Fred Hoiberg admitted on Monday that there were no expectations at this time last year as he prepared to begin his tenure as head coach of the ISU men’s basketball team.

What a difference one year can make.

In their second year under Hoiberg, the Cyclones will tip off their regular season in just under a month. In a handful of pre-season publications the Cyclones (16-16, 3-13 in the Big 12 in 2010) have been predicted to finish anywhere from 7th to 9th among the ten teams in the Big 12 conference. However, the belief around Ames, primarily from ISU students-student season tickets which sold out on July 21, is that the Cyclones have the talent to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.

“Hopefully we can live up to the expectations but I understand where certain people have questions about this team, I still have questions about this team,” Hoiberg said on Monday at the team’s annual media day.

The team traveled to Italy in August where they played four Italian teams, winning their games by an average of 57.8 points. The team developed chemistry both on and off the court on the trip but the teams they will face in the states will definitely be more challenging than those the Cyclones played overseas.

“One thing I would have loved to see with this group is how we handle a tight situation,” Hoiberg said. “If adversity jumps up and hits us, which it will hit us pretty quickly, I can promise you that we going to handle that, and I didn’t see that because of the competition that we played over in Italy, but I’m excited about where we’re at right now.”

In trying to prove themselves, the Cyclones will have to replace three starters from 2010, most notably point guard Diante Garrett, the conference leader in assists last season and the all-time leader in games played at Iowa State (128).

“I don’t know,” Hoiberg said when asked about the status of the point guard position. “Obviously the biggest thing we’re going to have to replace is our point guard … this year it’s going to be a lot of point guard by committee.”

Hoiberg mentioned senior Scott Christopherson, senior Chris Allen, junior Tyrus McGee, redshirt sophomore Bubu Palo, redshirt sophomore Royce White and freshman Tavon Sledge as players who could see time at the point guard position this season.

Also available on the ISU roster will be a quartet of Division I transfers who sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules; Allen (Michigan State), redshirt junior guard Chris Babb (Penn State), redshirt junior forward Anthony Booker (Southern Illinois) and White (Minnesota).

White, a 6’8 270 lb. redshirt sophomore, hasn’t played a game in college yet but already the coaches of the conference have taken notice voting him as the Big 12 preseason newcomer of the year.

“I think that anything that we set our minds to and buy into as a collective group, we can achieve,” White said. “Our short-term goal game to game is to win every game and long-term is to not lose a game, so whatever comes from that is what comes from that.”

Allen, who has played in as many NCAA Tournament games (14) as the Cyclones have since 1995, will carry his experience at Big 10 powerhouse Michigan State to an Iowa State team hoping to finish near the top of the Big 12 conference.

“The little things are what’s going to get us there,” Allen said. “Like at Michigan State we always did the little things. That’s why we always went to the [NCAA] tournament; we always were at the top because we always did the little things.”

With more depth and experience on the roster, Hoiberg hopes that his second team will be able to play a fast-paced type of basketball that will entertain the fans that are able to get their hands on a ticket.

“Our goal will be to be one of the leading scorers in the Big 12 conference, and with our personnel if we’re knocking down shots, we’ll be a pretty tough team to stop,” Hoiberg said.

The Cyclones will play a closed scrimmage against a to-be-determined Division I team in two weeks, then an exhibition game at home against Grand Valley State at 12:30 p.m. on Nov. 6 and then the regular season opener at Hilton Coliseum at 1 p.m. on Nov. 12.