At the start of what could be a lengthy rebuild of the program, head coach T.J. Otzelberger and Iowa State faced their first big test on Friday night.

Hosting an Oregon State squad from the Pac-12 that made the Elite Eight one season ago, the Cyclones passed with flying colors, leading nearly the entire way on the way to a 60-50 victory at Hilton Coliseum.

ISU equaled last season’s win total on November 12th, doing so against a Beaver squad that played into deep March just as it was undergoing a coaching change following a 2-22 season.

Once again, it was the two Big 10 transfers that keyed a double-digit victory for the home team. Gabe Kalscheur scored a team-high 14 points while grabbing three rebounds. Izaiah Brockington notched his first double-double in Ames, chipping in with 10 points and 12 rebounds.

Freshman point guard Tyrese Hunter, making his second career start, added nine points and a team-high seven assists. He also stayed out of foul trouble and was able to play 29 minutes.

In his second game back in the familiar confines of Hilton Coliseum, Caleb Grill came off the bench to score all nine of his points on 3-pointers.

After leading by six at the break, ISU came out of the locker room with more energy than the visiting team. A 3-pointer from Kalscheur and dunk by Robert Jones on the break put it on top 35-24 with 17:03 to play.

An 8-2 spurt, capped off by a Tre Jackson layup near the midway point of the second half pushed the Cyclones out to a 16-point advantage, 49-33.

OSU didn’t get any closer than nine the rest of the way, as I-State cruised to the 10-point victory.

All nine Cyclones that played in Friday night’s game scored.

Oregon State connected on just 20-of-59 shots (33.9 percent) from the field and committed 14 turnovers.

Following an inconsistent first half from the floor, ISU connected on 15-of-30 shots in the final 20 minutes.

Iowa State started hot from the field, making six of its first nine from the field, and that fed the defensive intensity in front of the home crowd.

However, the opening stretch was followed up with a scoring drought of more than five minutes in which the Cyclones missed seven-straight shots. Hunter’s 3-pointer ended that stretch with 7:57 left in the half and I-State still led by a 16-10 margin.

Five minutes later, Grill gave ISU its first double-digit lead with a 3-pointer of his own. It was the Cyclones’ fourth made bucket in five shots and made it 26-14 at the 3:24 mark.

Oregon State closed out the half on a 6-0 run to cut the Cyclones’ advantage to 26-20.

I-State is back home at Hilton Coliseum Tuesday night, hosting Alabama State at 7 p.m.