Monte Morris and Matt Thomas found themselves in Morris’ Ames apartment after a loss in a scrimmage early this week, trying to figure out what went wrong.

Morris and Thomas are two of eight players who will play in an ISU uniform this season for the first time — and two of many others who are vying for a starting role when the team begins its season in early November.

“We were pretty upset we lost,” Morris said. “We talked about things on defense — shots we gave up, us being tired — whatever the situation was. We just know next time we have to push that much harder.”

Push harder to reach the NCAA tournament for a third straight season and to find a spot in the the team’s starting lineup, which is far still to be determined.

“I wouldn’t even begin to know to tell you right now who our starters are going to be,” said ISU men’s basketball coach Fred Hoiberg at the team’s media day Thursday, Oct. 10.

After advancing to the NCAA tournament for the second consecutive season in March, Iowa State graduated six players, including the bulk of its starting lineup. Hoiberg began his press conference Thursday listing off what the team has lost.

“It’s a little rocky at first when you have as much to be replaced as we do,” Hoiberg said. “Losing over 52 points, 17 rebounds, 12 assists a game [and] 278 of our 346 3s. There’s a lot of new faces that need to come in and make contributions.”

Senior guard DeAndre Kane, who transferred from Marshall to play his final season at Iowa State, is one of those faces who is expected to crack the starting lineup. Morris and Thomas, both true freshmen, are also expected to become starters.

Kane is one of only two active Division I players to average at least 15 points in his first three collegiate seasons. Thomas and Morris are both top-100 recruits.

And the list goes on.

“We have some special pieces here,” said sophomore forward Georges Niang. “We have some guys that can really shoot the ball and some guys that can really get to the rim.”

The Cyclones were picked Thursday by Big 12 coaches to finish fourth behind Kansas, Oklahoma State and Baylor in the conference this season, even with the team’s uncertainty. Iowa State was picked to finish eighth in each of the past two seasons, finishing fourth last season.

“To be honest with you, I think they picked those top three teams — Kansas, Okie State and Baylor — and then threw the rest of us in a hat and just threw them out,” Hoiberg said. “When you look at the talent of those top three teams there’s a lot of parity from that point on down.”

Narrowing down that parity, combined with making a push for playing time, is what has made the team’s early practices so competitive.

“These practices in here feel like games,” Morris said. “You’ve got Melvin [Ejim], DeAndre [Kane], Georges [Niang], they’re talking trash. It’s just something to talk about the next day at the lunch table.”

Niang and Ejim enter the season pushed into the spotlight for the Cyclones as the team’s most recognizable players. Ejim was selected as a preseason First Team All-Big 12 player, and Niang was picked as one of the league’s top freshmen last season.

With open spots in the lineup, Ejim knows there is room for others to step into the spotlight, too.

“All these guys that we’ve lost are going to be hard to replace,” Ejim said. “That’s what starting a new season and graduating and becoming a freshman in college is all about, you want to step into that role, you want to start something new and have an opportunity to improve yourself.”