Iowa basketball coach Todd Lickliter is expected to miss tomorrow night’s game at UNI. Lickliter was not at Saturday’s victory over Prairie View A&M after undergoing what school officials described as a serious procedure to relieve severe headaches. Lickliter could return for this weekend’s game at Iowa State and in the meantime assistant coach Chad Walthall has assumed the role of head coach.
Walthall says they are busy preparing, and says it has been difficult, but they have worked hard to prepare for U.N.I.
Walthall has head coaching experience. At one time he directed the program at Loras College. He says this is a little bit different microscope, but you still prepare. Walthall says they would like to see Lickliter return as fast as possible, but will hold down the fort until he returns.
Walthall says while the players have done a good job in Lickliter’s asbsebce he admits it is a distraction. He says it is certainly not normal and they are not pretending that it is normal, but he says they are trying to handle it the way Lickliter would want them to handle it. He says the coach always tells players they will face things that are not perfect and have to move on and handle them.