|
Men's Basketball
If you've spent much time in the Midwest, in particular in small rural communities, then you have an understanding of University of Northern Iowa men's basketball coach Greg McDermott pretty well. The people there are honest, trustworthy, and loyal to a fault. Hard work isn't something to be feared, it's to be worn as a badge of honor. That's the way it was for McDermott in his hometown of Cascade, Iowa, a small town in the eastern portion of the state. With four brothers - two younger, two older - he certainly had plenty of time to hone his skills as a basketball player, as there was always a game going on. From those pickup games around the neighborhood, to the more structured games as he moved into high school and college, he was always interested in the "why's" of basketball - the reasoning behind a certain offensive or defensive philosophy, why you had to be a certain place at a certain time on the court. Those questions led to a career as a coach, which has spanned 17 years, including seven as a head coach before he came back to take the reins of the Panthers' program. Upon arriving in Cedar Falls prior to the 2001-02 season, McDermott had the chore of rebuilding a program that hadn't had a winning season since 1996-97 and had finished in the top half of the Missouri Valley Conference just twice in 10 years. But in just his third season, he helped guide the Panthers to not only their first MVC title ever, but just the school's second-ever trip to the NCAA Division I tournament. That special season of 2003-04 was backed up in 2004-05 by another 20-win season, and the school's first-ever NCAA tournament at-large bid. The Panthers, who received a No. 11 seed (also the highest in UNI annals), took #6 seed Wisconsin to the wire, falling 57-52 in a game that was within one possession as the game came down to the wire. The back-to-back 20 win seasons - also a first in school history - has made UNI basketball a program to watch for years to come, as all five starters from last year's squad return for this year. The fruits of the team's success the last two years, were built with players, and most of them from the midwest. As any coach will tell you, the X's and O's may make the difference on a single possession, but having talented players make the difference in wins and losses. His first recruit, center David Gruber, earned first-team All-Missouri Valley Conference honors as a senior, and left UNI as the school's career leader in field goal percentage. Matt Schneiderman, in the same class as Gruber, was a two-time MVC All-Academic pick. Ben Jacobson, the first underclassman to commit to play for McDermott, earned MVC tournament Most Outstanding Player honors in 2004, and was a first-team All-MVC selection in 2005. In fact, a total of 15 players have earned some sort of conference award in just four years McDermott has been at UNI's helm. McDermott began his coaching career as an assistant from 1989-94 at the University of North Dakota. During his tenure, the Fighting Sioux made five consecutive NCAA Division II Tournament appearances, were ranked no. 1 in the final 1991 NCAA poll, earned two North Central Conference and North Central Region Championships, and compiled a 126-37 record. Wayne State College took a chance on this up-and-coming force in the coaching ranks when it hired McDermott as head coach. His first team in 1994-95 captured just the school's second winning season in 17 years with a 14-13 record, a hint of good things to come. WSC won 116 games over six years against only 53 losses while setting single-season records for wins and appearing in numerous NCAA tournaments. McDermott's journey to UNI ended with a one-year stint at North Dakota State University in 2000-01. The Bison finished 15-11 overall and defeated three Top 25 opponents on the road. As a prep player, the 6-8 McDermott was taller than most of the other players in his conference, and pretty much had things his way. His senior year, he was named fourth team all-state by the Des Moines Register in basketball and was named Most Valuable Player of the 1983 Dr. Pepper All-Star game played in the UNI-Dome. He also pitched and played first base for the Cascade high school team. McDermott chose to come to UNI and play for two coaches who would profoundly influence his life, and his decision to become a coach: Jim Berry for his first three years (he redshirted his first season), and Eldon Miller for his final two campaigns. "I couldn't have played for two better coaches or two better people in my five years at Northern Iowa," he said. "I wouldn't have been a Panther if it weren't for Coach Berry - he got this thing off to a great start. Coach Miller came in my last two years and obviously, I learned about character from Coach Miller and how to teach the game of basketball." McDermott's 1,033 career points currently ranks 24th on UNI's all-time scoring chart. As a junior, he ranked 16th in the nation in field goal percentage (.587). He shot even better his senior year (.603). He led the Panthers in shooting three straight years, combining for a .595 percentage. As a junior, he ranked first in the Association of Mid-Continent Universities in field goal percentage, fifth in blocked shots, seventh in rebounding and 10th in scoring. As a senior, he was third in the league in field goal percentage and fourth in free throw percentage. He was named second team all-conference as a junior and was a team co-captain as a senior. He also was a pre-season honorable mention all-American in 1987-88. As a Panther, he played in 110 games, shot a career field goal percentage of .581, a career free throw percentage of .743, and averaged 4.4 rebounds and 9.4 points. Upon graduation, McDermott played one season for the BCKZO Basketball Club in Wetzikon, Switzerland. Though he has lived and coached in surrounding midwestern states, McDermott firmly believes the Panthers can win with a roster built primarily around Iowa high school players. Currently, there are seven players from the state of Iowa on UNI's roster. "We're going to do everything possible to build the core of our team from the high schools in the state of Iowa," McDermott said. "I believe there is quality here. There are too many kids leaving the state to go play elsewhere. That's not to say we won't fill specific needs from the surrounding areas, but I recruited 15 Iowa players when I was in North Dakota and Nebraska. My staff and I are going to try to keep players in state and at the University of Northern Iowa. Some of the best teams throughout the history of Northern Iowa basketball have been comprised of Iowa players. "If you look at the kids we've signed, they want to be at Northern Iowa," McDermott said. "They had other options and opportunities, but this is where they want to be. If that's the case going in, you have a lot better chance to be successful with those people, not only on the basketball floor, but in the classroom and community." |
 |
||||||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||||||
