DeAndre Kane doesn’t get caught up in all of the hype surrounding himself and his team.

Following the No. 9 ISU men’s basketball team’s 87-72 win against No. 7 Baylor on Tuesday night at Hilton Coliseum, Kane was asked a volley of questions regarding game — and the season — that has catapulted himself and the 14-0 Cyclones into the spotlight.

After all, Kane did have one of his biggest nights of the season, scoring a game-high 30 points, making 11-of-18 field goals and added eight rebounds, nine assists and five steals. It took him nearly the entire first 20 minutes for him to even miss a shot.

Question after question, Kane deflected one after the other into praise of his team and coach, while he focuses on exactly what he came to Iowa State to do — something special.

“I came here to win,” Kane said. “Like I said, I wanted to be a part of something special and we’d probably be able to do that. You see that, we’re starting with the best start in school history.

“We’re 14-0 but it’s not the end, we’ve got to keep going.”

In the early stages of the game, Kane carried his team, scoring 15 of their first 19 points, hitting 7-of-8 shots in the first half, while the rest of the team hit less than 50 percent of the shots.

Melvin Ejim duoed with Kane on the night, scoring 18 points, making eight of his 14 shots. Even to the four-year starter, it was clear Kane controlled the game.

“He was dishing the ball, he was rebounding, he was scoring,” Ejim said. “The numbers speak for themselves. He went off.”

Baylor coach Scott Drew watched tape of the 6-foot-5, 210-pound guard coming into the game and saw that he was talented, but seeing him in person is another kind of experience.

“Seeing him on tape he’s very good and very talented, but when you see him in person, size, strength, speed,” Drew said. “He affects the game in a variety of ways; he can guard multiple positions. Coming in I heard he was good, but I think he’s far surpassed what people might’ve thought.”

Kane and his aforementioned combination of size and speed factor in on the defensive end, too. Baylor’s Kenny Chery came into the game as the Bears’ second-leading scorer, a similar type player to last year’s First Team All-Big 12 guard in Pierre Jackson, who torched the Cyclones each time he was on the court, combining for 53 points in the pair of meetings last year.

Kane chased Chery around screens and all over the court, forcing contested jumpers and limited him to eight points, hitting three of 14 shots and forced him into five of Baylor’s 19 total turnovers. To go along with Kane’s defense and scoring, he assisted the ball too, with his nine assists leading to 22 points for his teammates — the same guys he gives credit to for his big night.

“He’s a mismatch nightmare out there,” said ISU coach Fred Hoiberg. “When you have a guy at 6-foot-5[inches], 210 pounds, strong as an ox and he’s experienced, he’s a smart player. If he gets down there and our spacing is right, someone is going to get a shot.”

Kane and his now nationally recognized numbers will continue score, rebound and defend, but most of all he’ll keep dishing to his teammates, whether it’s assisting or giving credit to them for another win in the string of 14 wins that marks the best in school history.

“I don’t really get involved in that,” Kane said. “I came here to do something special, win a championship and help my team go as far as we can.”