Offseason Review: Northern Iowa Panthers Could Make Noise in the Missouri Valley
The Missouri Valley Men's Basketball Conference is wide open, and Ben Jacobson returns veteran talent while getting creative in the transfer portal. A recipe for success.
It’s been a bit of a rollercoaster ride for Northern Iowa Panther fans over the last 25 years. The Panthers have made the NCAA Tournament seven times during that stretch, including a trip to the Sweet 16 and appeared in the Top 25 AP Poll three times. In the 2014-2015 season, they went 31-4 while ranking as high as 10th in the AP Poll, good enough to earn them a 5th seed in the NCAA Tournament where they’d reach the Round of 32. During the same stretch of time, the Panthers appeared in two NIT’s and two CIT’s, bringing their postseason appearances to 11 out of 25 years.
In terms of coaching, Greg McDermott took over for Sam Weaver in 2001 and led the Panthers to a 90-63 record over five seasons, making the NCAA Tournament three times. Ben Jacobson then took over in 2006 and has remained the head coach since. He has amassed a 335-219 record across 17 seasons, while appearing in four NCAA Tournaments and the Sweet 16 run previously mentioned.
Since their last appearance in 2016, it’s been up-and-down. They have three 20+ win seasons, but four under .500 seasons to go along with that. Last season they finished 19-14 overall and 12-8 in a very tough Missouri Valley Conference ran by Indiana State & Drake.
Jacobson has lost some key pieces to his roster, however, he still retained some significant talent and got creative in the transfer portal, picking up two intriguing non-DI players. With a wide-open Missouri Valley after the dismantling of Indiana State’s roster and coaching turnover across many teams including Drake, the Panthers are going to be looking to their veteran head coach to take advantage. Lets look at who Jacobson has on the roster coming into this season.
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Roster Overview:
Let’s recap who the Panthers have returning on their roster:
Tytan Anderson (Senior)
11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2 assists, 1.3 steals
Jacob Hutson (Senior)
9.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists
Trey Campbell (Junior)
9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists
Chase Courbat (Junior)
0.7 points (1 minute/6 games)
RJ Taylor (Sophomore)
2 points, 1.4 rebounds, 1.1 assists
Kyle Pock (Sophomore)
3.8 points, 0.8 rebounds
Wes Rubin (Freshman)
Redshirt
The Panthers have added the following players from the transfer portal:
Cael Schmitt (Senior) - Coe College (D-III)
17.5 points, 2.9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2.4 steals
Max Weisbrod (Junior) - Northern Michigan (D-II)
17.2 points, 4.4 assists, 3.3 rebounds
Ben Schwieger (Junior) - Loyola Chicago
1.3 points, 0.8 rebounds, 0.7 assists (Limited to 10 games/5.8 minutes due to injury)
Leon Bond III (Sophomore) - Virginia
4.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, 0.6 assists
The Panthers have added the following player as incoming freshman:
Will Hornseth
The Panthers have lost the following players:
Bowen Born (Senior) - Colorado State
13.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1 steal
Drew Daniel (Senior) - Minnesota State
1.3 points, 0.9 rebounds, 0.2 assists (4.9 minutes/18 games)
Landon Wolf (Junior) - Illinois State
4.7 points, 1.3 rebounds, 0.5 assists
Michael Duax (Junior) - Florida Gulf Coast
3.8 points, 2.5 rebounds, 0.6 assists
Nate Heise (Senior) - Iowa State
13.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists
Ege Peksari (Sophomore) - Saint Martin’s
Redshirt
Cole Henry (Senior) - Wyoming
3 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.4 assists
On the surface, losing both Bowen Born and Nate Heise is detrimental. Both stars came to Northern Iowa in 2020 and spent the last four years under Jacobson, but now are moving on in their 5th year to greener pastures at Colorado State and Iowa State. Heise suffered an unfortunate season-ending injury in the 2022-2023 season just two games into the season, so I wouldn’t be shocked to see an attempt to appeal to the NCAA for an extra year of eligibility (if possible). However, he has shown strong growth over each year, last year being his best at 13.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists on 46% shooting and 35.6% from 3pt on a career high 132 attempts. Heise has next level talent, so it’ll be interesting to see how he grows at Iowa State. For Born, he’s undersized at 5’11, but that’s never stopped him. He set career highs in the 2022-2023 season, averaging 17.9 points, 2.7 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game while shooting 40.9% overall and 36.7% from 3pt on 218 attempts. The Rams are getting a lights out shooter that will slide into their starting five as a key piece of their offense.
As for the rest, Landon Wolf and Cole Henry provided some key minutes in the Panthers rotations last season, while Daniel saw limited playing time. Wolf in particular is interesting because he is headed to an inter-conference rival in Illinois State, which I’ve discussed previously as an up-and-coming team. As a freshman, Wolf averaged 7.4 points, 1.6 rebounds on 40.3% shooting and 36.2% from 3pt. Last season, he took a step back average wise as his minutes dropped from 24 to 13.7, however, his shooting skyrocketed to 48.5% overall and 43.3% from 3pt. The attempts obviously decreased with the decreased playing time, but I’m sure the Panthers would have loved to keep him as he continued to grow.
Henry to Wyoming is a bit curious, as the Mountain West has grown into a Top 6/7 conference in the country. Henry averaged just 11.1 minutes last season, but his 6’9 size provided meaningful minutes off the bench while appearing across 32 games. As for Daniel, he’s never averaged more than 9.5 minutes per game across four seasons with the Panthers, so he’ll be looking for more playing time entering his final season at Minnesota State (DII).
Now, looking at their additions, Jacobson got creative this offseason. Cael Schmitt and Max Weisbrod both are coming from non-Division I schools. Schmitt is coming from Coe College, which conveniently played Northern Iowa last season in an exhibition game. Often times, this is a way for head coaches to find underrated talent (for example, Evansville standout Ben Humrichous played on Huntington against Evansville in an exhibition before transferring), so it seems that Jacobson liked what he saw. In that exhibition game, Schmitt finished with 11 points on 4-12 shooting, but on his career, he’s averaged 16 points, 3.6 assists, and 2.7 rebounds per game. Last season, he had some monster games, including a season-high 21 points against Trine on 7-15 shooting from 3pt. Trine is considered one of the best D-III schools in the country (won the NCAA Tournament last season), so this was an impressive performance for more reasons than just points. Schmitt takes a lot of shots, on the season he had 409 attempts total, good enough for 14.6 per game on average. There’s a lot to like about Schmitt if you are a Panther’s fan. Obviously the offensive abilities are there, but as a point guard, he’ll be able to dish it out as well. He had four or more assists in eight games, including a season-high of eight assists against Cornell College and two seven assist games as well. He’ll fit in well with this Panthers lineup.
Weisbrod is transferring up from Division II Northern Michigan where he spent his first two seasons. This is another offensive juggernaut for the Panthers. As a freshman, he averaged 12.5 points, 5 assists, and 4.3 rebounds per game. Last season, he averaged 17.2 points, 4.4 assists, and 3.3 rebounds on a team that went 22-11 overall and 14-4 in conference. He set a season high 35 points on 10-18 shooting and 7-12 from 3pt to go along with four assists and three rebounds against Michigan Tech. On the season, he shot 43.3% overall and 39.1% from 3pt on 215 attempts. He had two 30+ point games and 12 20+ games. All of this saying, this kid can shoot it. Teaming up with Schmitt, the Panthers have two lethal options at point guard on both the offensive shooting end and the ability to handle the ball.
Ben Schweiger is an intriguing pickup as well from the Loyola Chicago Ramblers. If you read our recent article discussing the Ramblers, you already know a bit about 6’7 Junior, but the Panthers are getting some solid talent here. Last season, he battled injuries, appearing in just 10 games and averaging just 5.8 minutes. However, as a freshman the year prior, he averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 2.1 assists across 30 games, starting 26 and averaging nearly 30 minutes a game. He shot 45.4% overall and 34.9% from 3pt on 109 attempts. Obviously the hope here is, he comes back healthy and takes a step forward to build off his successful freshman campaign, putting last season behind him. Out of high school, he had some impressive offers from Chattanooga, Belmont, Loyola Chicago, Southern Illinois, Elon, William & Mary, Milwaukee, UC Riverside, and others. Northern Iowa is picking up a buy-low, high potential player here and I’m excited to watch Schweiger have a fully healthy season.
Leon Bond III committed to Virginia after receiving offers from Texas A&M, Marquette, Cincinnati, Virginia Tech, St. Thomas, Western Illinois, Eastern Michigan, and Milwaukee. He was listed as a 4-star per 247 sports, 60th in the country, and 2nd in Wisconsin as a freshman. As a transfer, he was listed as a 3-star and 279th overall in the portal. Obviously, his minimal exposure at Virginia leaves a bit of a question mark on his potential, but he flashed signs of that high ceiling that had several power schools calling him as a high school senior. In non-conference, he averaged 6.7 points per game, mostly against mid-majors like Morgan State, North Carolina Central, North Carolina A&T, and Tarleton State. He unfortunately didn’t see a ton of playing time against better talent, however, he did appear 21 minutes against Wake Forest, 21 against #23 Memphis, 21 against West Virginia, and 18 against Syracuse. He didn’t post stellar stats in those games, but one thing that stands out is his ability to rebound. Against West Virginia, he had his best performance against higher talent, posting 8 points, 7 rebounds, and 2 assists on 4-8 shooting in 21 minutes, which helped Virginia nab a 56-54 win. Against Syracuse, he grabbed six boards, nine against NCCU, four against Wake Forest, and seven against Morgan State. Overall, he shot 45.8% on the season, but he attempted just two three point shots. At 6’5, you’d love to see him be able to step out and knock down a three, but he is a strong finisher and despite his size has a strong post game. Personally, I think Bond is a very underrated pickup here, given yes he’s a power-conference transfer so you could argue it’s not “underrated”.
Will Hornseth is the lone incoming freshman. He had a few other mid-major offers from Illinois State, Toledo, Green Bay, and St. Thomas. The Wisconsin native was even being looked at by Minnesota, although there was no confirmed offer. At 6’8, he’ll provide some valuable depth in the event of an injury. I don’t personally see him breaking the rotation with a ton of minutes in his first season, but Jacobson could surprise me. Hornseth averaged 16.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.5 blocks while shooting a ridiculous 76% throughout his senior year. There’s a lot to like about the long-term potential he has while being able to learn from more veteran players like Jacob Hutson.
The Panthers also have some key pieces returning, including their three through five top scorers in Tytan Anderson, Jacob Hutson, and Trey Campbell. Having Anderson return is huge, he’s been a key piece the last two seasons and is one of the rare players this day and age that will spend all five seasons at one school. As a Junior, he averaged 12.6 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.4 steals. Last season, he averaged 11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1.3 steals. At 6’6 he is an incredible rebounder, in fact, last season he had an insane 18 points, 18 rebounds, one assist, two blocks, and two steals stat line in a 91-77 upset victory over the eventual Missouri Valley Conference Champions the Drake Bulldogs. Better yet, just a couple games later, he posted 19 points, 19 rebounds, two blocks, and three steals against Belmont. Anderson is an absolute monster on the glass and is a strong finisher, shooting 50.2% on the season. I love this kid and he’s going to be one of, if not the top guy with Born and Heise gone.
Hutson and Campbell were nearly clones last season, despite a 6’11 and 6’4 height difference. Huston averaged 9.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.3 assists on 56.8% shooting last season, which was his best of this four year career thus far. With Anderson cleaning up the glass, Hutson doesn’t light it up on rebounds, be he is very consistent. Campbell is essentially the same way, with Heise and Born ahead of him, he didn’t light it up offensively, but he is very consistent and will take another step forward this season. He averaged 9 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.3 assists, and one steal per game last season, while shooting 44.7% overall and 39.7% from beyond the arc. One of his best performances of his career thus far came against Richmond in a 78-73 victory where he posted 21 points on 7-12 shooting and 6-9 from deep. With the absence of Born and Heise, Jacobson will be looking for Campbell to take another developmental step forward.
RJ Taylor and Kyle Pock are both returning as well. These two had lesser roles, but played in 30 and 33 games respectfully. Both were true freshman, so to carve out rotation minutes as a freshman, shows that they are ready to develop even further. Pock stands at 6’6, shot 34% overall and 29.4% from 3pt. Against UIC, he shot 4-4 and 3-3 from 3pt for 13 points, then in his next game against Murray State, shot 3-7 and 2-5 from deep for 12 points. While the 3pt percentage was a little low, look for him to really work on increasing that this season because his shot translates well to this level. For Taylor, he’s like the second-coming of Born at 5’11. He shot a pretty disappointing 14.7% from 3pt, however, he attempted just 34 threes. On the season, he shot 34.2%, but if 44% of your shot attempts are from beyond the arc, you are going to want to shoot better than 14.7%. Look for him to try and carve out more opportunities if his shot has improved.
Preseason Expectations
There is a lot to like about the roster construction of this Northern Iowa team. They’ve gotten creative in replacing Bowen Born and Nate Heise, while returning three of their top five players. The Missouri Valley Conference is wide open. There’s been a ton of turnover both on the rosters and on the coaching staffs as well. Top teams like Indiana State and Drake have both undergone rebuilds, while Bradley sits as arguably the team that should be the favorites in the conference. Teams like the Panthers could spoil that.
Personally, I believe the Panthers should be a top four team in the Valley this upcoming season. Having Jacobson at the helm, returning some veteran players, and picking up intriguing pieces from outside the Division I ranks like Cael Schmitt and Max Weisbrod is going to make this team fun to watch.
If I had to project a starting five, I could see Max Weisbrod, Cael Schmitt, Tytan Anderson, Jacob Hutson, and either Trey Campbell or Lean Bond. That leaves players like Ben Schwieger (who very well could start), Kyle Pock, Wes Rubin, and RJ Taylor to come off the bench. This is a deep team that has some high octane offensive pieces while also containing some strong defensive pressure as well. Anderson is a monster on the glass, Hutson at 6’11 can help lock it down low, and Schmitt and Anderson can both rack up the steals.
The largest question mark in my opinion is the outside shot. Losing both Heise and Born is tough, but that leaves just one other player that over 30% from the roster last season in Trey Campbell (I’m excluding Hutson as he attempted just 24 shots, although he did finish with over 45% of those). Schwieger shot 34.9% as a freshman, so there’s some potential to return to form there. Schmitt averaged 36% at DIII, while Weisbrod shot 41.8% at DII. It’s hard to gauge how the talent here will translate to the Division I level, especially in one of the better mid-major conferences in the country, but if they can find a similar level of success, this question mark disappears for the Panthers.
They haven’t announced their official non-conference schedule, however, what has been announced so far is rather solid. the Panthers will be a part of the NIT Tip Off tournament, with North Texas, St. Bonaventure, and Utah State. They play North Texas in the first round, then will play either the Bonnies or Aggies in the next game. They also play Wichita State, Montana, Milwaukee, Western Illinois, Omaha, Washington State, and Northern Illinois. The reality here is, they aren’t going to win an at-large bid from the committee, however, the schedule is at least reasonable enough with teams like Wichita State, Washington State, and the NIT Tip Off that they could secure an NIT bid.
Like I mentioned, this should arguably be a top four team within the Valley, with the capability of even surprising further. If they do, this is easily an NIT capable team that could make some noise. The Missouri Valley is going to be a dog fight and Jacobson and the Panthers will be right in the thick of it.
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