It has been a tough year for all Cyclones (players, coaches and fans)
It has been a disappointing year for Cyclone basketball. Iowa State fans thought the team would finally take a step forward this year. All Big-12 player Craig Brackins returned, we finally had a slasher (Marquis Gilstrap), we returned experience in the guard court (Garrett and Staiger) and we had a 10 man rotation. If everyone stayed healthy and out of trouble maybe, just maybe, this team could take on a very daunting schedule.
……..then reality struck.
Jamie Vanderbeken – injured (out for the year)
Charles Boozer – injured (out for the year)
Lucca Staiger – left mid year to play in Germany
Chris Colvin – missed several games to suspension
Scott Christopherson – mono (minutes limited)
It really shouldn’t be a huge surprise this team is 13-14 and 2-10 in the Big 12 Conference. The schedule was a bear to begin with (which I will get to later) and to take it on with a seven man roster was a recipe for disaster. I hate to say this, but Lucca leaving probably cost this team at least three or four wins. The Cyclones did not have a sharp shooter to keep defenses honest, so opponents just focused on shutting down Brackins. If Vanderbeken had been playing or Christopherson was fully healthy it certainly would have helped.
The Cyclones best win this year was probably the 65-54 win over Saint Louis (#82 RPI) in Chicago. After the victory, St. Louis head coach Rick Majerus said something like, “I haven’t seen all of the teams in the Big 12, but if there are many better than Iowa State I would be very surprised.” The Big 12 is much better than coach realized. The Billikens are having a pretty good season, 17-8 overall and 9-3 in the Atlantic 10. What would Iowa State do in the Atlantic 10?
Iowa State is lacking a big win this year, but they certainly shouldn’t be embarrassed by their losses. If you look at the losses, 10 of the 14 came against teams that are in the top 30 in the RPI. The other four losses? Three came on the road to Big 12 teams, the worst loss was probably to Northwestern in Chicago. Here is a breakdown of Iowa State’s losses this year:
Home Losses
#1 Kansas (27-1) (13-0) lost 84-61
#6 Kansas State (22-4) (9-3) lost 79-75
#13 Texas A&M (19-7) (8-4) lost 60-56
#16 Northern Iowa (24-3) (14-2) lost 63-60
#24 Texas (21-6) (7-5) lost 90-83
#29 Oklahoma State (19-7) (7-5) lost 69-64
Neutral Site Losses
#2 Duke (23-4) (11-2) lost 82-63
#94 Northwestern (17-10) (6-9) lost 67-65
Road Losses
#1 Kansas (27-1) (13-0) lost 73-59
#15 Baylor (20-6) (7-5) lost 84-63
#23 California (18-9) (10-5) lost 82-63
#38 Missouri (20-7) (8-4) lost 65-56
#48 Texas Tech (16-10) (4-8) lost 78-71
#103 Oklahoma (13-14) (4-9) lost 89-84
Should you be disappointed? Absolutely. Should you be discouraged? I don’t think so.
The team isn’t winning games, but they are getting better each game and leaving everything on the court. I would be worried about the direction of the program if the players were giving up or the effort was lacking. I will be cheering for these guys until the final whistle blows this season.
If you are a fan that has stopped supporting the program and abandoned the team in the middle season. Ask yourself this question. Are you really any different than Lucca Staiger?
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