If the ISU men’s basketball team wanted to catch its breath before starting conference play, it won’t have the chance.

Recently deemed the number one team in the country, the Texas Longhorns stampede into town Wednesday to take on the 11-4 Cyclones in their Big 12 season opener.

“If Texas isn’t the best team that we will have played in my four years at Iowa State, they are certainly right there,” said coach Greg McDermott, who has an 0-3 lifetime record against the Longhorns.

Texas has rolled to a 15-0 start and have notched a staggering average margin of victory of 25 points, as well as a Big 12 best average of 88.1 points per game. The Longhorns, who had been ranked second in the country for the last several weeks, moved into the top spot in the polls on Monday, after former No. 1 Kansas lost to Tennessee on Sunday.

A key to the Longhorns strong start is the depth of their roster.

Texas has four players averaging double figures — Iowa State has two — and a total of 12 players averaging at least 2.4 points and 2 rebounds per game, the Cyclones only seven.

“They are deep. They can play 11 or 12 players. They can sub anyone in and out and anyone can start,” said forward Craig Brackins. “That is their biggest advantage.”

Anchoring the Longhorns, is 6-foot-10-inch, 290-pound senior center Dexter Pittman.

Pittman is averaging 13.9 points, 6.7 rebounds per game and has picked up 33 blocks this season.

“Anybody who saw him three years ago would have never projected that he would be the player that he is today,” McDermott said. “His technique down low, his footwork, what he is able to do defensively has grown so much. He has totally transformed his body from somebody who was never going to be able to play college basketball to somebody who will have a long career in the NBA.”

Last season against the Cyclones, Pittman and fellow post-threat Damion James, the team’s leader in points and rebounds this year (16.9 points per game and 11 rebounds), combined for 31 points and 11 boards in Texas’ 75-67 victory.

Iowa State will again have its hands full this year competing with the size and strength of the Texas lineup. The Cyclones only have two players, Craig Brackins (6-foot-10) and Justin Hamilton (6-foot-11) who are more than 6-foot-9. Already lacking size in the post, Iowa State received a scare in the second half against Duke last Wednesday when Hamilton suffered a concussion. Hamilton was held from last Saturday’s game, but he said Monday that he has been cleared by the team’s medical staff to play and will be ready to go Wednesday.

If Hamilton returns, his defensive responsibilities will rest largely on defending Pittman.

“You can’t ever ease up [on Pittman] because he will take advantage and score right away,” Hamilton said. “He’s a big challenge. Last year it was hard playing against him. But this year we are a better team.”

McDermott said Hamilton’s return is a crucial factor to Iowa State’s chances against Texas.

“There are some teams you can get by playing small and having Marquis [Gilstrap] or even Charles Boozer,” McDermott said. “But there are some teams in our league that that just won’t work and Texas is one those teams.”

In order to keep pace with the Longhorns, the Cyclones will need to force Texas into an up-tempo game and prevent long scoring runs.

“We have to pick and choose our opportunities to turn this into a track meet,” McDermott said. “You have to try to avoid that eight to 10 minute stretch where they’ve completely dominated their opponent. They have done it 15 straight times, so that is going to be a challenge.”

With the non-conference season behind them, the Cyclones view Wednesday’s game as a chance to begin the conference season on a high note and an opportunity to move up the ranks in the Big 12.

“It’s a fresh start,” Brackins said. “I think the Big 12 is so competitive it is up for grabs for anyone.”

Colvin responding well to suspension—After being suspended last week for disrespecting his coaches and teammates, Chris Colvin has had a positive response in the first few days of his suspension.

“He had to sell us that he wanted to be a part of this team,” McDermott said. “His actions on the bench the other night [against North Dakota State] were exactly what I had hoped they would have been. He was encouraging his teammates constantly.”

Although Colvin has shown signs of improvement, he will be unable to return to the court until February.

“Everybody grows up at a different time in their life and something happens to them where they have to do a double take and look in the mirror and say, ‘maybe I do need to change my behavior,” McDermott said. “It is my hope that Chris understands that now. So far I have been pleased.”

Colvin’s suspension came only days after L.A. Pomlee was dismissed from the team for ‘violations of team policy.’

In the wake of the recent setbacks, forward Marquis Gilstrap emphasized the importance that the team maintain the chemistry and bond it has fostered this season.

“We just have to play together more and be after each other and help each other out,” Gilstrap said. “We are going through adversity, so we have to come together and play as a unit.”