Why is the ISU men’s basketball team not better than it is?

After its performance in the National Invitation Tournament last year, many people — including many outside of Ames — expected the Cyclones to be a good team this year.

Now, I don’t think anyone was expecting a top 10 ranking in the polls, but it wasn’t unthinkable for a possible top 25 ranking and an unquestionable berth in the NCAAs.

As of Wednesday, the Cyclones are a mediocre 8-6 overall and 0-3 in the Big 12.

So what’s wrong? Why are Wayne Morgan and his Cyclones underachieving so much?

The first thing that pops into my mind is leadership.

In their games against Kansas and Oklahoma State, the Cyclones had chances to pull out the win and flat-out failed.

They were all but given the win against Kansas, and it would have been a huge win since Kansas was ranked No. 2 at the time. Instead of charging ahead, there were questionable shots taken at the end of the game, and one would have to wonder about the on-court leadership for the team.

Is the leadership that Jake Sullivan provided last year much more important than the talent on the court? One could argue that this year’s team has much more overall talent than last year’s team, but that leads to the next question of why Iowa State is underachieving.

Is the talent that on this year’s team really better than the talent on last year’s team? Obviously, this is an argument that no one can win, unless the final record and tournament performance are the only consideration.

Curtis Stinson, Will Blalock and Damion Staple are all a year older and have much more experience. Jared Homan has the chance to be considered one of the best big men in ISU basketball history.

But as mentioned before, is the leadership more important?

Jackson Vroman is certainly missed, but the Cyclones pulled in some recruits in the offseason to try to counter that. So what’s the real problem? This team just can’t play in the big game yet.

Look at the losses. Iowa, Oklahoma State, Kansas and Missouri are all very good programs. In all but the Iowa game, the Cyclones had several chances to close it out but couldn’t pull through.

Xavier was Iowa State’s first game out of state, and the Cyclones proceeded to get beat. The Northern Iowa game was a perfect example of what the Cyclones have done wrong all season: poor shot selection and no 3-point defense.

This team looks like it’s lacking from on-the-court leadership and viewing the end of the Kansas game shows this perfectly. Stinson took several horrible shots toward the end of the game, trying to slash in between multiple Jayhawk defenders, only to miss and be forced to foul for more easy Kansas points.

Leadership isn’t something that can be taught and can only grow with experience. Cyclone fans will just have to hope that the incredible talent this team has will come forward soon.