Iowa basketball is consistently inconsistent

IOWA CITY - Iowa sophomore guard Eric May was active and assertive against Minnesota last Sunday, scoring 16 points in 34 minutes played.

Wednesday, May missed both shot attempts and had one turnover in 18 minutes against Ohio State.

Iowa junior forward Andrew Brommer produced a breakout performance against Ohio State on Wednesday with 12 points, six rebounds and three blocked shots. One game earlier he played just five minutes and didn't attempt a shot.

Senior post Jarryd Cole has combined for one basket on three shots the last three games after scoring 10 and 14 points against Illinois and Ohio State, respectively, to open the Big Ten season.

As much as Iowa is plagued by youth and inexperience in a 7-11 start to this season, inconsistency might rank at the top of the problem list for first-year coach Fran McCaffery.

"We are getting production from a lot of different people. That's a good thing," McCaffery said. "Obviously, the problem then becomes, it doesn't seem to be on the same nights. How do you explain Eric May's performance on Sunday versus Wednesday, and the same for Andrew Brommer? But Andrew doesn't make a basket on Sunday, and he plays (Ohio State freshman Jared) Sullinger toe-to-toe.

"Eric May looks like a first-team, all-league player at Minnesota, doesn't get a basket Wednesday night. So obviously, the hope is that we can get all of these guys playing as well as they can at the same time."

Junior guard Matt Gatens was up-and-down offensively earlier this season. He struggled to regain his shooting touch following surgery in October for a torn tendon in his non-shooting hand. McCaffery said he ran specific sets and put Gatens in different positions so he could make some shots and regain his confidence. Gatens now has scored in double figures all but once in Big Ten play.

Junior point guard Bryce Cartwright had his own bout with inconsistency earlier this month. McCaffery publicly chided Cartwright's performance against Purdue, in which Cartwright missed all but two of his 10 shots and had four turnovers to three assists in 29 minutes. Cartwright took the criticism in stride but applied the lessons in the following game against Northwestern when he scored 25 points and dished five assists.

"I think as a first true road game maybe I was out a little character and then I probably sent my team out of character as well," Cartwright said. "Coach told me every time you go in there you don't have to make the home run play, and I kind of took it to heart. I tried to make the right play when I get in there."

Minutes contribute nearly as much to inconsistency as the on-court output. McCaffery said he consciously remembers to give Brommer more minutes to boost his confidence. Devyn Marble is in a similar situation. Marble, a freshman, was slated to back up Matt Gatens as a shooting guard but when Cully Payne had surgery for a sports hernia, Marble also became a backup at point guard. That position alteration has stunted his growth at point guard, McCaffery concedes, and Marble's minutes fluctuate from 20-plus in the first four Big Ten games to eight against Minnesota.

"I guess you could say with most people the more minutes they get, the more productive they are," Marble said. "But I wouldn't say that equals being consistent every night just because you play a certain amount of minutes. You've got to bring it every night, and that's what's going to equal your success on the court."

The inconsistency doesn't just apply to individual players but also to team performance. Against Northwestern and Illinois, the Hawkeyes were torched by 3-point shooting with the teams combining for 27 3-pointers. The Hawkeyes were buried in the paint at Purdue (24 to 10), suffered 12 blocked shots at Minnesota and saw Ohio State freshman point guard Aaron Craft snag seven steals, one from the school record.

McCaffery said he won't alter the starting lineup based on his players' ineffectiveness. He wants them to play through their slumps despite their yo-yo performances.

"They have to keep believing in me that I believe in them, and that I can help them get better," McCaffery said. "That's how I've had success in the past with guys who are struggling. You know, somehow, some way, I have to get the good players out of the funk, if they are in a funk, and if they are playing well, then say and do the necessary things to make sure they continue to play well."