really good from a program standpoint and building the kind of team chemistry and trust you want to have with all of your teams.”
Two years removed from their Cinderella Sweet 16 run, the last of the starters from that team have now moved on with the graduation of Kwadzo Ahelegbe, and mainstay Lucas O’Rear has also graduated. Who’s stepped in to fill the leadership void left behind?
“We’ve had great leadership. Johnny (Moran) is our only senior, he’s had a terrific career to this point and we’re getting great leadership from him right now which is what we expected. He’s got some help from a group of juniors with Anthony James and Marc Sonnen, Austin Pehl and Jake Koch, you know, those guys have played enough and been around long enough that they’ve been able to take on some of that leadership as well. But Johnny’s as competitive as a kid as I’ve been around. It’s every drill of every practice, it’s not just every day it’s every single drill.
The best thing that is happening at our practices right now, and even going back to our summer trip to Brazil, is the leadership Johnny’s provided with his competitiveness in every drill. That’s the best example for our younger guys, and that’s going to help those guys the most.”
Like many teams this time of year, the Panthers are dealing with injuries, some serious, some nagging.
“We’re waiting on a couple of our big guys to get healthy. Austin Pehl has been out for four weeks, and he’ll be out another two weeks with a stress fracture. Jake Koch has been battling a foot injury that’s kind of ongoing. We’re hoping it gets better and we can get Jake at 100%, as he’s obviously going to be important to what we’re doing this year.”
The aforementioned Johnny Moran, who Jacobson is counting on to lead by example as the only senior, had a shoulder injury over the summer and did not play in the games on the Brazilian trip. He made the trip, however, and lent encouragement and leadership from the bench. The 6’1″ guard led the team with 65 three-pointers a year ago, scored in double figures 15 times and played a team-high 1,082 minutes while turning it over just 34 times. Jays fans probably remember him most for his 16 point/4 steal game in Omaha last February, though.
“Johnny’s always been a pretty good all-around player. He handles the basketball. He passes the basketball. He shoots the ball well. He really guards and he makes all of the toughness plays. The thing we’ve seen with him is he continues to get a little bit better in each of those areas. He’s very good at a lot of things. He’s won a ton of games and adds a tremendous amount of leadership. He’s impacted our team heavily each of the three years he’s already been here. He’s added another level of toughness to our program.”
Junior Anthony James is another player the Panthers will look to carry them. He averaged 12.4 points and 3.4 rebounds a year ago, and was one of the most improved players in the conference. He also had two straight double-doubles, notching 18 points and 10 rebounds against Illinois State on February 2, and 14 points and 11 rebounds against Drake on February 5. But it was his offense most people focused on. Jacobson told us even they were surprised at his offensive output a year ago, noting, “to be honest it was probably a little more than what we anticipated.” One of those offensive outbursts came in a February game at Bradley when he scored 25 points while making 6 of 7 from three-point range.
“He didn’t need a lot of shots to do it. He was extremely productive. He’s a guy who can really put the ball in the basket. He shoots from well beyond the three-point line and is able to drive it. He can score it in different ways. He has the ability to be a great defender. He showed that at times last year.”
Marc Sonnen, a 6’3″ junior, could be poised for the sort of surprise season James had a year ago, according to his coach. He had perhaps his best game last year in the Panthers CIT win over Rider, when he set career highs in both rebounds (9) and assists (4).
“He has the potential to do what James did last year, where people knew he was a part of our team and he did some decent things, then all of a sudden he’s a double-figure scorer and he has a huge impact on what we’re doing. I think this is the year that’s going to happen for Marc. He’s a terrific defender. He’s tough as nails. He’s ready to take that step. I’ve got a lot of confidence he’s going to have a big year.”
Jake Koch has been battling a nagging foot injury, and had surgery on his ankle in the spring that limited his minutes in Brazil, but he’s being counted on for big minutes this winter. The 6’9″ junior averaged 9.8 points and 5.0 rebounds as a sophomore. He’s a versatile player, and is the only UNI player to notch 30 or more steals, assists and blocks in a season since their move to Division 1 nearly 30 years ago. Koch led the Panthers in defensive rebounds (135) and blocks (30), and was second on the team in rebounding (5.0 per game), 3-pointers (44), assists (68) and steals (30).
“He’s gotten stronger, and his mindset is better than it was a year ago. He didn’t know what to expect. As a freshman, he came off the bench and played great. We had a bunch of juniors and seniors who did the heavy lifting. Last year, he knew he was going to move into that role. That’s a different role to be in. When you’re the guy who is called on to do everything at a higher level and do it consistently, that’s different. I think he’s ready mentally and physically to have a better year.”
The Panthers are picked fourth in the preseason poll, which means they’re the first team outside of the Big Three, in the eyes of the media anyway. That reflects the reputation Ben Jacobson has built for his program, considering all of the newcomers and the question marks surrounding the team. He’s proven that he’s one of the best coaches in the league, and winning 20 games for the fourth consecutive year doesn’t seem out of the question at all.
Their non-conference schedule has some intriguing matchups. They open up the season at Old Dominion, and then play at St. Mary’s at 1AM as part of ESPN’s Tip-Off Marathon. The usual games against Iowa and Iowa State feature the Hawks visiting Cedar Falls, while the game against ISU is in Ames this year. And the Panthers will travel to South Padre Island for a tourney where they’ll play Rice and Providence.
“We’re working every year to put together a schedule that will have us in the conversation for an at-large bid. You’ve got to win some of those games, and you’ve got to put together a good conference season.”
As for the league, what does Jacobson foresee?
“We’ve got a chance this year as a league to be better, and maybe much better than what we’ve been the last three years in particular. From top to bottom, it’s better, but at the top with Indiana State, Creighton and Wichita State, having three teams that are tournament tested gives us a chance at the top end. But also the rest of us, we’ve got better teams this year.”