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Beginning Monday, June 21st,
2004 CHN began unveiling 144 Team previews in 144 Days. CHN ranked the
nations top 144 teams, and is unveiling one per day leading up until the
opening day of the 2004-05 Season.
Bookmark the
144 Teams in 144 Days home page, and check back
each day to see which team is previewed next.
#115 Northern Iowa Panthers
Missouri Valley
2003-04: 21-10, 12-6, 3rd
2003-04 postseason: NCAA
By
Joel Welser
 The
Panthers had six consecutive losing seasons before making their improbable
run to the big dance last season. It took head coach Greg McDermott three
years to turn the program around and his fourth season may show if the
school will be a threat in the Missouri Valley for years to come. They’ll
have to find a way to replace some big guys in order to do it again in a
tough conference.
Who’s Out: Undersized
center David Gruber and forward Matt Schneiderman are a couple of key pieces
that will be missing. At 6-6 Gruber was small for a center, but got the job
done scoring over 12 points per game and grabbing nearly seven boards.
Schneiderman averaged 11 points and 6.4 boards per game. Somebody needs to
step up and take over under the basket.
Who’s In: Northern Iowa
brings in a couple players that McDermott hopes will do just that. Eric
Coleman, a 6-6 power forward, could see some minutes, but isn’t the
immediate answer that the fans in Cedar Falls are looking for. Vince
Polakovic is a solid replacement for Schneiderman. At 6-8 he can handle the
ball, face up to the basket and always find a way to score. The Slovakia
native, who played high school ball in Germany, shot over 50% from the floor
and 80% from the charity stripe.
Who to Watch: During his
sophomore campaign, Ben Jacobson led the Panthers with 14 points per game.
He has been a scoring threat since the day he arrived on campus and is only
getting better. The 6-2 guard has a sweet stroke from behind the arc, but
would prefer to drive the lane for a pull up jumper. He doesn’t often drive
for layups, but that isn’t necessary with his uncanny ability to hit the off
balanced leaner. Jacobson should lead the way in scoring again for the
Panthers, especially with the absence of Gruber and Schneiderman. The
junior will be expected to score and score often, especially early in the
season while other scoring threats are being found.
Projected Conference Rank:
Their lack of big guys will prevent Northern Iowa from dancing again this
year. They are still a solid team and will be for a while as long as Greg
McDermott is leading the way. Fourth place in the MVC is nothing to be
ashamed of.
Projected Post-season
Tournament: none
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Email Joel Welser:
jwelser_chn@ameritech.net
Chat About CHN's Top #144
Ranking:
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