UNI, SIU headed in different directions as they meet

CEDAR FALLS - Headed into Wednesday night's Missouri Valley Conference matchup between No. 23 Northern Iowa and Southern Illinois, the two programs are at distinctly different places.

The Panthers (12-2, 1-1 MVC) are ranked in the coaches poll (and just outside the AP Top 25 in 26th), are 12th in RPI and are ranked in the top 50 in the nation in both Adjusted Offensive and Defensive efficiency according to KenPom. They're also 24th in the country in points allowed at 57.6 per game.

The Salukis (7-8, 0-2) have lost four straight games and are coming off a 63-44 loss to Bradley in which they went 0 of 14 from 3-point range and shot 33.3 percent overall. They rank 218th or worse in every major offensive category as well, and are 272nd in Adjusted Offense.

So when the two meet at the McLeod Center, SIU Coach Barry Hinson will be happy if his team shoots a percentage from deep that's higher than the temperature outside - forecast to be negative-10 degrees at tipoff and a low of negative-14 according to weather.com.

'We're just hoping to shoot a percentage above the temperature at Northern Iowa that night. If we can do that, I think we'll be extremely happy just by shooting above a negative-16 wind chill. If we can do that I'll be happy,” Hinson said on Monday's MVC conference call. 'You're not going to get the ball inside on Northern Iowa. I think they're one of the best teams I've ever seen in the country at inside defense and getting in the lane and all that. Our biggest deal right now is we've got to have somebody step up and make a shot.”

As much as SIU has struggled, though, UNI Coach Ben Jacobson said his team isn't about to take anything lightly, especially with Anthony Beane averaging 17.9 points per game and shooting 43.9 percent this season.

'(Hinson has) got a good young lineup, and they've got one of the best players in the league in Anthony Beane,” Jacobson said. 'Any time you've got a guy that good on your team, you can win any night. It's going to be hard. Wednesday night, they all are, right? We'll be ready.”

Of the 15 players on the Salukis' roster, just five are upper classmen, and both Jacobson and Hinson pointed out that's definitely a mitigating factor as to why SIU has struggled lately after having won six out of seven in November and December.

The Salukis' second and third leading scorers, Sean O'Brien (9.9 points per game) and Jordan Caroline (9.2 ppg) are a sophomore and freshman respectively. And lately, everyone - including Beane - has struggled shooting.

'Anthony's not shooting the ball well right now. When your first option is struggling, and your second, third and fourth options are struggling, you're just going to struggle as a team. And that's what's happening to us right now,” Hinson said. 'Our issues right now are confidence related, and they're related to our inexperience. And it's going to be a grind for a while.”

Despite that, Jacobson and his team aren't taking anyone lightly. As he mentioned when talking about his bench and starters on Monday, all these MVC teams know each other well.

Struggling or not, knowing the opponent's tendencies provides a tremendous advantage.

'They've got a lot of those guys back that we saw at the end of the year twice - at the home game here when we beat them and at the conference tournament game when they got us,” Jacobson said. 'A lot of those same players, a lot of young players, again Anthony Beane being one of the best players in our league. They've been up and down a little bit this year, which you might expect from a younger roster, but they're very capable.”

UNI and SIU tip off at 7 p.m.

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