Men's Basketball: Outlook appears brighter for young Hawkeyes

DES MOINES (AP) — Iowa heads into the offseason with questions about the status of coach Todd Lickliter amid some promising signs for next season.

Iowa spokesman Matt Weitzel said Friday that both Lickliter and Athletic Director Gary Barta stayed in Indianapolis following the Hawkeyes’ 59-52 loss to Michigan in the Big Ten tournament on Thursday. The Hawkeyes, who had just two upperclassmen play significant minutes, finished 10-22 — their first 20-loss season and a losing record for the third straight season under Lickliter.

Rumors about Lickliter’s job status spread before and during the game, with one Iowa radio station even reporting on its Facebook page that Lickliter would step down.

Lickliter sidestepped speculation about his future after the loss and Barta released a statement that did little to quell the rumors.

“I’m so proud of our young men,” Barta said. “It’s been a tough season, but the future is very bright with this group. With the season ending today, I’ll do what I do at the end of every year. I’ll evaluate 2010 and make preparations for next season.”

Lickliter has four years left on his contract, which pays him $1.2 million a year.

All this comes as the Hawkeyes appear poised for progress as early as next season.

The 2009-10 campaign was expected to be a tough one from the moment starters Jake Kelly and Jeff Peterson and two others announced they were transferring last spring.

For now, it doesn’t appear that any players from this unit are planning to leave the program — and Iowa’s young core will be bolstered by a recruiting class that could be the best haul of Lickliter’s short tenure.

Iowa loses just one senior, reserve guard Devan Bawinkel, while adding four recruits. Junior college transfer Devon Archie, who missed the season with a shoulder injury, should provide depth in the frontcourt.

Sioux Falls, S.D., forward Cody Larson is considered among the nation’s best at his position, and Sioux City, Iowa, forward Zach McCabe is a versatile athlete who also starred at quarterback in high school. Guards Ben Brust and Roy Marble Jr. — the son of Roy Marble, Iowa’s all-time leading scorer — should help bolster the backcourt behind Cully Payne and Matt Gatens.

On paper, Iowa will have two juniors — Gatens and fellow honorable mention all-league pick Aaron Fuller — and senior forward Jarryd Cole as starters in 2010-11. Payne and Eric May, who made the Big Ten’s all-freshman team, will take a ton of experience into their sophomore seasons, and the incoming recruits likely won’t be pressed into action as early as this year’s class was.

Until Iowa clarifies Lickliter’s status, though, nobody knows what’s next for the Hawkeyes.

“My future is that I’m healthy, I have a great family. I love what I do. I’ve done it well, and that’s not in my hands,” Lickliter said Thursday in Indianapolis.

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