2 big fixes needed for UNI men’s basketball

CEDAR FALLS — Ben Jacobson and his Northern Iowa men's basketball team discovered a few things during their road trip to Virginia this last week.

And while it's certainly not doomsday at the basketball offices inside McLeod Center, the Panthers (6-2) got a wake-up call against Richmond — with a bounce-back against George Mason — that left both the coaches and players with specific things to change.

There's no time to dawdle, either, as UNI is right back on the road Saturday at New Mexico.

'We learned a lot in Virginia. The guys felt that while the game was being played — and we certainly felt this afterwords — that we weren't as sharp as we needed to be or could've been,' Jacobson said before the team traveled to the southwest. 'I didn't feel like we played with the energy and toughness it takes over 40 minutes against Richmond and we did do that against George Mason.'

UNI was exposed in a few areas during the trip, and even in the George Mason win.

What the Panthers do with those going forward will go a long way to determining the course of their season.

The biggest issue they faced was being behind Richmond's offense. When UNI was so good on defense last season, it was because the Panthers smothered opponents and got them out of what they wanted to do offensively. At their worst against Richmond, the Spiders dictated the flow, and UNI became reactive instead of proactive.

That, combined with Richmond's ability to shoot from everywhere meant a lethal mix. With teams like New Mexico, Iowa State, potentially Oklahoma and several in the Missouri Valley Conference, that's a bad problem to have. Fortunately for Jacobson and Co., it was exposed now and not too late.

'We're going to have to play at a different level than we did at Richmond. Our guys know and understand that,' Jacobson said. 'In order to play better against a team that can do both (score inside and outside), we have to get a half a step ahead of things. A post double team that you get to (too) late results in a quick ball reversal and a 3. Those kinds of things we need to continue to work a half a step ahead at.'

Getting that half step comes with reps.

There's enough guys on this Panther team without a lot of reps that it's taking some time to get everyone confident and on the same page.

'Having some younger guys in the rotation, not everything comes naturally in terms of habit and being able to get to places half a step ahead,' Jacobson said. 'There's a process and when you're thinking about where you're supposed to go, that usually means you're going to be a half a step behind. Some of that will change over the course of playing games and getting guys experience. The other part of it comes through learning we need to play as hard as we possibly can.'

The other big issue — and most glaring on a stat sheet — was how UNI rebounded during the trip. Given how much emphasis Jacobson and his staff put on defense and rebounding, the 49-32 edge from George Mason was unacceptable.

Some of it is on the players, without a doubt. But Jacobson certainly wasn't putting it all on them. It's a fundamental tenant to what they'll do going forward, and adjustments are required.

'We're not doing a good enough job creating space with our blockouts. Some of it is technique. Some of it is the toughness or grit it takes to want to go and make contact and move guys around,' Jacobson said. 'From a scheme standpoint, I've got to make a decision as to how to attack it. We've got — with Wes (Washpun), Jeremy (Morgan) and Bennett (Koch) — I've told those guys to pass on some blockouts and pursue the basketball. At times that's worked for us, and at other times it hasn't.

'So there's also some scheme to it that we've taken a look at since the George Mason game. I'm going to make some decisions there and see if we need to involve more of our players in blockouts.'

Getting a win in the second of those two games — rather than vice versa — sent UNI home with a little more positive outlook than maybe otherwise, but there's still clearly some frustration.

This team expects a lot out of itself, and if it's going to get another road win in Albuquerque, N.M. before coming back to Iowa for the Big Four Classic against Iowa State, it has to use that frustration and make some good out of it.

'Certainly there's some frustration, but I think mostly from the players. Our guys understand how important it is to defend and get a half a step ahead — and they can feel when they are,' Jacobson said. 'They know when they're making good plays, they know when they're making good rotations, they know when their blockouts are done the right way. When those things aren't happening, it is frustrating for the players.

'For me and my staff, our job is to help them improve their habits so they can get that half step ahead and play with a higher level of confidence because they can feel it. I think the players feel some of that frustration. For me, I work hard to evaluate it and then work hard to help them get that half step ahead so they can be confident when they're playing.'

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