Iowa State’s Naz Mitrou-Long fighting through struggles

AMES - When Naz Mitrou-Long was a freshman, his in-game usage wasn't high.

That didn't stop director of basketball operations Jeff Rutter from pulling him into the staff offices and watching film one-on-one every day. Those meetings are what kept Mitrou-Long afloat during a trying year.

It's been four years since those days and now Mitrou-Long and Rutter will be meeting again, this time on opposite sidelines when Iowa State takes on Drake at the Hy-Vee Classic. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. (MC22/Cyclones.tv) at Wells Fargo Arena.

'If I didn't have guys like Coach Rutter in my corner, I wouldn't be here at Iowa State,” Mitrou-Long said. 'You look at situations right now when a lot of people you thought that were there for you turn on you and say things against you but you have guys like Coach Rutter that uplift you and tell you to keep pushing on and keep believing in your craft and the work you put in.

'So guys like him are the reason I was able to push through adversity and be here as a senior at Iowa State. Going through the successes that I've had have ultimately prepared me for situations like right now when you're going through adversity and you need to find ways to overcome and be better down the line.”

Rutter and Mitrou-Long have experienced adversity in their own ways this season.

After a 1-7 start, Ray Giacoletti resigned as Drake's coach and Rutter was named the interim coach after serving as an assistant since leaving Iowa State in 2013. The Bulldogs' (1-8) only win was against D-III Simpson. They have lost seven games by six points or less, ranking No. 271 of 351 teams on KenPom.

Likewise, Mitrou-Long has struggled to shoot with consistency through the Cyclones' (6-3) first nine games. His 26.7 percent 3-point percentage is the lowest of his career while his 39 percent shooting from the field is the lowest since he became a rotational player.

While his shooting hasn't looked like it did two or three years ago, Mitrou-Long's 5.4 rebounds and 24 total assists are on pace to be career highs. His shooting, Iowa State Coach Steve Prohm said, will right itself at some point.

'It's shot selection at times, turning down sometimes a good shot,” Prohm said. 'He's going to be just fine. His character is really high and his work ethic is really good. If you've got both of those, you'll get through this.”

'It's a matter of time,” said point guard Monte Morris. 'I've seen that guy make probably 25, 30 3s straight. He can shoot the ball and his leadership hasn't gone anywhere, no matter how his shot has fallen. My biggest worry isn't about his play because I know it's going to come.”

Iowa State's three regular season nonconference losses are the most since 2012-13, but nobody in the locker room is hitting the panic button. Mitrou-Long pointed to some recent history about teams righting the ship, mainly UConn beating the Cyclones in the Sweet 16 en route to a title.

'There have been teams that have had worse non-con wins and losses and have gone on to do great things,” Mitrou-Long said. 'Go back two or three years. That UConn team, man, nobody was talking about them, they were losing a bunch of games, got knocked out of the Top 25 and so forth and came back and won a national championship. I'm worried about the end result.”

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