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KANSAS CITY, Missouri – Iowa State was already out of the wilderness.
Back-to-back NCAA Tournament berths and a Sweet 16 undid much of the damage inflicted by the worst season in program history that preceded it. The reputation of Cyclone basketball was restored.
However, Iowa State had not returned to the former glory of the previous decade, when the Cyclones were a national contender, winning titles and possessing true Final Four aspirations.
The Cyclones were a good story under coach TJ Otzelberger, but not much else on the national scene.
That changed Saturday night when Iowa State emphatically and triumphantly announced itself as arguably one of the best teams in the country.
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The No. 8 Cyclones completely dismantled Houston, the nation’s top-ranked team and regular-season conference champion, in a 69-41 victory to claim the Big 12 Tournament championship.
“The Ceiling is the best team in the country,” guard Tamin Lipsey said of the Cyclones. “Obviously, we just beat Houston, which was the previous number one in the country. Obviously, our goal is a national championship.
“We know there is still a lot to do in March.”
Iowa State had three players finish in double figures, led by Milan Momcilovic’s 18 points. Keshon Gilbert added 16 points while Hason Ward scored 13.
Gilbert was named Most Outstanding Player of the tournament.
The Cyclones shot 50% from the floor that night and 41% from beyond the arc on 9-of-22 shooting. Otzelberger’s team held off a potent Houston offense by shooting just 27% from the field and a paltry 18% (4 of 22) from long range.
The victory makes Otzelberger’s inherited team (2-22) look like a bad dream from a long time ago. It’s an echo of Iowa State basketball’s best run in history, when the Cyclones went to seven NCAA tournaments in eight years, made two Sweet 16s and won four Big 12 tournaments.
However, this team, by beating a Houston team that spent the last two months sweeping the Big 12, has the potential to do what none of them could.
Go even further in the NCAA tournament.
“We notified a lot of people,” senior Tre King said.
The Cyclones were tough, more physical and better defensively than the Cougars, who had won 11 straight games and the last three by an average of 22 points. That brings Iowa State to the forefront of the national conversation at exactly the right time.
Iowa State is good in the Final Four.
“We played with our identity,” Otzelberger said. “We defended. We rebounded. We shared the basketball.
“That’s what we will continue to do.”
Now, the world is watching. And you should know what cyclones are capable of achieving.
“I hope so,” senior Robert Jones said, “and if they don’t know (know what ISU is capable of), they’re stupid.”
Until next time
Iowa State will know the details of the NCAA tournament in less than 24 hours.
Most experts expect the Cyclones to land as the No. 2 seed in Omaha, but it won’t be official until the Selection Show on CBS at 5 p.m. Sunday.
This will mark the third consecutive season Iowa State has reached the NCAA Tournament in Otzelberger’s three seasons. The Cyclones reached the Sweet 16 in 2022 and were upset in the first round last season.
Travis Hines covers Iowa State University sports for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune. Contact him at Thines@amestrib.com either (515) 284-8000. FFollow him at @TravisHines21.
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