LOUISVILLE, Ky. – This one wasn’t getting away.

After losing in its opening-round game at the Big 12 tournament after holding a lead for much of the game against Texas, the ISU men’s basketball team closed the deal against defending national champion Connecticut 77-64 on Thursday night in its opening round of the NCAA tournament.

“We stuck together, we didn’t splinter off when things went bad,” said forward Royce White, who finished with 15 points and 13 rebounds. “We believed in each other, and we’re definitely going to have to have that same type of togetherness on Saturday [against No. 1 overall seed Kentucky], because this team is capable of being up on us by 20.”

The Cyclones opened the game with a flurry of 3-pointers, and with 7:03 left, Iowa State held a 38-16 lead. Through that point of the game, the Cyclones were 14-of-21 from the field (66.7 percent) and 6-of-10 from 3-point range (60 percent).

Though Iowa State cooled considerably the rest of the way — the Cyclones didn’t hit another 3-pointer and finished at 48.1 percent shooting overall — coach Fred Hoiberg said he knew the team would come out well based on the week of practice they had, but maybe not quite that well. 

“We came out and played, I thought, maybe the best 10 minutes of the season,” Hoiberg said. “Then they bounced right back; we extended the lead and they cut it back. I thought we played very poised down the stretch.”

A coast-to-coast dunk by White got things started off, though White said it wasn’t what necessarily made the Cyclones play well. He too thought Iowa State came out playing its best basketball all season and said it was because the team was playing as one.

“It was the most tuned in we’ve been, it was the most effort we’ve given, the most together we were,” White said. “Staying consistent was what won us the game; staying together. We’re more together now than we’ve ever been.”

Senior guard Chris Allen, who led Iowa State with 20 points, said he thinks if the Cyclones can come out with that togetherness and that spark to begin games, the ISU team will be set going forward in the tournament.

Allen also lauded the team’s preparation coming into the game against the Huskies. The way the Cyclones started out the game was of no surprise to the senior who played in his 15th NCAA tournament game.

“I felt like all week we had a different type of focus,” Allen said. “Everything we were doing, we were doing with more intensity and effort. You could just tell. How we came out, it didn’t surprise me at all.”

On Wednesday during its media availability, UConn players talked as if they knew they would win Thursday night and hadn’t watched a lot of film on the Cyclones.

Allen said he and his teammates heard the chatter, and in addition to simply wanting to keep their season going, the Cyclones had extra incentive to prove something to a nation watching closely.

“At Michigan State, we were never the underdog, so I’ve never gone into a game like we did tonight,” Allen said. “We’re going into the game trying to be humble about the situation, and I’m seeing the worst stuff coming from [UConn]. You’d think there’d be a little more respect coming from them. 

“It was kind of like a slap in the face, so when we came out on the court today, that was our focus: to show the world that we could play with whoever.”

Hoiberg praised his team’s effort and focus after the game. The second-year coach chuckled when asked to rank the win among performances this season.

It was clear, he said, this was the best. The Cyclones still have life and their coach said he loves that feeling.

“It feels pretty good right now,” Hoiberg said. “This is the big stage. This is what you work for all year long, is to give yourself a chance in this type of setting.”