Lickliter learns from Gable, Brands

Iowa men's basketball coach Todd Lickliter often runs into Iowa's wrestling staff in the hall outside his second-floor office at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

He didn't understand wrestling when he arrived at Iowa, but he's learning fast. At least, Lickliter is learning the wrestling mentality. Lickliter told Gable that the basketball team is in its developmental stage but doesn't want to limit the team's aspirations.

"One of the real advantages to working at Iowa and being on the second floor is that I run into (wrestling coach) Tom Brands once in a while or (former coach now assistant athletics director) Dan Gable," Lickliter said. "And I saw Coach Gable and I was telling him we're in the development stage, but I don't want to limit them. And he said, 'That's exactly it. When you say it's going to be a process you limit somebody.' He just echoed my sentiments and said 'You're limiting them to how quickly they can get it. Why would we want to do that?'"

"I don't know any greater champions than those guys."

It's hard to imagine former Iowa Coach Steve Alford using Iowa's wrestling coaches to illustrate a point with his team or the media.