University of Northern Iowa Athletics
Leon Bond named to Lou Henson Award early season watchlist
12/19/2025 10:10:00 AM | Men's Basketball
BOSTON, Mass. --- UNI men's basketball's Leon Bond III has been named to the Lou Henson Award early season watchlist, as announced this week.
Named in honor of Lou Henson, the former Illinois and New Mexico State head coach who appeared in 12 NCAA Tournaments and the 1989 NCAA Final Four with the Fighting Illini, the award is presented annually to the top play in mid-major college basketball.
Bond, a Wauwatosa, Wisconsin native and redshirt junior for the Panthers, is among 50 players selected to the watchlist, which also includes two other athletes from the Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) in Murray State's Javon Jackson, Bradley Jaquan Johnson, Belmont's Tyler Lundblade, Drake's Jalen Quinn
The recipient of the award is determined by a ten-member voting committee of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members from collegeinsider.com. The winner will be announced in April at the 2026 NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis.
Bond, a MVC preseason watchlist member, leads Northern Iowa with 13.7 and 5.8 rebounds per game through the first 11 games of the 2025-26 season. He also leads the Panthers with 12 total blocks while shooting 50% from the field, including 46.7% from three-point range.
Bond has notably recorded three games of 20+ points this season, including a season-high 26 points against Oakland to earn MVC Player of the Week honors. He also recorded new career-highs in rebounds (11) and blocks (3) in the Panthers' MVC opener at UIC for his first career double-double.
Bond and the Panthers return to action on Monday, Dec. 22 for their non-conference finale at Saint Mary's (CA). Tip-off is scheduled for 9 p.m. CT at University Credit Union Arena in Morega, California with live coverage of the game can be found on ESPN+ and the Panther Sports Radio Network (93.5 The Mix).
2025-26 LOU HENSON AWARD EARLY SEASON WATCHLIST
CJ Anthony (Iona), Leo Beath (UC San Diego), Austin Benigni (Navy), Brycen Blaine (Charleston Southern), Leon Bond III (UNI), Isaac Bruns (South Dakota), Javontae Campbell (Bowling Green), Zach Cleveland (Liberty), Simeon Cottle (Kennesaw State), Chandler Cuthrell (Elon), Dominique Daniels Jr. (Cal Baptist), Cruz Davis (Hofstra), Brett Decker Jr. (Liberty), Quin Denker (Northern Colorado), Thomas Dowd (Troy), Cam'Ron Fletcher (High Point), Daniel Freitag (Buffalo), Delrecco Gillespie (Kent State), DeSean Goode (Robert Morris), Corey Hadnot II (Purdue-Fort Wayne), Christian Hammond (Santa Clara), Bryce Harris (Howard), Robert Hinton (Harvard), Nolan Hodge (UNC Wilmington), Jack Hholcombe (Utah Valley), Evan Ipsaro (Miami-OH), Javon Jackson (Murray State), Dior Johnson (Tarleton State), Jaquan Johnson (Bradley), Tavari Johnson (Akron), Jemel Jones (New Mexico State), Tyler Lundblade (Belmont), Nolan Minessale (St. Thomas-MN), Amarri Monroe (Quinnipiac), Teagan Moore (Western Kentucky), Paulius Muraskas (Saint Mary's), Kenny Noland (Columbia), Baraka Okojie (Mercer), Jalen Quinn (Drake), Brody Robinson (Oakland), Darin Smith Jr. (Central Connecticut), Jalen Speer (Marshall), Corey Stephenson (Florida International), Tyler Tejada (Towson), Keon Thompson (Stephen F. Austin), Nick Townsend (Yale), Lance Waddles (Omaha), Damari Wheeler-Thomas (North Dakota State), Money Williams (Montana).
UNI men's basketball action can be followed all season long on social media on Facebook (UNI Men's Basketball), X (@UNImbb) and on Instagram (@uni_basketball). The full schedule and roster, along with the latest Panther news and information can be found online at UNIpanthers.com.
