It has been just two weeks since Anthony James turned the tide for the Northern Iowa men?s basketball team in an 83-68 win against Drake.
Who could have predicted the way things have turned for each team since then?
The Bulldogs bring a four-game winning streak into the McLeod Center for Sunday's 7 p.m. rematch. The Panthers have lost three of four since vanquishing Drake.
Four storylines from the past four games:
Simons in a rhythm
Drake forward Ben Simons wasn?t much of a factor in that Jan. 7 loss, scoring 11 points but most of them coming late. In four games since, he?s averaged 19.8, including 13 3-pointers and 16-of-17 free-throw shooting. The Bulldogs? iron man (he played 159 of 165 minutes in those games) has added a bit of steel to his game.
?We?ve challenged Ben to be more aggressive, to be more physical,? Drake coach Mark Phelps said. ?He?s absolutely playing for his teammates, he?s playing for the right reasons, he?s giving us everything he has on both ends.?
Simons, a lanky 6-8 junior, ranks second in the Missouri Valley Conference by playing 35.3 minutes per game. And Phelps said there?s no secret to his staying power.
?He?s pretty gifted in just his cardiovascular conditioning,? Phelps said. ?His less-than-bodybuilding body can get worn down, but his wind and his cardiovascular conditioning is really good, so he can play hard for 40 minutes.?
UNI's close losses
Northern Iowa dropped three-point decisions to the Valley?s top two teams in the past two weeks ? at Creighton and at home against Wichita State. The Panthers (13-7, 3-5 Valley) had second-half leads of at least eight points in both.
?In maybe all five of our league losses right now, we make two plays go our way in the last 90 seconds, and our record looks a lot different,? Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson said. ?Being tested is OK. And our guys, they?ll stay together and they?ll continue to do what they?re supposed to from a preparation standpoint, and on game night, they?ll battle their tails off. It?s OK to get challenged every once in a while.?
In contrast, Drake is enjoying the lift that comes from winning its first two road games of the year ? at Evansville and Southern Illinois, with the latter going into overtime.
?It never really felt like we were going to lose the game; we all had confidence that we were going to come back, even when we fell behind by five,? Simons said. ?I think there was a confidence and we had a little more toughness on the road this time.?
Drake's defense
The Bulldogs (12-7, 5-3) propelled themselves into third place in the conference by holding their past four foes to 40.9 percent shooting. They?ve shown more determination when closing out on 3-point shooters, and are preventing opponents from driving into the paint.
?Our driving-line defense was not great and we?re better at keeping the ball in front,? Phelps said. ?Our goal is to lose yourself and empty yourself on the defensive end and trust that will lend itself to playing the right way on the offensive end. It frees your mind a little.?
Said Simons: ?When you?re playing defense, I think your offense comes a little easier for you. You get into the flow better.?
That Drake defense will be challenged by James, who torched the Bulldogs for 26 points ? 20 in the second half ? on Jan. 7.
?He is easily the hardest cutter in the Missouri Valley,? Phelps said. ?And that?s an unbelievable talent to just take off running and be at full speed after two steps and leave your opponent behind, and then stop on a dime and jump straight up and get off your shot.?
Is Tuttle back?
Seth Tuttle, Northern Iowa?s starting center, was held scoreless for the only time this season in that Drake victory. It was part of a five-game stretch in which he scored just 19 points and seemed to have hit a freshman wall.
He responded with 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting against Wichita State on Wednesday.
?We had a really good game plan tonight, we wanted to see if (Garrett) Stutz could guard me off the dribble,? Tuttle said. ?And the guys found me with good opportunities to make shots, and they fell for me tonight. It was definitely one that I needed to get back on track.?
As for the Panthers as a whole, Phelps dismisses the notion that they?re off track, despite back-to-back losses.
?Honestly, I think they?re better than the first time we played them,? he said.
?I think they have unbelievable spacing on offense. They?re the same Northern Iowa defensive team, very stingy. They play together. They don?t make mistakes.?
Who could have predicted the way things have turned for each team since then?
The Bulldogs bring a four-game winning streak into the McLeod Center for Sunday's 7 p.m. rematch. The Panthers have lost three of four since vanquishing Drake.
Four storylines from the past four games:
Simons in a rhythm
Drake forward Ben Simons wasn?t much of a factor in that Jan. 7 loss, scoring 11 points but most of them coming late. In four games since, he?s averaged 19.8, including 13 3-pointers and 16-of-17 free-throw shooting. The Bulldogs? iron man (he played 159 of 165 minutes in those games) has added a bit of steel to his game.
?We?ve challenged Ben to be more aggressive, to be more physical,? Drake coach Mark Phelps said. ?He?s absolutely playing for his teammates, he?s playing for the right reasons, he?s giving us everything he has on both ends.?
Simons, a lanky 6-8 junior, ranks second in the Missouri Valley Conference by playing 35.3 minutes per game. And Phelps said there?s no secret to his staying power.
?He?s pretty gifted in just his cardiovascular conditioning,? Phelps said. ?His less-than-bodybuilding body can get worn down, but his wind and his cardiovascular conditioning is really good, so he can play hard for 40 minutes.?
UNI's close losses
Northern Iowa dropped three-point decisions to the Valley?s top two teams in the past two weeks ? at Creighton and at home against Wichita State. The Panthers (13-7, 3-5 Valley) had second-half leads of at least eight points in both.
?In maybe all five of our league losses right now, we make two plays go our way in the last 90 seconds, and our record looks a lot different,? Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson said. ?Being tested is OK. And our guys, they?ll stay together and they?ll continue to do what they?re supposed to from a preparation standpoint, and on game night, they?ll battle their tails off. It?s OK to get challenged every once in a while.?
In contrast, Drake is enjoying the lift that comes from winning its first two road games of the year ? at Evansville and Southern Illinois, with the latter going into overtime.
?It never really felt like we were going to lose the game; we all had confidence that we were going to come back, even when we fell behind by five,? Simons said. ?I think there was a confidence and we had a little more toughness on the road this time.?
Drake's defense
The Bulldogs (12-7, 5-3) propelled themselves into third place in the conference by holding their past four foes to 40.9 percent shooting. They?ve shown more determination when closing out on 3-point shooters, and are preventing opponents from driving into the paint.
?Our driving-line defense was not great and we?re better at keeping the ball in front,? Phelps said. ?Our goal is to lose yourself and empty yourself on the defensive end and trust that will lend itself to playing the right way on the offensive end. It frees your mind a little.?
Said Simons: ?When you?re playing defense, I think your offense comes a little easier for you. You get into the flow better.?
That Drake defense will be challenged by James, who torched the Bulldogs for 26 points ? 20 in the second half ? on Jan. 7.
?He is easily the hardest cutter in the Missouri Valley,? Phelps said. ?And that?s an unbelievable talent to just take off running and be at full speed after two steps and leave your opponent behind, and then stop on a dime and jump straight up and get off your shot.?
Is Tuttle back?
Seth Tuttle, Northern Iowa?s starting center, was held scoreless for the only time this season in that Drake victory. It was part of a five-game stretch in which he scored just 19 points and seemed to have hit a freshman wall.
He responded with 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting against Wichita State on Wednesday.
?We had a really good game plan tonight, we wanted to see if (Garrett) Stutz could guard me off the dribble,? Tuttle said. ?And the guys found me with good opportunities to make shots, and they fell for me tonight. It was definitely one that I needed to get back on track.?
As for the Panthers as a whole, Phelps dismisses the notion that they?re off track, despite back-to-back losses.
?Honestly, I think they?re better than the first time we played them,? he said.
?I think they have unbelievable spacing on offense. They?re the same Northern Iowa defensive team, very stingy. They play together. They don?t make mistakes.?
