Returning home after a memorable Thanksgiving-week stretch on the east coast, Iowa State continued its winning ways against an overmatched opponent from the SWAC, defeating Arkansas-Pine Bluff 83-64 at Hilton Coliseum.
The 19th-ranked Cyclones, on the strength of back-to-back victories over ranked opponents Memphis and Xavier at the NIT Season Tip-Off in Brooklyn, New York, got a game-high 23 points and 10 rebounds from Penn State transfer Izaiah Brockington.
Iowa State, which improved to 7-0 in head coach T.J. Otzelberger’s first season on the job, will face another big early-season test at Big East power Creighton on Saturday night.
Brockington connected on 10-of-20 shots from the field on Wednesday, doing much of his damage from inside the 3-point arc.
Two other Cyclones scored in double figures, including Tre Jackson (12 points off the bench) and big man George Conditt who got off to a hot start in the frist half. The veteran big man added seven rebounds and four assists.
Ten I-State players took to the court against Arkansas-Pine Bluff and all contributed in the scoring column.
The Cyclones outscored the Golden Lions 16-4 over a 6 ½-minute stretch midway through the second half to turn what had been an 18-point lead into an edge of 30. Brockington contributed six points as Iowa State turned Wednesday night’s game into a rout.
Iowa State connected on just three of its first 15 shots from the field and trailed eight minutes into the game. However, that changed thanks to a 16-2 run over a span of nearly five minutes to take an early 21-11 lead with 7:17 left in the first half.
Veteran big man George Conditt keyed the Cyclones’ surge, scoring the first four points while continuing to be a presence on the boards.
ISU used another surge late in the half to push its lead to 18 points, 38-20, which was its biggest advantage of the first half. Tristan Enaruna’s jumper started a seven-point run that was capped off by a 3-pointer from Caleb Grill.
Otzelberger’s squad shot a touch under 45-percent (30-of-67) from the field and was 7-for-22 from beyond the 3-point arc. The Cyclones outrebounded their opponent by a 37-26 margin and accumulated nine steals as APB turned the ball over 19 times.