Hawkeye Basketball: Barta 'still believes' in players

IOWA CITY - Spring break shielded University of Iowa basketball players from standing in the back of the room Monday when Athletics Director Gary Barta announced he'd fired men's basketball coach Todd Lickliter.

Lickliter finished his three seasons with a 38-58 record, including 10-22 this season, the worst season in Iowa history.

After Iowa's exit from the Big Ten tournament last Thursday, freshman point guard Cully Payne was the only Hawkeye who said he might leave the program if Lickliter, 54, was fired. Payne's father, Kent, said Monday that Cully was in Florida with family for spring break. He said he hadn't talked to his son.

“I think it's just way too early,” said Payne, who is athletics director at Elgin (Ill.) Community College. “There's some shock today, just gathering information. I don't think he'd have any thought process in any direction right now.”

Matt Gatens and Aaron Fuller didn't return phone calls Monday.

After Iowa's 59-52 loss to Michigan in the first round of the Big Ten tournament, Gatens, Fuller, Andrew Brommer, Eric May and Brennan Cougill said they were staying regardless of who would be coaching the team.

Barta said Monday he “still believes strongly in this group” of players.

“If this group will stay together, the current student-athletes and the group committed to coming to Iowa,” Barta said, “for the first time in my tenure, arriving in 2006, I really believe we have a chance to compete in the Big Ten Conference.”

Barta lauded Payne, Gatens, Fuller, May and Jarryd Cole.

“Cully Payne, his 25-point performance (against Michigan in the Big Ten tournament), he's proven to be a leader,” Barta said. “Matt Gatens, he's a go-to guy night in and night out. . . . Aaron Fuller, the dramatic improvement from freshman to sophomore year. . . . He's proven to be a Big Ten scorer.

“Eric May has the potential to be one of the best athletes in the Big Ten. Jarryd Cole, a senior and a leader. His perseverance to come back from injury.”

For various reasons, player retention had been an issue for Lickliter. Nine scholarship athletes transferred.

As an athletics director, albeit on a smaller level, Kent Payne understood the decision Barta had to make.

“At that level, it's just a tough business anyway you look at it,” he said. “There are a lot of great things to it, but at the end of the day it's a tough business. And that's what it is, it's a business.”