Sioux City Web site takes aim at Iowa, Cougill doubters

Iowa Coach Todd Lickliter has played the state's reigning Mr. Basketball Brennan Cougill a combined three minutes the last two games. Lickliter said last week the Sioux City native was nursing a back injury, and the match-ups were unfavorable for the 6-foot-9 freshman. Cougill also has been sick at different times.

Cougill's lack of minutes have caught the attention of his hometown paper/Web site. A blog post on the Sioux City Journal's Web site criticizes Lickliter for not playing Cougill.

"In another season that seems to be going nowhere in particular, it's rather astonishing to think Coach Todd Lickliter and his staff wouldn't want Cougill to at least glean some much-needed experience now that a redshirt year is out of the question," according to the post.

The post criticized Lickliter for playing junior Jarryd Cole and sophomore Aaron Fuller over Cougill. Both players are stronger and more developed to play in the Big Ten than Cougill is currently. Fuller may have the most upside of any player on the team, and Cole is the team's strongest player and bona fide leader.

The player taking minutes from Cougill currently is sophomore Andrew Brommer, a 6-foot-9 post who rode the bench until recently. Brommer has had nice minutes lately and is better suited to the physical style of play right now. He's also outplayed Cougill.

The post brings up good points about fans getting down on Cougill so early. Cougill has plenty of upside and will be a good player for Iowa. He's got a long way to go, especially when it comes to strength and conditioning, but you can't judge a post player strictly by his freshman season.