CEDAR FALLS — The Almanac, produced annually by The Field of 68 Media Network, has picked the University of Northern Iowa men’s basketball team to finish third in its Missouri Valley Conference preseason preview.

Comprised of 14 college basketball writers and insiders, the 2023-24 Field of 68 Almanac provides a comprehensive preview of the upcoming season with insight on every NCAA Division I program and conference in the nation.

UNI junior guard Bowen Born was selected to The Almanac’s Preseason First Team All-MVC, while also being voted as the player who scares you most in an anonymous poll by the league’s head coaches. Junior guard/forward Tytan Anderson was also named to the Preseason Second All-MVC list, while sophomore guard/forward Michael Duax was voted as the league’s breakout player for 2023-24.

Born earned NABC First Team All-District and Second Team All-MVC honors in 2022-23, leading the Panthers with 17.9 points per game in 32 starts. His 573 total points on the season were 10th-most in a single-season in program history.

Anderson broke out last season by leading the MVC with 11 double-doubles, including 12.6 points and 8.5 rebounds per game. Named the captain of the conference’s Most Improved Team, Anderson shot 48.4 percent from the field and scored a career-high 25 points against St. Bonaventure.

In his first season of action last winter, Duax earned MVC All-Freshmen Team recognition after scoring 321 points (10.0 per game), the second-most scored in the conference among freshmen. Duax notched three double-doubles and scored a season-high 21 points against UIC.