Iowa's Fran McCaffery expects Devon Archie to contribute

IOWA CITY - Devon Archie's Iowa basketball career began with a thud to his clavicle.

The senior from Indianapolis lost his first season to a dislocated collarbone. He since has endured leg injuries, a concussion and other inconsistencies in his two previous seasons with the Hawkeyes. But his coaches never heaped pressure upon his shoulders until now.

Archie, a sleek 6-foot-9 center, will start in Iowa's exhibition opener Sunday based as much in need as for his skill.

Archie played in 23 games last year but averaged just eight minutes and 1.7 points a game while backing up Jarryd Cole. With Cole graduated and initial starter Andrew Brommer out with a sprained right knee, Archie has become the team's go-to guy in the post. At least that's what Iowa Coach Fran McCaffery expects.

“Archie's just been rock solid,” McCaffery said. “He doesn't play outside himself. He's not doing a tremendous amount of dribbling or shooting. He screens and simplifies our offense.

“Now in year two, he knows what I want from him. I'm excited about him. I'm happy for him. People have given up on him, I think, and he just believed in himself and kept fighting and here he is in a position to have a really nice senior year.”

Archie originally was a Todd Lickliter recruit from Vincennes (Ind.) junior college, but he missed the 2009-10 season with his dislocated collarbone. He red-shirted that season and played sparingly last year. He missed two weeks with a concussion.

Archie struggled mightily from the free-throw line, sinking just 6-of-23 attempts last year. The misses affected his confidence, but McCaffery said Archie has grown stronger because of the adversity.

“I think mentally he's a lot tougher than he's been,” McCaffery said. “He feels like he belongs. He wasn't consistent last year, but he had some good games against good players. If you can do that some of the time, you can do that all the time.

“I think for most players who are in his position, you have to understand completely what they do well, and what they don't well. Then go out and play to their strengths and away from their weaknesses. If he starts dribbling too much, it's a turnover. If it's one power dribble to the rim, one dribble into a gap and just get all over the glass and stay in his stance and move his feet and don't let the guy flash in front of him, he could have a great impact.”

Archie realizes the expectations heaped upon him. He's no longer a just a player McCaffery hopes for production; he's now a vital piece of the Hawkeye puzzle.

“The first thing is you're a leader with this young guys, just talking to them,” Archie said. “The second thing I think, since I've been here, this is my third year here now, I've seen what's going on, I've got a little bit more experience.”

Archie has quickness and is an explosive athlete near the basket. McCaffery wants Archie to play a specific role on the court and not try to do too much.

“He's a great athlete who's long, who can block shots and has a good feel for how to play the game,” McCaffery said. “He understands how to play. Now he's not going to be shooting 3s. He's not going to be shooting foul-line jumpers. But he can score around the basket, So as long as he does those things, he'll be fine.”