Ames, Iowa ? Iowa State and its fans waited all day and night for a chance to show the nation it was capable of beating mighty Kansas.
And then the Cyclones went out and did it. After a back-and-forth first half that ended with ISU leading by three, the Cyclones (13-3 overall, 3-1 Big 12) jumped out to a nine-point lead early in the second half and never looked back in topping Kansas, 86-81.
Iowa State built second-half leads of 12, 14 and 12 again, but watched Kansas (14-3, 3-1) scratch and claw its way back into striking distance each time.
But the home team, backed by its rockin’ and rowdy arena, answered every KU run right down to the wire and came away with a huge conference victory that evened things at the top of the Big 12 standings and served as notice that KU’s path to consecutive Big 12 title No. 11 would be far from a smooth one.
Perry Ellis was KU’s best player in this game, by far. He finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds, despite playing just 7 minutes in the first half because of foul trouble.
Frank Mason III finished with 21 points on 8-of-14 shooting, all while missing time to go to the locker room with a serious leg cramp midway through the second half. Mason was able to return to the game and be a factor down the stretch.
To the credit of the ISU fans, they did not rush the floor following the victory.
Here’s a quick look back at some of the action:
• The game turned when: Iowa State responded to Kansas cutting a 12-point lead down to 2 midway through the second half with a 16-4 run that put the Cyclones up 14 points with 6:25 left, sending Hilton Coliseum into a frenzy. The run featured two monster buckets from Jameel McKay, a three-pointer from Georges Niang out of a timeout and back-to-back buckets from Naz Long, the second of which forced KU coach Bill Self to call his final timeout.
• Offensive highlight: With KU in the middle of a surge, Wayne Selden Jr. poked the ball away from an ISU player and quickly pushed it ahead to Devonté Graham, who flipped it ahead to a racing Kelly Oubre Jr. and Oubre did the rest, throwing it down with one hand to pull the Jayhawks within two at 55-53. ISU responded with a 6-0 run, but the Oubre transition bucket was as pretty of a play as the Jayhawks delivered all night.
• Defensive highlight: Surely there were a couple of steals that were pretty nice or maybe even a blocked shot or two. But with as many points as the Jayhawks gave up right at the rim, it’s hard to say anything they did defensively was highlight worthy. ISU shot 51 percent from the floor and made 9 of 20 three-pointers (45 percent).
• Key stat: Transition points — a 21-10 ISU advantage. The Cyclones were far more aggressive in sprinting out after misses and picked up several easy buckets right at the rim because of their aggressive, attacking style.
• Up next: The Jayhawks return home for yet another huge Big 12 Conference match-up when the Oklahoma Sooners come to Allen Fieldhouse on Monday night for an 8 p.m. ESPN Big Monday match-up.
— See what people were saying about the game during the KUsports.com live blog.
