Iowa State beats Boise State 70-66, wins Diamond Head Classic
Kelby Wingert/Iowa State Daily
Senior DeAndre Kane attempts to score against Missouri-Kansas City on Monday, Nov. 25. The Cyclones defeated the Kangaroos 110-51. Kane had a total of 20 points for the Cyclones.
December 25, 2013
No. 14 Iowa State has jumped to its best start in school history at 11-0 after defeating Boise State 70-66 in the championship game at the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic on Wednesday night.
ISU senior guard DeAndre Kane scored a season-high 23 points, making eight of his 14 shot attempts. Entering the game, Kane had made only five 3-pointers. He finished the game, making four of six triples. Kane also added five rebounds and two assists.
At the end of the game, Melvin Ejim had a chance to seal the victory with free throws and made the first to put the score at 68-64. Then, after missing the second, Dustin Hogue grabbed one of Iowa State’s 14 offensive rebounds and was fouled, making both free throws to seal the game.
Iowa State began the game with another slow start, finishing the first half making only 10 shots in 33 attempts while going 2-of-11 from behind the arc to trail 34-28 at halftime.
In the second half, Iowa State quickened the pace and finished making 6-of-13 treys in the second half, while going 11-of-21 from the field. Iowa State also finished with an edge at the charity stripe, making 20-of-27 free throws.
Georges Niang finished with 16 points on 5-of-10 shooting, while Ejim added another double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Hogue finished with 13 points and nine rebounds as well.
Kane, Ejim, Niang and Hogue combined for 67 of Iowa State’s 70 points in the win as the Cyclones received no points from the bench. The win is the fourth double-figure comeback for Iowa State this season after the Cyclones trailed by as many as 11 points in the first half Wednesday, joining Northern Iowa (18), BYU (12) and Iowa (10).
Boise State’s Derrick Marks finished with a tying game-high 23 points while the team’s leading scorer Anthony Drmic finished with 16 points, making 6-of-15 attempts.
The Cyclones join USC (2009), Butler (2010), Kansas State (2011) and Arizona (2012) as Diamond Head champions. Iowa State next plays Northern Illinois at Hilton Coliseum in Ames on Dec. 31. Tipoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
