MANHATTAN, Kansas – No. 10 Iowa State got its revenge over Kansas State to conclude the regular season with a 73-57 win Saturday.
The road victory gives the Cyclones a 23-8 overall and 13-7 conference record heading into the Big 12 Tournament.
Heading in, the Cyclones had a crazy past few games, including a road loss to Oklahoma State, a dominant win at home over Arizona and a double-overtime loss to BYU on senior night, in a game where Iowa State trailed by as much as 21.
The 16-point win in Manhattan should give the Cyclones some momentum with the Big 12 Tournament just days away.
“Really proud of our guys,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “We knew coming in here [Saturday] we were going to have to be the more aggressive team, physically, taking care of the basketball and every aspect of the game, and we were fortunate our guys stepped up for us.”
Iowa State made it all happen behind a strong defensive effort that turned into points. Off of the 17 turnovers the Cyclones forced, they scored 22 points and outscored Kansas State by 16 in that stat.
“We win that margin by 16, that’s the difference in the game,” Otzelberger said. “We’ve got to continue to be that team every single night out. When we do that, then we’ll be successful.”
This was the most turnovers Kansas State had since it faced Iowa State the first time this season.
“We did a much better job spreading back, stopping the ball,” Iowa State junior forward Joshua Jefferson said. “That was a big difference in how we’re approaching the game.”
On Saturday, five Iowa State players had steals, led by senior center Dishon Jackson and senior guard Nate Heise with three apiece. Jackson also added a block to his night.
Having Heise step up was important, considering senior guard Keshon Gilbert did not play with a muscle strain. Otzelberger said Gilbert will be back on the practice court Monday with a hope of playing Wednesday.
Leading the way in scoring was senior guard Curtis Jones, who had 24 points on 5-for-15 shooting off the bench. Nearly half of his points came from the charity stripe, where he was 11-for-12.
It’s these types of offensive performances from Jones that Iowa State will need throughout March.
“I’m just comfortable with the ball in my hands,” Jones said. “I trust my instincts.”
But a lot of the work was done inside, especially towards the start of the game. Iowa State attacked the basket, got to the line and went 18-for-22 from it.
While both Kansas State and the Cyclones had 34 points in the paint, that was where a lot of the action came from.
The Iowa State duo of Jackson and Jefferson combined for 25 points, 11 rebounds and three assists. These two were the only other Cyclones besides Jones to score in double figures.
“I was proud of [Jackson], he was a huge positive for us [Saturday] attacking in the paint,” Otzelberger said. “Those guys really stepped up.”
Jefferson started the second half with three fouls, and two of those came in the first two minutes of the game.
But he bided his time and played with his head. Each half, he had seven points, shooting 3-for-5 with a 3-pointer, but his clean, aggressive play in the second helped Iowa State build a gap.
It all happened in 22 minutes of court time for Jackson and 21 for Jefferson. Like Jones’ ability to score, having these two continue to be enforcers in the paint will benefit the Cyclones throughout the postseason.
“We’ve seen what our team can do when we’re playing well,” Otzelberger said. “You’ve got to look each other in the eye, you’ve got to make each other accountable, you’ve got to lay it on the line, you’ve got to compete in everything that you do and then you know you’re earning it.”
