Stephen F. Austin vs Northern Iowa: Three Thoughts

Northern Iowa traveled to Nacogdoches, Texas to meet defending Southland Champion Stephen F. Austin for a 8am local tip as a part of the ESPN’s College Basketball Tip-Off ï¿½Marathon. Usually, the marathon’s early morning games produce sloppy sluggish basketball. However, these two teams played one of the most entertaining games of the young season before Northern Iowa escaped with a 79-77 overtime road victory that will look very good for the Panthers in March. Here’s three thoughts from the game, with a few bonus observations in between.

Northern Iowa will play in the NCAA Tournament this year.

In the later stages of overtime, it was hard to not root for Northern Iowa to steal the game. My thoughts immediately drifted to March Madness, a setting where both of these teams could be very dangerous. In terms of necessity, the game was much more important to the Panthers, a team that can contend for an at-large bid out of the Missouri Valley thanks to two (possibly three) shots at Wichita State and a non-conference schedule that also includes VCU, Iowa, Virginia Tech, and South Dakota State. It’s never too early to start talking tournament, and this wonky victory under unique circumstances will eventually manifest as a top 50 RPI win.

Stephen F. Austin will complete a second consecutive undefeated season in the Southland.ï¿½

As badly as SFA wanted to pull out today’s game, they still accomplished their ultimate goal despite the disappointing result. Just as they did last year, when they knocked off VCU in the Big Dance, the Jacks proved that they can play with just about anybody in the country.

However, during that 32-3 season, head coach Brad Underwood faced the challenge of keeping his team motivated and focused during their flawless conference season. With only two losses all year, the Jacks were ignored by pollsters, and considered to be the recipients of a gratuitous 12-seed in the NCAA Tournament before they were able to calm Shaka Smart’s “havoc” pressure defense.

This year, SFA gets a much-needed reassurance of their talents early in the season. It will prove vital in the upcoming weeks when they travel to Xavier, Baylor, and Memphis before their annual romp to the Southland championship. Regardless of the outcome against those three quality of opponents, it’s very clear that the Jacks will not be challenged on their way back to the NCAA Tournament.

Jeff Van Gundy is solid gold as a color commentator.

One of the consistent highlights of the tip-off marathon experience has always been the opportunity to see NBA commentator Jeff Van Gundy tackle a college assignment. In years past, Van Gundy has teamed with Mike Breen to cover a more prominent game on the schedule (last year the duo was assigned to Rhode Island at Texas).

This year, ESPN made a great decision to team Van Gundy with Adam Amin, a rising star in their play-by-play stable, for a less glamorous match-up between two evenly matched games. Amin and JVG were two dynamite during their broadcast, excluding a few occasions when Amin seemed to be a bit in awe of Van Gundy’s presence at the table.

Amin delivered a perfect blend of emotion and control to his play-by-play, while Van Gundy offered his usual bit of insight, perspective, and oversimplified basketball-related hyperbole. Hearing Van Gundy speak so candidly and knowledgeably about the skill sets of players such as reigning Southland player of the year Jacob Parker and Northern Iowa’s Seth Tuttle added a level of legitimacy to the game.

Separating him from Breen forced him focus on calling the action rather than the banter that is such a large part of his shtick with Breen on NBA broadcasts. Quietly, Jeff Van Gundy has become one of the best in the business at his second profession. It would be exciting to hear his takes on college basketball during March.