The scoreboard read Georgia Tech 65 Northern Iowa 60. After the initial taste of a loss was gone, the Panther program had to feel good in remembering where it came from, and that now they had given the eventual Nat’l Champion runner-ups all they wanted in the NCAA tournament. No longer was Northern Iowa the team that Valley opponents looked at on the schedule and assumed a couple of wins. After a 12-6 league slate gave them a tie for second place, Northern beat Southwest Missouri State 79-74 in 2OT’s in the Valley final and went dancing for the first time since 1990. The question now is, can it be sustained?If success is to continue, it will be because of the backcourt. The Panthers have arguably the best collection of guards in the league. The leader of that bunch is 6’3″ Junior Ben Jacobsen. Jacobsen was named an All-League Honorable Mention member, and was named to the league’s most improved team, after averaging 14 ppg, 4 rpg, and 2 apg. He scored 26 in the Valley championship game, and before that, put 23 on Wichita State in the semi-final game. He is joined in the backcourt by 6’3″ Junior Erik Crawford. After sitting out a year following his transfer from Bowling Green, he had no trouble working the rust off. Not only did he have to defend the opponent’s best guard every game, he contributed greatly on the offensive end as well. He averaged 10.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg, and 2.7 apg. During the season 6’2″ Sophomore Brooks McKowen took over the point guard role and never looked back. The former “Mr. Basketball” in Iowa, and holder of the state’s all-time high school scoring record, had an All-Freshman team year as he put up 7.5 ppg, 2 rpg, and 2.7 apg. Chris Foster missed the last 5 games due to injury, but before that put up 8.2 ppg and 2.7 apg as the team’s 6th man. 5’11 Senior Pete Schmidt, 5’11” Junior John Little, and red-shirt freshmen Jared Jonsten and Adam Viet round out the backcourt.
Now for the bad news. 6’6″ David Gruber, a first team All-Valley performer, and honorable mention pick 6’7″ Matt Schneiderman are both gone, and will be missed. Their presence get defenses honest and opened up room for the backcourt talent to operate. With them they took 23 ppg and 13.3 rpg. The rest of the frontcourt is a mix of unproven returning players and new faces. 6’8″ Sophomore Grant Stout will get first chance at the bulk of available minutes. He averaged 3 ppg and a bit over 3 rpg last year. 6’10” Senior Jon Godfread saw action in 25 games last year, but very limited minutes. Two red-shirt players, 6’6″ Tyler Griffin and 6’10 Freshman Atila Santos will get opportunities, as will 6’6″ Freshman Eric Coleman and 6’8″ Freshman Vincent Polakovic.
Selecting Northern Iowa to finish 6th, with the players they return, shows the real strength of this league now, especially the upper half. There is no question the backcourt will hold up their end of the bargain. If anyone establishes himself in the frontcourt so the guards have room to operate, move this team up at least two spots, if not more in the final standings. Northern Iowa finished last season hotter than any conference team winning 10 of 12. They won’t sneak up on anyone this year, and it’s always more difficult to stay on the top. The guards will keep them in games, but the frontcourt will cost them too many close ones this year.
Predicted League Finish: 6th Place (9-9)