Feast Week Mission Briefing: Iowa State in the CBE Hall Of Fame Classic
Posted by Brian Goodman on November 24th, 2014In a loaded Feast Week of action, several Big 12 schools will head to a neutral site to take on all comers and hopefully build their resumes. Let’s take a look at each, continuing with Iowa State in Kansas City.
Outlook: The Cyclones are one of a handful of power conference teams that have only played two games, but we still have a pretty good read on what they’re all about: spacing the floor in halfcourt sets, offensive rebounding and scoring in transition. In that regard, they’re off to a very good start, scoring 1.08 points per possession through two fast-paced games. Monte Morris has had an especially nice start to the season, averaging 16.5 points and six assists per game against just two total turnovers, What’s especially interesting about Iowa State’s offense so far is that its bench has scored only nine points, but with Matt Thomas and Abdel Nader returning from suspension on Monday in Kansas City, Fred Hoiberg‘s core of reserves should get a lift.
Georges Niang and the Cyclones look to boost their case a Big 12 contender this week in Kansas City. (Charlie Neibergall/AP)
Opening Round Preview: Iowa State is the clear favorite in this event, and they’ll start off against Alabama. Anthony Grant needs a big season to ward off criticism, and a win over Iowa State in a venue where the Cyclones have won their last three games would definitely help towards that end. The Crimson Tide have taken care of business against some lowly competition, but defensive rebounding and two-point field goal defense have been problematic. The first issue shouldn’t pose a huge matchup problem for ISU, but Georges Niang, Bryce Dejean-Jones and Morris should definitely be able to exploit the holes in Alabama’s defense to get buckets. Defensively, the Cyclones will need to beware of a potent Alabama offense, but the Crimson Tide aren’t so good that they can match Iowa State in a track meet.
Potential Later-Round Matchup: Securing an NCAA Tournament bid won’t be a problem for the Cyclones, but without many non-conference games against teams that can say the same, getting opportunities against as many quality teams as it can will be important as they look to build their resume. Maryland will meet Arizona State in the other semifinal, and despite a tumultuous offseason for Mark Turgeon, the Terps could provide Iowa State with a close game. Solid performances from Dez Wells and Jake Layman have helped offset a slow start from hyped freshman Melo Trimble, and the team has overwhelmed opponents with efficient shooting and even better defense. Maryland hasn’t played anyone who could be considered good, though, so it will be interesting to see if the two end up meeting. The alternative would be a battle with Arizona State, who, despite a 3-0 record, hasn’t shown many signs that it can maintain without Jahii Carson and Jordan Bachynski.
Prediction: As a dark horse contender to win the Big 12 and , Iowa State will have a clear edge. All four teams in this event are learning how to move on from key personnel losses, but the Cyclones are the best-equipped team to have as low of a learning curve due to their remaining pieces and the addition of Dejean-Jones to an already high-powered offense. Maryland is the only team I can see threatening Iowa State over the next two days, but the matchup isn’t guaranteed to come to fruition and even if it does, it’s still too early to trust their track record. I look for the Cyclones to win both games and bump their Sprint Center winning streak up to five.
Brian Goodman a Big 12 microsite writer. You can follow him on Twitter @BSGoodman.
