No concern yet from Jacobson with UNI headed into MVC play

CEDAR FALLS — Coaches are never satisfied. Well, hardly ever, anyway.

There's always room for improvement. Even in wins, Northern Iowa Coach Ben Jacobson has often brought up — unprompted — things that need to get better for his teams. Such has been the case in each of his 10 seasons at the helm of the Panthers.

So when he looks at what UNI (8-5) has struggled with this season, it's not discouraging. Clearly the Panthers are capable of extremely high moments. But they're also capable of low ones. It's the former that keeps Jacobson from being concerned.

Until UNI is in a position where they cannot improve, there's no cause for Jacobson to worry.

'If we were doing all of the things correct from a fundamental standpoint and there was no more room for improvement because we were doing everything right and still not able to execute some things and still getting beat on some plays, at that point you get concerned,' Jacobson said. 'But we're not there yet.

'That to me is when this team, or any team I'd coach — if you're doing everything right and still can't be effective, then there's concern. We're not doing everything right yet from a fundamental standpoint.'

The Panthers' trip to Hawaii was certainly a mixed bag in that regard.

They were stifled and then outrun by Hawaii in the opener, fought tooth and nail with Washington State in a victory, and finally were outlasted by BYU in the fifth place game on Christmas Day. In each game, UNI was out-rebounded by a wide margin. On average, the Panthers were minus-11 in rebounding on the trip, bringing their season average to a minus-3 deficit.

It's obviously a very real and tangible issue, especially given Jacobson's intense focus on defense and rebounding. He doesn't use having a small lineup as an excuse. He acknowledged his inside players need to take a big step forward, and quickly, headed into Missouri Valley Conference play. Bennett Koch and Ted Friedman didn't have good trips statistically to the Diamond Head Classic, and UNI could face continued trouble if it doesn't turn around.

'Mistakes are going to get made. You're going to bounce a ball off your foot and make mental mistakes throughout the game, but right now we're making mistakes fundamentally with footwork, defending the ball screen, trapping the post and getting split, missing blockouts,' Jacobson said. 'Those are the things that need to get corrected.

'Bennett obviously struggled. He didn't score as effectively as what he had in previous games and lost a little confidence as those games went along. We've got to work to get him regrouped and back on the right track.'

Offense is the end of the floor that keeps them afloat this season, and even the most ardently defensive-minded Panther supporters admit it now.

UNI got a scare twice in Hawaii of what life is like without Wes Washpun on the floor for this team. He fouled out against Hawaii and missed several minutes against Washington State after falling hard on his tail bone. In both situations, scoring stalled and turnovers went up against two teams — Hawaii in particular — who were very skilled defensively. Backup point guard and sometimes-shooting guard Wyatt Lohaus was thrust into situations in Hawaii where he had to shoulder Washpun's burden. He struggled in those spots at the Diamond Head Classic, but Jacobson put that on himself instead of Lohaus.

When Washpun and Co. are on, the Panther offense is lethal — just ask North Carolina and Iowa State. When it's off, frustration mounts.

'I still feel like our offense has been and is good. I think Wes is doing a terrific job of involving his teammates and creating offense for us. I think he's been really, really good. I like what we've been able to do spreading the floor and using the ball screen,' Jacobson said. 'With Wyatt, in fairness to him, he didn't have a lot of chances in the last two games. He's still making that transition to point. It's been an adjustment for him. I think it's important at practice for us to work at some things, because he and Wes are very different types of point guards. To this point, I've kind of ran the same things. That's not best for our team and it's not best for Wyatt.

'With practice time, we'll maybe be able to do some different things when Wyatt is playing the point — to help both our team and him at that spot. I've got a lot of confidence in him and I think he's going to be just fine.'

All the worries of the moment can go away with a positive run to start MVC play.

The Big Bad Wolf still is out there in the form of Wichita State, and Jacobson — and every other Valley coach — knows the Shockers are still king of the hill until someone knocks them off. The Panthers have always played to get to this point and be as effective as possible in conference.

Through the ups and downs of non-conference, the worries and concern fade into determination and excitement for what's ahead.

'Guys that have been here understand that the competitive part of it turns up,' Jacobson said. 'We've played a lot of good teams and played a lot of great games in non-league, but the intensity and competitiveness always turns up one more notch when you start Valley play. That's something our guys always look forward to.'

UNI hosts Bradley for the MVC opener at McLeod Center on Wednesday at 7 p.m.

l Comments: (319) 368-8884; jeremiah.davis@thegazette.com