Northern Iowa’s Ali Farokhmanesh, overlooked in high school, leads Panthers to regional semis

Once-overlooked Farokhmanesh leads Northern Iowa

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — All Ali Farokhmanesh wanted coming out of high school was the chance to play Division I ball.

None of the big boys wanted him, though. Farokhmanesh probably would have settled for a Division II offer, but no takers there, either.

Four years and three schools later, the 6-footer from Northern Iowa is the toast of this year’s NCAA tournament.

The overlooked shooting guard on the once-overlooked Panthers has delivered a pair of dazzling performances. Farokhmanesh (Fah-ROHK-ma-NESH) hit a winning 3-pointer with 4.9 seconds to lead the ninth-seeded Panthers past UNLV in the opening round. He then sank a pull-up 3 with 34 seconds left to help Northern Iowa (30-4) stun top-seeded Kansas on Saturday and advance to the regional semifinals for the first time.

Farokhmanesh is averaging 16.5 points in the NCAA tournament. Not bad for someone who toiled at two junior colleges before finding a home with the Panthers.

“Because he’s prepared, he’s got all the confidence in the world,” Northern Iowa coach Ben Jacobson said Sunday. “He knows that his teammates have complete trust in him and that he’s going to come through for us when we need him to.”

Farokhmanesh took quite the journey to sleepy Cedar Falls, which isn’t so sleepy these days thanks to the bracket-busting Panthers.

Farokhmanesh lived in Pullman, Wash., until he was 15. His mother, Cindy Fredrick, was the volleyball coach at Washington State and his father, former Iranian national volleyball team player Mashallah Farokhmanesh, was an assistant with the Cougars.

The family moved to Iowa City when Fredrick became the coach at Iowa. Farokhmanesh starred at Iowa City West High — right under the nose of the Big Ten’s Hawkeyes — but he said the only schools willing to give him a shot were junior colleges.

Farokhmanesh started out at Indian Hills Community College in southeastern Iowa, but he hardly played there. He transferred to Kirkwood Community College, also in Iowa, for his sophomore season. Thanks to a supportive coaching staff, Farokhmanesh’s game soon took off.

He averaged 17 points and five assists in his one season at Kirkwood, earning first-team NJCAA Division II All-American honors and attracting the attention of Jacobson. Jacobson recalled catching Farokhmanesh on a night when his shots weren’t falling, but the coach saw other things.

“I loved his demeanor,” Jacobson said. “His presence, the confidence he carries himself with. Those were the things that I really felt like our team needed.”

Farokhmanesh has averaged just under 10 points in two seasons, but he thrives on drama.

He made a 3-pointer to help Northern Iowa outlast Illinois State in overtime in the 2009 Missouri Valley title game. This season, he drilled a 3 with 34 seconds left to help the Panthers complete a comeback at rival Iowa State. He hit two 3s from over 25 feet away late in the second half to lead Northern Iowa past Drake.

For Farokhmanesh, the secret to playing well late in games is simple. Big moments don’t allow him time to dwell on things.

“Sometimes I probably think about my shot too much,” he said. “If someone leaves me a little too open, then sometimes you second-guess yourself, talk to yourself a little about the shot. I think in those situations you almost know you have to shoot it, so that’s probably why it makes it a little easier.”

The 3-pointer in the closing minute against Kansas is surely the biggest shot in school history. The shot took down the blue-chip Jayhawks, ousted by someone who once questioned if he’d ever even play Division I basketball.

“I just remember coming out of high school and not knowing if I was even going to play anymore,” Farokhmanesh said. “To go from that to, we’re in the Sweet Sixteen, we just beat the No. 1 team in the country. I mean, if someone would have told me that back then I would have laughed at them probably. But I think it shows that hard work really does pay off.”