Northern Iowa men’s basketball getting back to business

CEDAR FALLS - No big changes, no gimmicks, no tricks. Just business as usual for Northern Iowa as it approaches the 2017-18 season.

Many questions were asked - it was media day, after all - but many of head coach Ben Jacobson's answers went back to two words.

Hard work.

Entering his 12th season as head coach, Jacobson's lines of communication from staff to student-athlete are canny. Shrewd, to-the-point words are exchanged from coach to player and player to coach. The Panthers, each one of them, know the circumstances that'll lead to time on the floor, and ultimately marks in the win column.

Klint Carlson was challenged by Jacobson to put in the work that'd make this season, his last, the best one yet. So they put a plan in place that had the Waverly native take 8,500 shots in 10 days shortly before school started. A plan that could potentially bolster the UNI offense. If Carlson proves capable of consistently stretching the floor this season with his perimeter shot, it makes him and the rest of the offense much harder to guard, according to Jacobson.

'If you're going to be a good leader you're going to have to work hard,” Jacobson said. 'For (Klint) to improve his game, he was going to have to work hard. We've never had anybody (take 8,500 shots in 10 days). I give him a lot of credit for what he's done. He's shooting the ball with a lot more confidence.”

Elsewhere in their senior-laden frontcourt are questions with regard to rebounding and the struggles UNI had last season.

'That's a nice way of saying it,” Jacobson remarked in response to 'struggling” being used to describe their rebounding last season.

'The teams that were really talented and deep, Marvin Singleton was on that team, and everyday when we graded our practices - and we grade them all, we started with practice no. 1 this year - 90 percent is the goal,” jacobson said. 'You either did your job or you didn't do your job. Marvin was at 90 percent or higher every day that we graded him and coming out of every game that we played. There's absolutely no excuse for not getting the job done in rebounding. Either you don't want it bad enough, or I'm not holding you accountable as your head coach.”

Jacobson didn't reveal any report cards with rebounding grades from practice, but he mentioned how Bennett Koch is in the best shape of his career. He also said that Koch recently asked him what he thought of his rebounding after a practice.

'(Bennett) asked me two or three days ago what I thought about his rebounding from the previous practice or two and I said you need to increase your effort,” Jacobson said. 'Because he hadn't gotten as many (rebounds) as he had gotten the previous couple practices. But Klint and Bennett have been great responding to what we've asked of them.”

Move into the backcourt and you'll find more questions that are being addressed by way of hard work.

Sophomore point guard Juwan McCloud has answered challenges put in front of him by his head coach this offseason, which include turning the ball over less, improving decision-making as the primary ball-handler, and finding his offense that came and went last season.

'I think (Juwan is) going to average double-figures because he's a good player,” Jacobson said. '(He has) to also lead us in assists. He's got the ability to make a lot of things happen and put a lot of pressure on the defense.”

Carlson and Koch are locked into the starting lineup. Wyatt Lohaus is the next closest thing to a lock. It wouldn't be a shock, but it'd be a surprise if McCloud didn't start (he had 28 starts as a true freshman). So that leaves one vacancy that could come down to an 'offense or defense” choice.

Tyhwon Pickford and Isaiah Brown, a true freshman and sophomore, respectively, are auditioning for the 'defensive stopper” role that had been occupied by Jeremy Morgan. Jacobson said he's told his team there are minutes available in a defense and rebounding role.

Take a look elsewhere and find combo guard Spencer Haldeman, who made eight starts last season - an offense-first guard capable of scoring from multiple spots on the floor who Jacobson said is a much better player this year. There's also Adam McDermott, a perimeter specialist. The Cedar Rapids Xavier product is eligible to play after transferring from North Dakota before last year.

With a roster that returns 14 and adds two freshman in Pickford and Austin Phyfe, who are both capable of contributing immediately, the Panthers are set up for plenty more than their 14 wins from last season. Factor in Wichita State's absence from the conference and the path to a regular-season or tournament championship feels more attainable - even if Jacobson would have none of that talk.

'Our goals and expectations are the same, whether Wichita is in the league or they're not in the league,” Jacobson said. 'To think that it's going to be any easier than it's been to win a conference championship is 100 percent false.”