DES MOINES, Iowa—Iowa State didn’t get much of a break during the start of its Big 12 road schedule. The Cyclones have already played one of the nation’s best teams, Kansas, the nation’s best freshman, Kansas State’s Michael Beasley, and the conference’s biggest surprise, Baylor.
Those teams are a combined 13-1 in the Big 12. At the very least, Iowa State coach Greg McDermott knows that his team likely won’t face a stretch as tough as last week’s road trip through Kansas.
The Cyclones suffered back-to-back blowouts, losing to No. 2 Kansas by 24 and No. 22 Kansas State by 25.
“Obviously we had our share of struggles with both teams, and the schedule makers weren’t exactly kind to us having those both take place in the same week,” McDermott said.
Of course, it could be worse. Just ask Colorado, which visits Iowa State (12-8, 2-3 Big 12) on Tuesday night.
The Buffaloes (9-10, 1-4) are once again in rebuilding mode under first-year coach Jeff Bzdelik. The Buffaloes have lost five of their last six and sit in 11th place in the conference, ahead of only Nebraska. Senior guard Richard Roby, one of the Big 12’s better players this decade, continues to toil in obscurity. He’s leading the team in points (16.7) and rebounds per game (6.6).
Roby isn’t going it alone, as senior guard Marcus Hall is averaging 12.8 points a game and 36.9 percent shooting from 3-point range, but Bzdelik acknowledges that size and depth have been a problem for his team.
The Buffaloes have four players averaging over 31 minutes a game, and they’ve been outrebounded so far this season.
“I’m really excited about the future. That’s got to be the focus,” Bzdelik said. “We’re playing competitively now. We just need to continue to grow as a basketball team.”
The Buffaloes are also adjusting to the system Bzdelik brought with him from Air Force, and have predictably struggled to close out games. Colorado lost at No. 10 Texas by two and to Missouri by four.
“Could we have four or five more wins? Yes we could. But would’ves, should’ves and could’ves don’t count. We have to play for 40 minutes.”
For Iowa State, getting back to .500 in the Big 12 with a win over the Buffaloes would go a long way in erasing the painful memories of last week’s road trip.
The Cyclones shot 32.5 percent from the field in its losses to Kansas and Kansas State.
Wesley Johnson averaged 20.5 points a game during those two losses, but he needed 36 shots from the field to reach that number.
Beasley did to the Cyclones what he’s done to almost everybody else, torching them for 33 points and 15 rebounds in just 22 minutes. Kansas spread the ball around more, but the results were the same. All five Jayhawks starters scored in double figures in an 83-59 win.
But McDermott chose to look on the bright side. After all, nobody’s beaten Kansas yet, and Iowa State has taken 15 of the last 16 meetings with Colorado at Hilton Coliseum.
“You have to be careful because things aren’t as bad as they seem after you lose to Kansas,” McDermott said. “They’re so complete.”
