The Lowdown

The ISU men’s basketball team avoided a slow first half to overcome Florida Gulf Coast 83-72 tonight.

The Cyclones only led by four points after the first half with the score 41-37 even while shooting over 50 percent from behind the arc and 47 percent from the field.

Korie Lucious led Iowa State with 17 points from the field, hitting a career-high five 3-pointers and dishing out nine assists. 

Three other Cyclones were in double figures as Tyrus McGee ended with 16 points; Melvin Ejim finished with 14, and Chris Babb scored 11. 

Turning Point

Two minutes into the second half, Iowa State extended a 43-40 lead into a 62-46 advantage on a 19-6 run. During that stretch, Korie Lucious hit two 3-pointers; Chris Babb hit one, and Tyrus McGee hit another. 

From there on out, Iowa State maintained control of the game. 

X Factor

— Korie Lucious

Lucious had his biggest game as a Cyclone with 17 points and nine assists. Lucious was efficient from the field as well, shooting 6-11 from the field and hitting on five of his seven 3-point shots. 

It was a career-high for 3-pointers for Lucious, and he was one assist away from his first double-double as a Cyclone. 

By The Numbers

52 — Percentage of 3-pointers Iowa State made against Florida Gulf Coast. 

13 — The number of 3-pointers the Cyclones made. Lucious led with five; McGee and Babb each had three, and Clyburn added two. 

37 — Number of rebounds Iowa State had on the night. They currently are No. 1 in the nation, averaging 46.9 per game. 

Quotables

 “Overall, I think I’m playing pretty good, but there’s always room for improvement.” — Korie Lucious on his game against Florida Gulf Coast.

“Florida Gulf Coast is a good team. They stuck in there with Duke. They beat some people. They’re a good team. Earlier in the game, we weren’t getting back in transition, and that’s something we stressed in the second half.” — Melvin Ejim on FGCU’s ability and first half play.

“I feel we didn’t come out with the right mentality. We had a nice chat at half time, and I thought we came out in the second half much more aggressive.” — Fred Hoiberg on the second half. 

“We’re still turning the ball over at way too high of a rate. We’ve got to get that solved. I love the 21 assists on 34 field goals. That part was great, and I told our guys how good can we be if we cut our turnovers in half.” — Hoiberg on the assists and turnovers in the game.

Up Next

Iowa State will have two days of practice before heading to Iowa City to take on the Hawkeyes on Friday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m.