Iowa junior has lost his way, of late
By Andy Hamilton
Iowa City Press-Citizen
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Presently, he’s ranked fifth at 184 pounds and unofficially No. 1 on the list of Iowa wrestling mysteries.
Paul Bradley is the only All-American on his team. Those in the Hawkeye wrestling room believe he possesses the tools to win a national title. More times than not this season, he’s taken his opponent down in the first minute of a match.
So why has Iowa’s most accomplished wrestler lost two of his last three matches against unranked opponents? How has Bradley — who sometimes looks as if he can score whenever he wants — only posted 14 points in his last three bouts?
How does a guy who makes a habit of scoring early revert to watching the clock tick down without adding to his lead?
Those are questions that have caused extensive analysis for the Iowa junior recently.
“I’ve really looked into it a lot lately, “Bradley said. “I’ve been wondering why. Even when I’ve won, I’ve been coming off the mat unhappy, especially against Oklahoma State (a 6-4 win against unranked Clay Kehrer). Coming off the mat not being happy with wrestling, it’s hard to build your confidence up.”
Bradley and the eighth-ranked Hawkeyes could gain a shot of confidence at 6:30 p.m. tonight against No. 2 Illinois in Huff Hall.
The Illini enter the dual with one of the most balanced teams in the country, while Iowa comes into the meet trying to shake Bradley and freshman 141-pounder Alex Tsirtsis from their recent offensive slumps.
In a dual that features five bouts between ranked wrestlers, the 184-pound match between Bradley and fourth-ranked Brian Glynn could be pivotal for the outcome of the meet and the psyche of the Iowa junior.
“Last year he went through a phase like this, too, where we’re working hard and not really backing off (in training) for meets, “Iowa coach Jim Zalesky said. “He’s wrestled a couple matches where he hasn’t put enough points on the scoreboard to win.
“He’s capable of putting a lot more points up and I think he realizes that. If you put 10 or 15 points up, winning will take care of itself.”
Even with his recent struggles, Bradley is 11-2 after Sunday’s 4-3 loss to Wisconsin’s Brady Reinke. Among Bradley’s victories are two wins against third-ranked Kurt Backes of Iowa State and a triumph over Penn State’s sixth-ranked Eric Bradley, the defending Big Ten champion.
But Paul Bradley hasn’t dominated lesser opponents. He has recorded only two major decisions and in his nine other victories and his average margin of victory has been 2.2 points.
“No matter who he wrestles, he’s keeping them in the match because he’s not trying to go out and build his lead enough, “Zalesky said Sunday.
The past three matches have been symbolic of Zalesky’s point. Each time, Bradley has scored almost immediately, stopped attacking and tried turning his offense on again too late. His two losses came when opponents countered hurried shots in the final 40 seconds.
In dissecting those three matches, Bradley has found some common threads and ruled out reasons why he isn’t widening the gap between himself and lesser opponents.
Physically, he says he’s been fine, except for being sick earlier in the month when he lost to Brandon Bear of Cal-Davis. Bradley said his conditioning isn’t a problem, either.
“We work too hard not to be in shape, “he said. “I feel real good. My shape is great, my strength feels great, it’s mentally not wanting to lose is what’s holding me back. I’ve got to change that attitude to needing to win.”
In an effort to change his methods, Bradley consulted this week with sports psychologist Morrie Adams, the radio voice of Iowa wrestling.
“There were some things mentally that the coaches really thought he could help me with, “Bradley said. “I really feel like these were things I needed to get out in the open with my wrestling. It’s no so much physically, but mentally I felt I needed to refocus and get back what I had earlier in the season.”
Tsirtsis (14-5) is in a similar situation, but unlike Bradley, the freshman 141-pounder hasn’t been scoring early lately. And that’s been telling in his losses to Oklahoma State’s Ronnie Delk and Wisconsin’s Ed Gutnik.
“When you’re a freshman and people don’t know what you do and all of a sudden they get tape on you, and scout you, they say, ‘OK, here’s how we’re going to wrestle him, we’re going to slow him down like this,’ “Zalesky said. “You’ve gotta adjust and that’s where he’s at.
“I’ve seen him in high school lose matches the same way. When he doesn’t score right away, he wrestles too conservatively. When you don’t score right away, you’ve got to pick your pace up and I think he’s doing the opposite.”
Tsirtsis, who has gone two straight matches without a takedown — something Zalesky said is probably a career first for the four-time Indiana state champion — said his confidence hasn’t been dented.
“The past two guys I’ve wrestled have really tried to slow me down and hold on and they’re not really trying to attempt to score too much, “he said. “I’ve got to create more openings with those types of wrestlers.
“I’m taking it as a learning experience. It still hurts, but that’s what drives you to improves.”
Reach Andy Hamilton at 339-7368 or [email protected].
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