UNI women’s basketball identifies areas to improve to get back to NCAA Tournament

CEDAR FALLS — Having reached the WNIT five of the past six seasons, Northern Iowa women’s basketball has been working to identify and improve what’s necessary to get back to the NCAA Tournament.

The Panthers’ success in the interim has been notable, though, averaging 20 wins the past six seasons. Twenty-three wins a season ago also made for the second time in Coach Tanya Warren’s 17-year tenure that her team accomplished back-to-back seasons of 20-plus wins.

“I don’t ever want to undervalue postseason play, because it took us a long time to get there consistently,” Warren said. “But, there is a sour taste in our mouth, because we (were) excited to be in postseason play, but we (were) not real happy that we weren’t in the NCAA Tournament.”

A couple specific things have been identified by Warren and her staff to elevate a team that returns three starters — All-Missouri Valley Conference first team forward Grace Bofelli, All-MVC second team point guard Maya McDermott and junior guard Emerson Green.

The trio combined to provide 42.2 of the Panthers’ 74.6 points per game a season ago, but are being called upon to raise their games vocally this season.

“This team is very close (and) sometimes they have a hard time holding each other accountable and calling each other out,” Warren said. “As the head coach of this program and as (a staff) we would like to see them do a better job, a more consistent job of doing that, and that not always having to come from us.”

Bofelli and Green, who are roommates with McDermott, both said at last Friday’s annual media day that it’s important they each realize they can critique each other on the court and remain friends off of it.

“I think this year we’ve taken a bigger step of what sometimes is said on the court, we can't let that always go with us and take that off the court (and) in the locker room,” Green said. “It’s just a different relationship (on the court) and you have to understand that and you can’t take that personal.”

Bofelli has also been focused on improving her approach to the barrage of double and triple teams she routinely encountered last season. Something that Warren said can help the Panthers’ pace-and-space offense more frequently maintain those ideals.

“(Bofelli) is not going to back down from a challenge,” Warren said. “She plays the game the right way and I think the jump she has made from a year ago is she’s shooting the 3 with very good consistency, but she’s also learned that when she gets doubled to kick it out and continue to post up because the ball is going to find her.”

Perhaps most directly attributable toward improving upon a 23-win season last year is closing quarters and games themselves. Last season the Panthers lost seven games in the last three minutes.

“Last year a lot of times we’d get out to a big lead and then we would get a little comfortable,” Warren said. “Whether that was just not taking care of the basketball, or shot selection or the ball getting stagnant. We talk a lot about pace and space. But, this team has to learn to close quarters.”

UNI opens the regular season on Monday, Nov. 6 at home against 2022-23 Horizon League champion Green Bay.