Maya McDermott finds perfect fit at University of Northern Iowa

She received a few calls from then-Iowa associate coach Jan Jensen, but she knew the Hawkeyes were also heavily recruiting another metro Des Moines area up-and-coming star – Caitlin Clark.

“I sat down with Dickson [Jensen, All Iowa Attack director] and my parents and we came up with a goal – I think mid-major is the best fit for me,” McDermott told The Next.  “Jan called a couple times, and the likelihood of them getting Caitlin, which is my spot – point guard – was very likely for them. I knew that was kind out the door with Caitlin going there, which is completely understandable. I mean, it’s Caitlin Clark.”

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As a freshman in 2016-17, McDermott was a starter for the Johnston Dragons. By the end of her sophomore year, she had found the perfect mid-major fit  – the University of Northern Iowa Panthers.   

“I started to get recruited by UNI my sophomore year and I knew that was my home pretty quickly,” she said. “I knew the players that played there at the time. I knew the recruits. Kayba {Laube] was already committed there, and Emerson [Green] shortly after. I fell in love with it. I knew mid-major was where I wanted to go and was where I belonged. And I’m so thankful to be loyal to them this entire time. I haven’t wanted to leave and I love being here.” 

UNI head coach Tanya Warren wasn’t deterred by McDermott’s lack of height as she saw her grit and determination even in high school.

“Maya, she’s one of the best guards in the country,” Warren said after McDermott’s 30-point performance against Iowa on Dec. 20. “I mean, hands down. You know, she probably didn’t get recruited high enough coming out of high school because of her size, but you can’t measure heart.”

Warren, who is also small in stature and grew up in Des Moines, had a successful career at Creighton from 1984-1988.  

“As a player, she was such a great point guard, when she was younger. And I think the biggest word she says to me is poise,” McDermott said of her coach. “When it’s not your fault, it is your fault because you are the point guard, you’re the floor general. I gotta make sure everyone is organized; I gotta make sure everyone’s in the right spot, doing the right thing, communicating. I love taking on that role, and she’s helped me so much since my freshman year.” 

The player-coach relationship has also blossomed off the court. 

“She’s developed me as a person, making the right choices off the court and taking the time to really, really spend time with the people that we love,” McDermott said.” She always said that, she always gives us the right message, win or lose. It’s the same message, talk to your loved ones, call them. There’s so many little lessons that she teaches us every day, and it’s something new as well. I learn something new from her every day, and I think that’s the beauty of our relationship.”

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The right choice

For the first time in her career, the fifth-year senior has been named to the Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award watch list, which was announced by Her Hoop Stats earlier this month. She also appeared on the 2023-24 preseason list but not 2024-25.

“It’s a cool award, especially when it’s mid-season and you’re not recognized preseason,” McDermott said. “It’s a cool feeling. But credit to my coaches and teammates for getting me there. I don’t reach to accomplish those kinds of awards, those personal awards. It’s more of I want to win a conference tournament. I want to make it to the NCAA tournament.”

McDermott is having a career season, averaging 19.7 points per game and 4.8 assists over 20 games. She moved to fifth on UNI’s all-time scoring list with 1,705 points through Jan. 26. She also sits in fifth place on UNI’s all-time three-point list with 207 threes and counting.

While she worked on her left hand, defense and finishing around the rim in the offseason, she really focused on the mental side of her game. 

“Knowing this is my last year, knowing I have to step up and be a leader,” she said. “Knowing this is my last year of UNI basketball and just leaving it all on the court, I think that’s what our fifth-year seniors have really embraced, and just going out there and giving it our all.”

The season took a heartbreaking turn early on when McDermott’s fellow fifth-year senior Grace Boffeli was ruled out for the year after suffering a torn ACL in a Nov. 16 loss against Ball State. Like McDermott, Boffeli was named to the 2024-25 Missouri Valley Conference preseason first team. 

Boffeli was diagnosed with the season-ending injury the day before the Panthers’ home game against then-No. 8 Iowa State. While initially devastated, McDermott pulled the team together and led UNI to a resounding 87-75 victory over the Cyclones at home Nov. 20, scoring a career high 37 points on 14-of-21 shooting from the field, including 3-4 three-pointers and 6-6 from the free throw line. 

McDermott explains the mindset headed into UNI’s first-ever win over a top 10 team.

“Audi Crooks, arguably one of the best post players in the game right now, was coming into our building,” she said. “We were just playing for Grace. We were so devastated the day before of the results that came to be, and we worked through it. That’s my roommate, that’s one of my best friends, and to see her go down like that, you can all only just do it for her. She’s our motivation, and she’s a huge leader off the court as well. She still communicates on the bench.”

Leadership is something McDermott takes pride in, especially with Boffeli out for the season.

“I still have to work on being more vocal on the court, but I’ve always been kind of a lead by example,” she said. “I try to make the right plays, I try to take care of the ball, just showing those younger ones that your time will come. Everyone, as a freshman, you may not get the minutes. I’ve been through it just reminding them, ‘hey, your time is going to be your time is going to come, stay the course, stick with the program, and it’ll come.’ And that’s what happened with me. I was behind an amazing point guard, Karli Rucker, and my time came, and now you just have to flourish in your role and remind the team that we’re all in this together.”

McDermott also flourished against Iowa at a sold-out Carver Hawkeye Arena in Iowa City on Dec. 20. Although the Panthers lost 92-86 to the then-ranked 22 Hawkeyes, UNI mounted a furious comeback in the second half behind McDermott’s 30 points, four rebounds and four assists.

Jan Jensen, now Iowa’s head coach, had high praise for her former recruit. 

“I would like to say what went right is Maya McDermott,” she told reporters after the game. “Sometimes you don’t give enough credit to greatness. That was great. We were trying to switch. We were trying to do a lot of different things. When Maya gets on a roll… listen, I love that kid. I recruited the heck out of her up until..her and Cailin were the same age. She just is a winner.” 

Iowa guard Taylor McCabe, who had 15 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the three-point line, agreed that McDermott was the difference maker for the Panthers.

“She’s a tough player. We knew coming into this game that she is going to be good,” she told reporters after the game. “I think we gave a few too many, but every basket she made was tough. I don’t know if there’s much more we could have done. She’s a great player.” 

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Strong Iowa tradition

McDermott is no stranger to tough competition, even dating back to grade school. She, Clark and Drake guard Katie Dinnebier all played against each other in the Central Iowa Metro League in high school, and they all were teammates on the All-Iowa Attack AAU team.

While Clark took the sports world by storm at Iowa and now with the Indiana Fever, McDermott and Dinnebier, who played at Waukee High School in the Des Moines-metro area, have consistently been among the top players in the MVC. Dinnebier is the reigning 2024 MVC Player of the Year and was tabbed as the preseason Player of the Year. 

“It’s honestly exciting for the state of Iowa and women’s basketball, because we have been playing against each other since we were younger,” McDermott said. “I’ve been playing against Caitlin since we were like, oh gosh, she was on the War Dogs. I hated them. They were so good. Since, I don’t know if that’s third or fourth grade, it’s just been so competitive. We have so much respect for each other,” she said.

That all three stars stayed in their home state says something about Iowa’s rich tradition in girls’ basketball, McDermott said. 

“It’s exciting because we continue to stay in the state of Iowa, which if I could speak for all three of us, I feel like we feel so accomplished to be here and represent the state after high school, and it’s competitive,” she said. “We want to beat each other. I know it’s very respectable, though, and on the court, we might not be smiling, we might go at each other, but when the buzzer rings, it’s one of those things where we respect each other. We’ll give each other a hug, and every once in a while, we’ll talk, for sure, and it’s really cool.”

“ I love to see them succeed,” she added. “Caitlin’s doing so well in the league, like we knew she would, and Katie’s over there having dang near double-doubles every game and taking control of that Drake team. I’m proud of both of them. I think they’re great players and great people.”

Keeping her options open

Although she graduated last year from UNI with a bachelor’s degree in digital media leadership and has been job shadowing in the medical sales field, McDermott is keeping her options open about continuing her basketball career.  

“If the opportunity presented itself, maybe,” she said. “I kind of look at the interview with Kate Martin last year, when she was a Hawkeye, of her saying, ‘I’m just going to be an Old Joe living, getting a real job.’ And that was kind of my mindset. I won’t lie. It’s just, getting a real job and just moving on to the real world. But then Kate Martin got drafted. So it’s one of those things where, if I really sat down and talked to my people and figured out, okay, what’s the best plan for me? That’s what it’s going to have to take. I love to try my best to stay in the moment and try to win this conference championship, but we’ll see.”

UNI is 10-10 overall and 5-4 in the MVC where they are sixth in the standings. They face in-state rivals Drake (6-3) and Dinnebier this Saturday, Feb. 1 in Des Moines.