Korie Lucious says he’s a winner.

He’s proven that he can do just that when he played for Michigan State in the second round of the 2010 NCAA tournament against Maryland. Lucious subbed in for an injured Kalin Lucas with 2:28 left in the game. After a go-ahead bucket by Maryland with six seconds left, Lucious caught a pass on the wing, took one dribble to his left and canned the game-winning buzzer-beater.

Lucious has learned patience, too. Sitting out for a year and a half after leaving Michigan State and watching the games from the Hilton stand in the 2011-12 season for Iowa State, he had a chance to learn.

“It taught me a lot more about patience,” Lucious said. “My decision-making; I got to see the game from a different standpoint, so it’s just going to help me take it on the court.”

His roommate and soon-to-be on-the-court teammate, Will Clyburn, sat out with Lucious last year. Clyburn transferred from Utah, where he was an All-Mountain West second-team performer, averaging 17.1 points per game and 7.8 rebounds per game.

Both he and Lucious struggled watching from the stands as their team ran into a buzzsaw in the Kentucky Wildcats, who cruised to a national championship by winning their NCAA tournament games by an average of 11.8 points per game.

“Me being a competitor, I wanted to be out there with my team,” Clyburn said. “I want to help them as much as I can. I just had to be patient. It was tough.”

Now both Lucious and Clyburn will be able to bring different skill sets to what Iowa State wants to do offensively and defensively.

Clyburn, a lanky 6-foot-7 wing player, brings the versatility to play the positions from two through four, where he can guard a shooting guard with his quickness, but also his length allows him to guard big forwards.

“Will is a kid that can hurt you from all over the floor,” said ISU coach Fred Hoiberg. “I think he can facilitate an offense, you can post him up against smaller players and you can put the ball in his hands in isolation situations, plus he can go around guys, plus he’s a 40-percent 3-point shooter.”

Aside from the offensive ability, Hoiberg has been most impressed with Clyburn’s ability to rebound. Hoiberg said Clyburn “got every rebound” at the last practice the team had.

Hoiberg also believes Clyburn’s rebounding will give him the chance to push the ball up the floor as the lead guard, which will give shooting opportunities to guards on the wings.

Lucious brings aspects the Cyclones lacked last year on both ends of the floor, too — a guard who can faciliate and distribute, while guarding the opposition’s small, quick guards.

Offensively, Lucious will be the “floor general,” which is something he takes personally.

“That’s something I take into heart,” Lucious said. “I’m a point guard; if I do make it to the NBA or wherever else I play, I will be a point guard. I’m going to get out on the court and lead my team in whatever way it is, so I’m just going to get out there and lead my guys and put them in position to succeed.”

Defensively, Lucious is only 5-foot-11 and is quicker and lower to the ground than those the Cyclones had playing guard last year, which gives him the ability to keep up with the lightning-quick guards the Big 12 boasts yearly.

ISU fans will remember games from last year where Oklahoma State’s Keiton Page and Baylor’s Pierre Jackson filled up the scoring charts, before Hoiberg was forced to put a bigger Chris Babb on them.

“We didn’t have that traditional point guard last year,” Hoiberg said. “Not only on the offensive end, but the defensive end too. It affects the way you’re able to play. We really had to pack it in at times last year. Scott [Christopherson] and Chris [Allen] were great, but they’re not point guards.”

Despite how the two vary in size and skill set, they both are on the same page when it comes to winning when they step out on the court.

“I’m going to do whatever it takes to win,” Clyburn said.

Lucious echoed his roommate’s mentality.

“I’m going to give it my all every time I step out on the court,” Lucious said. “I’m a winner.”