Valley Teams On the Mend

Star Players Returning From Injury

(St. Louis, MO) – Four Missouri Valley all-conference players are on the mend from last season’s injuries. How those four return to full capacity will go a long way to the success of their respective teams. When Northern Iowa’s A.J. Green left the Panthers after three games and Marcus Domask did the same at Southern Illinois after ten, those two teams saw a dramatic dip in their ability to compete.

While Drake played most of its season fully healthy, late season injuries to Roman Penn and ShanQuan Hemphill thinned their roster and limited their post season possibilities. If those four players (and others) recover sufficiently, the entire league will see a boost in success and improve MVC post season chances.

From POY to IL

The Valley’s most significant injury was to UNI’s Green. As the previous season’s Larry Bird – Player of the Year, Green was touted as the league’s best player. UNI was the preseason pick to win the conference and Green was the star of a deep and experienced team. His hip injury ended the Panthers’ shot at high-level success.

Antwan Kimmons also left the team. The energetic guard was an outstanding distributor in coach Ben Jacobson’s offense, but took a leave of absence to help his family during the pandemic. Suddenly, the UNI backcourt went from very deep to untested. Freshman Bowen Born had an outstanding rookie campaign, but the Panthers couldn’t overcome those losses.

Green is on his way back and Kimmons has returned. As of early July Jacobson revealed that Green had been cleared by his hip surgeon to return to play, but Green has a long way to go. He is on the mend but needs to regain explosiveness, lateral quickness and the confidence that comes from playing through contact. Green eventually had surgery on both of his hips.

When healthy, Green is the league’s most NBA-ready player. During his sophomore season, he led the conference in scoring (19.7 ppg), was deadly from the line (.917) and was and effective passer (3 assists per game). At 6’4 he is big enough to get his own shot in traffic and has limitless three-point range.

Kimmons wasn’t hurt and Jacobson says his return is extremely vital. The return of those veterans and Tywon Pickford, Trae Berhow and Goanar Mar gives UNI amazing perimeter depth and versatility. Talented junior Noah Carter briefly thought of transferring, but Jacobson says UNI’s many returners love the community and the Panther culture.

 

 

From FOY to DNP

The story in Carbondale, Illinois is similar. Picked to finish third in the conference race, SIU was young, but talented. Freshman of the Year Marcus Domask was poised to become the next great Saluki. His injury never seemed to be season-ending. Until it was.

Domask is an all-round talent that makes other players better. His ability to score, rebound and set up his teammates is unique. The injury that ended his season, sentenced the Salukis to a 5-and-13 league mark.

Compounding Domask’s departure was the loss of incoming junior college, rebounding presence in J.D. Muila. The 6’8 Muila never played and is still working his way back to full capacity. Head coach Bryan Mullins says Domask is 100 percent ready and Muila should be, but is targeting September for the time when he’s ready to crash the glass.

Mullins’ recruiting class includes several players in that 6’7 range. With or without Muila, he wants some versatility in his front court.

 

 

From Deep & Talented to Thin & Outgunned

Drake sailed through the regular season, but for the second time in Darian DeVries’ three seasons in Des Moines, late season injuries damaged post season possibilities. The Bulldogs were 19-and-1 when all-league forward ShanQuan Hemphill was injured. DeVries moved Joseph Yesufu into the starting lineup and the team continued to win, but when Roman Penn went down DU’s seven-man rotation became a five-man marathon.

Yesufu and Garrett Sturtz played nobly, but there were no more bullets in the gun. Drake went 4-and-3 without both Penn and Hemphill and even won a game in the NCAA Tournament, but the handwriting was on the wall.

Both players are on the mend. Hemphill played extremely limited minutes during Drake’s NCAA Tournament battles, and Penn never returned. ‘Tank’ is farther along in his recovery than Penn. DeVries expects them both to be fully ready for the beginning of the season. The fourth-year head coach is giving the two all-conference performers all the time off they need.

Drake did lose center Issa Samake to injury, but returns all five starters from last year and super sub Sturtz (he is finally on scholarship!). DeVries’ son Tucker was Iowa’s ‘Mr. Basketball’ and joins the rotation. DeVries says having virtually everyone back was never in doubt.

 

 

Each of these four players deserve to have an injury-free season. Right now they are on the mend and their individual teams have high hopes for their return to elite-level play. If all four return to pre-injury form, their teams will be difficult to contain.

We believe this can be an historic season for the Missouri Valley conference. For more on that, go here.

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