KANSAS CITY, Mo. — In a highly anticipated rematch, No. 12 Iowa State and No. 17 BYU faced off in the quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament, as both teams looked to move forward to the semifinals.

While the Cyclones were led by senior guard Curtis Jones’ 31-point performance, the Cougars offense took hold and outlasted Iowa State 96-92 in an offensive shootout Thursday.

Jones explodes for monster first half

The main contributor for the Cyclones came from the Big 12 Sixth Man of the Year – only this time, Jones would start the game rather than come off the bench.

The reason behind this move was the lingering injuries for senior guard Keshon Gilbert, who did not suit up at all for Iowa State, and junior guard Tamin Lipsey, who suffered a groin injury in Wednesday’s match against Cincinnati.

While Lipsey participated in pregame warmups and was dressed to play, he did not play a single minute in this game.

But with this news, it gave way for Jones to make his first start since Feb. 3, when he started in the loss at Kansas.

Jones did not take this opportunity for granted, as he carried the Cyclones’ offense with 31 points on 11-of-22 shooting from the field, 7-of-15 from 3-point range and knocked down two free throws.

22 of Jones’ 31 points came from the first half, as he went on to score on eight of Iowa State’s 10 scoring possessions at one point, including hitting the last five of those 10 for the Cyclones.

“If I get a look, I’m gonna take it,” Jones said. “When I got it going I might as well just keep shooting them since they were going in at the time.”

During this stretch, Jones took Iowa State from being down by four to eventually being up by nine points.

Jones’ performance would single-handedly bring the Cyclones into halftime with a four-point lead and keep Iowa State competitive all the way to the end, as the senior guard once again put on a show to remember even with the loss.

“It was unreal,” sophomore forward Milan Momcilovic said. “He was looking like Steph Curry out there.”

“It’s definitely one of the ones to remember,” Jones said.

BYU’s offense follows suit

But while Jones was helping the Cyclones’ offensive output, the Cougars kept pace and eventually went on to escape with the four-point win after scoring 96 points.

Whenever Iowa State would find a way to answer or just increase its lead, BYU would find a way to make a timely basket that kept it from falling farther behind, which may have led to the Cyclones’ loss and exit in the tournament.

On the day, the Cougars shot 51.7% from the field and 50% from 3-point range, while going 18-for-21 from the charity stripe.

As he did in Ames, junior forward Richie Saunders led BYU both at the free throw line and in points in general, as he went 8-for-8 from the line, which contributed to his overall 23-point day.

With both offenses throwing punches on the offensive end, the game set a new record at the Big 12 Tournament for most 3-pointers made in a single game, as both teams combined to have 31 made shots from deep.

“If you’re a fan, that’s what you want to watch,” Momcilovic said. “It was the complete opposite of the first game we played them, where we didn’t have any points until 15 minutes left.”

But in the end, with both teams giving it their all, the Cougars would go on to outlast the Cyclones for the second time this season and would move on to the semifinal round in the tournament, while Iowa State was sent home early.

“I think the familiarity with one another in ways you could be effective, offensively, and then the pace of the game just kept going up and down,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “Really felt like both teams played with freedom and confidence in the open court.”

No Gilbert and Lipsey leads to lineup experimentation

With both starting guards out of the lineup with injuries, it gave way for the Cyclones to try out different rotations and let others play more minutes than they were used to.

Two benefactors from this were sophomore guard Cade Kelderman and junior guard Demarion Watson.

As of late, Kelderman has begun to see more minutes on the court, and it has shown with the work he is putting in behind the scenes that led him to getting court time in postseason play.

“Cade, everyday after we finish our team meal, comes back to the gym and gets additional shots and that’s after getting a workout and practice,” Otzelberger said. “He really cares about his teammates and our program. He’s obviously earned my trust of what he’s done every single day. When he comes out in a big environment, in a big game, and knocks down a shot like that, it is a credit to his work ethic.”

As Otzelberger said, Kelderman would not let an opportunity like this pass him up, as he would play a season-high 18 minutes off the bench and contribute three points, two rebounds and two assists.

While Kelderman was only able to get one shot off of three total attempts from the field, he once again provided a key presence for Iowa State when it was dealing with ailing injuries on the team.

“Everyone around me has done a great job of uplifting me and giving me the confidence in practice to go out there and play free and loose,” Kelderman said.

Unlike Kelderman, Watson did not contribute any points in his five minutes of court time, but still made a key play at the end of the first half as he blocked a shot from BYU junior center Keba Keita to keep the Cyclones lead at four entering the half.

But with Gilbert and Lipsey out, it gave a bigger role for players like Jones, Momcilovic and junior forward Joshua Jefferson to step up in their places and that’s exactly what happened.

While Jones would lead with 31 points, Momcilovic sat second with 18 points on 8-of-13 from the field, 2-of-6 from deep, while Jefferson contributed 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting from the field with a 3-pointer and free throw.

Even with hopes of Gilbert and Lipsey potentially coming back for the NCAA Tournament, the trio of players who stepped up look to continue to make strides so that the team can achieve greater heights.

“A couple guys like me, [Jones], [Jefferson] elevate our game to another level,” Momcilovic said. “When they come back, they’re gonna be good, but we’re gonna keep elevating our game to another level, so hopefully we peak in the next couple weeks.”