1. Free throw battle

Northern Iowa is making its free throws. And taking a lot of them.

Through six games, UNI is 100 of 127 (78.7 percent) from the foul line. That’s an average of 16.6 free throws made per game.

“They do a good job getting to the free throw line, better than we have, and they are really making them when they get there,” said coach Greg McDermott. “It’s going to be important that we keep them off the foul line, and that will be one of the keys to the game.”

In comparison, Iowa State is shooting 64.9 percent from the line, and making 9.6 free throws a game. Iowa State shot 72 percent from the line during the 2007-’08 season.

ISU sophomore Craig Brackins is leading the team with 24 free throw attempts, but has seen a dramatic drop in his free throw percentage from 73.2 percent in 2007-’08 to this year’s paltry 45.8 percent.

“I’ve been pretty terrible from the free throw line the last couple of games,” Brackins said. “Free throws are very mental. If you change anything on any of your routines you can mess up. I’ve been watching myself. Either I fall away or fall forward and switch my shot up.”

2. Keep raining

The new McLeod Center at UNI eliminates the old shooting background that players complained about. That’s good news for a Cyclone team on a record-breaking pace from the arc.

The Cyclones are shooting 40.9 percent from 3-point land, and are averaging 9.4 3-pointers per game. To put that in perspective, Iowa State averaged 5.9 threes during the 2007-’08 season, which is the fourth highest average in Cyclone history. The highest average ever came in 2005-’06, when the Cyclones made 6.7 a game.

UNI is shooting 33.1 percent from the arc, with freshman guard Johnny Moran leading the team, at 46.7 percent. ISU freshman Wes Eikmeier leads the Cyclones, at 47.8 percent.

3. Take a road game

The Cyclones haven’t won on the road since they beat Oregon State more than a year ago, on Nov. 30, 2007. That’s a 10-game skid, but the Cyclones aren’t keeping track.

“If coaches or players get caught up in thinking about what happened yesterday, they’re not going to be playing very long and I’m not going to be coaching very long,” McDermott said.

Still, proving that they can win on the road could go a long way toward building confidence, and avoiding an ISU football-like road drought.

“I don’t think anyone is focusing on last year’s road losses, but if we can go on the road early in the season, in an in-state game, and get a W, that would mean a lot to our team, especially with all the new guys.”