Iowa State Cyclones Basketball: Nazareth Mitrou-Long to miss the Remainder of the Season
It’s been a great start to the season for the undefeated Iowa State Cyclones, however the team received their first bad news on Tuesday as starting shooting guard Naz Mitrou-Long will miss the remainder of the season with a hip injury.
Mitrou-Long had arthroscopic surgery on both hips over the offseason, and they were clearly bothering him, as the sharpshooter who shot 40% and 39% the last two seasons, respectively, was shooting just 29% this season. He will pursue a medical redshirt.
If it’s ever possible for an injury to come at a good time, it’s right now. With Marquette transfer Deonte Burton set to make his debut on Saturday against Northern Iowa, the Cyclones’ get another player to potentially take the place of Mitrou-Long.
Burton is a 6’4″, 240lb guard who is as athletic as anyone in college basketball. He became known at Marquette for his posterizing dunks…
but is effective in other ways as well. He averaged 6.9 points and two rebounds his freshman season in just over 12 minutes per game.
He isn’t much of a shooter, but is a bully in the paint, unleashing dunks like the one above, and attacking the rim with reckless abandon.
He’s also a fantastic defender, utilizing his size and strength. He was one of the Golden Eagles’ better perimeter defenders in his one and a half seasons there.
The challenge for first year head coach Steve Prohm now lies in his lineup choices. He indicated in a press conference on Monday (via the Ames Tribune) that Burton would play the four in some smaller lineups.
This was before Mitrou-Long’s injury announcement, so Prohm may not have the depth at guard, with just Matt Thomas, Monte Morris, and Hallice Cook being the only other guards on the team, to use this lineup.
More from Busting Brackets
- NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Analyzing top 4 teams for PF Jaxon Johnson
- NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Analyzing top 5 teams for top-100 SG Larry Johnson
- Oregon Basketball: Projected starting lineup and depth chart for 2023-24
- Big East Basketball: Ranking all head coaches going into 2023-24 season
- Florida State Basketball: Is Seminoles roster good enough to win in 2023-24?
Speaking of Thomas, he got the start in wake of Mitrou-Long in Sunday’s win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, and was effective in doing so.
Thomas scored 17 points, grabbed four rebounds, and dished out four assists. I would venture to guess he will continue to start in place of Mitrou-Long, at least until Burton gets comfortable with things.
Thomas has been far outperforming Mitrou-Long from the three-point line this year, shooting almost 47% from distance. Unfortunately, that’s about all there is to his offense, as he lacks the strength to finish at the rim.
What the Iowa State Cyclones won’t miss about Mitrou-Long is his horrid defense. Thomas isn’t that much better, but he is an improvement. The Cyclones’ defense with Mitrou-Long in the starting lineup has been pretty good so far this year (they rank 33rd in defensive rating), but their non-conference schedule is still very bad.
Next: Amile Jefferson Foot Injury is a Major Blow to Duke
They’ve been a bad defensive team for a few seasons now, so I won’t believe that they’ve turned the corner until they sustain this for a while.
Ultimately, Iowa State will be alright. Sure, it’s a loss that hurts, but if he was going to be this ineffective all season (he was last among their rotation players and offensive and defensive rating), then it’s best he sits out anyway. It will improve their defense, and the combination of both Thomas and Burton will be enough to replace his offense.