Paul’s Perspective: UNI fans: set higher expectations

Students and fans need to adjust their attitude towards the University of Northern Iowa men's basketball program.

I came to this conclusion after UNI's thrilling victory over Creighton University last weekend when the students came streaming down to the floor following Anthony James' dramatic game-winning 3-pointer. I was confused. The students acted as though we had never won a big game before. The emotion of the moment was probably enough to cause students to storm the court without thinking about it, but I feel it was unwarranted. At the threat of sounding like a huge downer, I will explain.

Storming the court is not something you plan. It is something that just happens. I heard some chatter prior to the conclusion of the game that we, the students, should storm the court if we won. Some students were even lining up near the floor with 10 seconds left before CU's Antoine Young hit the game-tying 3-pointer. If students had this much time to think about their predetermined displays of excitement, it might be a clue that the court storming should have been reconsidered.

The Panthers did not beat a top-five team or a national powerhouse from a major conference. They did not end a ridiculously long winning or losing streak, nor did they earn their way into a postseason tournament. I'm on record as saying one of the best moments of my life as a sports fan was storming the court in 2009 after winning the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament and punching our ticket to the NCAA Tournament. That win got us something.

This win against Creighton was nice. It improved our postseason résumé and gave us a signature win. However, since Creighton has now lost three straight games, the win becomes less and less impressive. Our résumé needs more than just that one win at this point.

Think about it. We stormed the court against an MVC opponent, whom we have beaten four out of the last seven times we have played them. On top of that, we won on our home court when we were only 1.5-point underdogs. It pains me that we gave perhaps our biggest rival the satisfaction that we think that highly of them. Yes, Creighton was ranked No. 12. And yes, we are having a bit of a down year compared to recent years (although I think it speaks to the quality of our program that a disappointing season results in a 17-10 record at this point), but it was a game in which I was not surprised by the outcome, and I highly doubt our players felt it was a huge upset either. Good programs should not be stunned to win home conference games.

We want to become a nationally known mid-major team that people respect. We would like to be the Gonzaga University of the MVC. Gonzaga has won their regular season conference title 15 out of last 18 years.  In order for the program to continue to the next level and be a perennial threat in March, our fans need to increase their expectations and not be surprised when we upset teams who are having better-than-normal seasons like the one Creighton is having this year. Believing we can win every game we step on the court for needs to be the norm and not the exception. I thought our win against Kansas University a few years ago proved that.