A packed Hilton Coliseum, filled with 14,356 fans, witnessed the third straight victory for Iowa State in the annual Cy-Hawk rivalry as the Cyclones jumped out to a 21-point halftime lead and held off a late run by the Hawkeyes to win 86-76.

The Lowdown

Forward Royce White, the Cyclones’ leading scorer and rebounder, got Iowa State off to a hot start with a pair of dunks and a bank shot from the baseline to erase a 4-0 Iowa lead and give the Cyclones (7-3) an early 6-4 advantage. Leading 15-13 with 13:31 left in the first half, Iowa State went on a 10-0 run highlighted by threes from guards Tyrus McGee and Bubu Palo.

The Cyclones maintained their double-digit lead and upped it to more than 20 after Palo knocked down a trio of free throws while guard Scott Christopherson drained a three to put Iowa State up 46-25 with 2:02 left in the half. Palo laid in another bucket with 18 seconds left, which was answered by a layup from Iowa guard Devyn Marble as the Cyclones took a 48-27 lead into the break.

The Hawkeyes (5-5) cut the ISU lead down to 13 after a 14-6 run to start the second half. The Cyclones brought the lead back up to 18 after a three-pointer from Christopherson and a layup and free throw from Ejim but the Hawkeyes would not go away bringing the lead back to 13 with 7:47 to play.

Aided by a pair of missed three-pointers by Iowa, the Cyclones went on a 10-2 run over the next four minutes to take a 78-57 lead with just under four minutes to play. Iowa trimmed the margin to eight with 32 seconds to play, but the Cyclones made seven of eight free throws down the stretch to hold off the Hawkeyes for the 10-point victory.

Turning Point

The Cyclones took a five-point lead in the early minutes of the game but Iowa closed the gap as the scoreboard read 15-13 with 13:31 on the first half clock. Iowa State got a made jump shot from White and, the next time down the floor, a three from McGee. The Cyclones got the ball back following a media timeout before Palo knocked down a three to give Iowa State a 10-point lead with 9:52 remaining in the half.

Ejim added a layup off an assist from White as the Cyclones used a 10-2 run to take a double-digit lead that they would not let dip into single digits until 32 seconds remaining in the game.

X Factor

ISU guard Bubu Palo

Playing a career-high 30 minutes, the redshirt sophomore from Ames scored a career-high 14 points coming off the bench. Palo made a conscious effort to get to the hoop leading all players with 15 free throw attempts, making nine.

Filling in for Allen, who committed his fourth foul with 10:30 left in the game, Palo dished out six assists to only one turnover.

By the numbers

3: consecutive victories for the Cyclones marking only the second time that Iowa State has won three straight over the Hawkeyes. (1983-84 through 1985-86)

5: ISU players that finished with double-digit points (White-17, Christopherson-16, Palo-14, Ejim-13, Chris Babb-10). The Cyclones are 2-0 this season when five players reach double digits.

7: field goals attempted and made by White in the first half as he led all scorers with 14 points at halftime.

13-6: current lead for Iowa State in the Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk all sports series.

21: points scored by Iowa guard Devyn Marble, the Hawkeyes’ leading scorer. Forward Melsahn Basabe and guard Matt Gatens also finished in double figures with 18 and 11.

46: combined fouls between the two teams in a game that saw a total of 56 free throw attempts.

46: points scored by Christopherson in his last two games against Iowa. The senior from LaCrosse, Wis. scored a career-high 30 last season and 16 on Friday night.

147: career three-pointers made for Christopherson moving him past Michael Nurse (1999-2000) for fourth all-time.

Up next for Iowa State

The Cyclones will have the week off during finals week returning to the floor on Sunday Dec. 18 for a home game against Central Michigan. The Chippewas (4-3) will face Tennessee State (3-6) on Saturday afternoon. Leading Central Michigan in both scoring and rebounding is 6-5 sophomore guard Trey Ziegler who averages 17.9 and 8.6.