Iowa State Cyclones
2013-2014 Overall Rank: #41
Conference Rank: #5 Big 12
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Coach Fred Hoiberg has done an amazing job at Iowa State. He has made bringing in transfers look easy and plugging in those pieces is certainly not easy. The result has been a few successful seasons and vastly raised expectations. The hope is Coach Hoiberg can once again work his magic with another Division I transfer and three junior college transfers.
2012-13 Record: 23-12, 11-7
2012-13 Postseason: NCAA
Coach: Fred Hoiberg
Coach Record: 62-39 at Iowa State, 62-39 overall
Who’s Out:
And those transfers are going to have to make a big impact since Iowa State lost so many of their scorers. Will Clyburn, Korie Lucious, Chris Babb and Tyrus McGee were four of the team’s top six scorers. Clyburn led the squad with 14.9 points per game and added 6.8 rebounds. He was the big wing who could shoot over defenders and attack the basket with ease. Lucious ran the show and averaged 5.6 assists on top of his 10.1 points. Like Lucious, Babb spent some time in the Big Ten before ending his collegiate career with the Cyclones. Babb was the sharpshooter in the starting lineup, connecting on 38.2 percent of his attempts from outside the arc. McGee was an even more efficient outside shooter than Babb and he could score inside the arc as well. Iowa State will not be able to find a sixth man like him for a long time. Bubu Palo was kicked off the team over the summer after spending about half of last season suspended. Reserve forward Anthony Booker is the only departure from the frontcourt.
Who’s In:
DeAndre Kane will be the next in line of great ISU transfers. The senior was a three year starter at Marshall and is a proven scorer who averaged 15.1 points, 7.0 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 1.8 steals with the Thundering Herd in 2012-2013. Kane will immediately be a leader. K.J. Bluford, Dustin Hogue and Daniel Edozie are all experienced junior college transfers. Bluford may not be the next McGee, but he will be a fine shooter off of the bench. Hogue, a 6-6 small forward and Edozie, a tough 6-8 bruiser, will add depth to the frontcourt. It has been easy to forget the freshmen at Iowa State with the more experienced players coming in every year, but that would be a mistake with this class. Point guard Monte Morris could be starting sooner rather than later. He is a superb ball handler and passer and the rest of his game will follow. Matt Thomas is another highly regarded recruit and the shooting guard can knock down shots with the best of them. If he comes out firing, Coach Hoiberg will have to get him quality minutes from day one. Sherron Dorsey-Walker redshirted last season and that year of experience in the program could be extremely important with so many new faces. Doresey-Walker can shoot, but he can also score by attacking the basket and help the backcourt attack the glass.
Who to Watch:
Iowa State is going to have to rely on the new faces on the perimeter, but the frontcourt has returning talent. Melvin Ejim has been a staple in the starting lineup for three years and now he is going to be the leader of this squad on the floor. The undersized 6-6 forward is one of the toughest rebounders in the country and he has an offensive game to go with it. In an offense that spent last season working around the perimeter, Ejim could see a healthy increase in his 11.3 points per game. Even if he does not, he will still flirt with a double-digit average in the rebounding department. Georges Niang is only 6-7, but at 245 pounds, he will not be pushed around in the paint. Like Ejim, Niang has a versatile offensive game that involves consistent outside shooting and tough interior scoring. Niang tends to spend more time on the perimeter and is not nearly as strong on the glass as Ejim. However, Niang is a nightmare for most opposing big men to defend and he should be a better all-around player, to go with his 12.1 points per game, as a sophomore. Percy Gibson will once again provide much of the depth for the big men. A decent shot blocker and the biggest body on the team, Coach Hoiberg will call on Gibson quite often, especially when the Cyclones need a bigger body in the paint to shut down some of the talented opposing centers in the Big 12.
Final Projection:
Iowa State has some work to do in order to figure out what is going to work in 2013-2014. If history has taught us anything, it is that Coach Hoiberg will get it figured out surprisingly soon. Just as years past, the program has talent and experience. The experience has come away from Ames for the most part, but that will not matter by the time conference play begins. The Big 12 is going to be a grind and there is not an easy game on the schedule, but Iowa State can beat all of those teams…at least at Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones only lost once last year at home and that was the thrilling 108-96 result against Kansas. Win a few games on the road and that is enough to make another trip to the tournament.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NCAA
Projected Starting Five:
Monte Morris, Freshman, Guard, DNP last season
K.J. Bluford, Junior, Guard, DNP last season
DeAndre Kane, Senior, Guard, DNP last season at Iowa State
Melvin Ejim, Senior, Forward, 11.3 points per game
Georges Niang, Sophomore, Forward, 12.1 points per game
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 79.4 (3rd in nation, 1st in conference)
Scoring Defense: 71.0 (276, 9)
Field-Goal Percentage: 45.6 (61, 3)
Field-Goal Defense: 42.9 (175, 7)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 9.9 (1, 1)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 37.4 (41, 1)
Free-Throw Percentage: 73.1 (52, 4)
Rebound Margin: 4.6 (42, 2)
Assists Per Game: 16.0 (12, 1)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.1 (165, 6)
Madness 2013 Men’s Basketball Recruit Rankings:
#63 Matt Thomas
#112 Monte Morris
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