No. 6 Iowa State at No. 2 Houston Primer

Who: No. 6 Iowa State (20-5, 9-3 Large 12) at No. 2 Houston (22-3, 9-3 Large 12)

The place: Fertitta Middle (7,100) – Houston, Texas

When: Monday, Feb. 19, 2024 – 8 p.m.

Tipping Off: The Large 12 common season name race heats up on Monday evening, as Iowa State heads to Houston for a Large Monday assembly with the Cougars. ISU and UH are tied for the lead in convention play as every group is 9-3. The Cyclones lately dangle the tiebreaker, having gained the head-to-head assembly in Hilton again in January.

This would be the 8th all-time assembly between Iowa State and Houston. Iowa State leads the best-ever sequence 4-3 and is 1-1 in video games performed towards the Cougars in Houston. The 2 groups first met in December of 1956 and, previous to this season, hadn’t squared off since 2010.

Storylines:

• UNLV switch Keshon Gilbert, a St. Louis local, averages a team-best 14.2 issues consistent with recreation and truly hit his stride within the latter part of the season.
  • He has scored in double figures in 8 of the ultimate 9 video games, averaging 16.4 issues consistent with contest over the past 9.
  • Gilbert recorded a triple-double towards New Hampshire, going for 10 issues, 11 assists and 10 rebounds.
    • His triple-double – the 8th in class historical past – places him with Lipsey, Haliburton, Monté Morris, Royce White, Jamaal Tinsley, Curtis Stinson and Marc Urquhart as participants of the illustrious membership.
  • Gilbert is moment within the Large 12 in unfastened throws tried (138) and fourth in FT made (100).
    • He’s moment at the group in assists (103) and 1/3 in steals (41).
  • Gilbert has two Large 12 Newcomer of the Week awards to his title this season.
  • He is recorded a team-best seven 20-plus level outings.
• Tamin Lipsey has been his standard stat-stuffer self for the Cyclones up to now this 12 months, because the Ames local is averaging 13.2 issues consistent with recreation to head along side team-highs in assists (131) and steals (70).
  • Lipsey leads all Large 12 gamers in steals and steals consistent with recreation.
    • He’s 5th and 1/3 respectively, nationally, in the ones classes.
  • Lipsey set the varsity list for steals towards PVAMU, selecting the Panthers’ wallet 8 instances.
    • The former list, seven, was once held through Fred Hoiberg and Justus Thigpen.
  • Towards DePaul, Lipsey recorded the 7th triple-double in class historical past, going for 15 issues, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.
    • Lipsey was the 1st Cyclone since Tyrese Haliburton in 2020 to list a triple-double.
• Iowa State freshman Milan Momcilovic has been a continuing right through his rookie marketing campaign, because the first-year from Pewaukee is averaging 12.0 issues consistent with recreation – the third-most at the group.
  • Momcilovic has a team-high 45 3-pointers and shoots it at 38.5 p.c.
  • He’s one in all 5 Cyclones to attain a minimum of 20 in a recreation this season.
  • Momcilovic is averaging probably the most issues consistent with recreation through an ISU true freshman since Lindell Wigginton’s 16.7 in 2017-18.
    • He’s the second one highest-scoring true freshman within the Large 12, in the back of Baylor’s Ja’Kobe Walter.
• Robert Jones leads the group in offensive rebounds (62), box function proportion (63.8%) and blocks (23).
• Tre King leads the group in rebounds, because the senior out of Lexington, Ky., averages 5.0 consistent with recreation and has a complete of 124 forums.
• Hason Ward, Curtis Jones, Jackson Paveletzke, Demarion Watson and Omaha Biliew make up the bench unit for the Cyclones.
• C. Jones has been stellar off the bench within the ultimate 8 outings.
  • He is scored in double figures in all 8 video games, averaging 14 issues.
  • He had seven steals at TCU previous this season, tying him for the second-most steals in one recreation in Iowa State historical past.
    • It is the first time ever that two Cyclones recorded video games with seven-plus steals in one season.
• Iowa State forces the third-most turnovers consistent with recreation (18.12) within the nation – tops within the Large 12.        
  • The Cyclones reasonable 10.8 steals consistent with recreation, additionally tops within the Large 12.
• As a head trainer, Otz is 160-95 general and has led the Cyclones to a 61-32 list over the past 3 seasons.

From the Notes:

• Iowa State has gained 15 directly video games at Hilton Coliseum and is undefeated at house this season. In convention, simplest Houston and Kansas also are unbeaten at house as ISU heads to the Fertitta Middle.
• Iowa State has held all however one Large 12 opponent underneath its season scoring reasonable. The Cyclones have held 4 Large 12 fighters to their lowest level totals this season: TCU (59), Cincinnati (59), Houston (53) and Oklahoma State (42).
• Handiest 8 gamers within the nation are averaging a minimum of 13.3 issues, 4.6 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.7 steals consistent with recreation this season. Two of them live within the Cyclone backcourt in Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert.
• Lipsey had a school-record thieve streak of 34-straight video games snapped at house vs. TCU. It was once the second one longest streak within the nation. He has a thieve in 55 of the 57 video games he has performed.
• Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert every have triple-doubles to their names this season – making ISU the one group within the nation with more than one gamers boasting a triple-double.
  • There are actually 8 in class historical past.
• The Cyclones are 26-1 underneath T.J. Otzelberger when 4 or extra gamers rating in double figures.
• The six highest-scoring Cyclone outputs underneath Otzelberger have all come this season, together with a couple of 100-point performances. 9 of the ten very best underneath Otz have additionally come this season.
• The Cyclones have scored 90 or extra issues six instances this season. It’s the maximum instances hitting that mark in a season for the reason that 2016-17 group did so 8 instances.
• As of Sunday, the Cyclones are ranked No. 8 within the NET. The Cyclones fit in at No. 9 within the KenPom scores and are No. 8 in ESPN’s Basketball Energy Index.

Switching Facets:

• Houston was once picked to complete moment within the Large 12 Preseason Ballot, one spot in the back of Kansas in its first 12 months within the Large 12.
  • Houston and Iowa State are tied for first position with ISU retaining the head-to-head tiebreaker.
• Main scorer L.J. Cryer, a Baylor switch, was once one in all 5 gamers named to the Preseason All-Large 12 Group.
• Jamal Shead, an Honorable Point out Preseason All-Large 12 Group member, is the proverbial straw that stirs the Houston drink.
  • Shead was once the 2022-23 American Convention Defensive Participant of the 12 months.
• Houston’s protection is tops within the convention and one of the vital ideally suited within the nation.
  • Cougar fighters rating on reasonable 55 issues and shoot simply 37.2 p.c from the ground. Groups that face UH reasonable 28.8 p.c from in the back of the arc.
• The Cougars additionally lead the convention in offensive rebounds, regularly discovering their most productive strategies of scoring come off of misses.
• Houston has 9 returners from ultimate season, 3 inexperienced persons and two first-year transfers at the roster.
• Analytics love the Cougars, as they’re ranked No. 1 around the board within the NET, KenPom and ESPN’s Basketball Energy Index.
• Houston head trainer Kelvin Sampson is in his 10th season on the helm of the Houston basketball program. Having 35 years of revel in as a head trainer, Sampson and the Cougars are 254-77 right through his tenure and he holds a 754-347 general list. His son, Kellen, is an assistant on team of workers.
  • Sampson and the Cougars have long past to the ultimate 5 NCAA Tournaments, making 4 visits to the Candy 16, two Elite 8 berths and one shuttle to the Ultimate 4 (2021).