In Clinton, Bryan Petersen was called “Pistol Petey.” On Wednesday, the junior

guard was firing on all cylinders in Ames during the Cyclones’ 79-55 win over

Texas Southern.

“Some kid said it one day and it kind of stuck,” Petersen said of the

nickname. “They were always chanting it during games.”

He hasn’t heard the chants in Ames, but Petersen did plenty to receive them

against the Tigers on Wednesday night. The junior college transfer shot 5-of-

10 from the field and added a career high seven assists.

“I thought Bryan Petersen did a great job of getting the ball where it needed

to go,” said Cyclones’ coach Greg McDermott.

One of those places was in the hands of freshman forward Craig Brackins. With

9:51 remaining in the second half, Petersen inbounded a pass to Brackins with

an alley-oop. The sophomore slammed it down to give Iowa State a 60-40 lead.

Brackins finished the game with 13 points.

“It was great,” said senior forward Rahshon Clark. “I didn’t think Petey was

going to throw it. When I turned around, I saw Craig in the air and I was

like, ‘Ok.’ It was real nice.”

What was also nice was the way Petersen directed the offense. For the third

straight game, the junior didn’t turn the ball over once, something that has

impressed McDermott. His last turnover came on December 5, when they Cyclones

traveled to Drake.

“He’s learning a new system of play, and he is learning with a new group of

players,” McDermott said. “With the zone we saw tonight, we knew Bryan was

going to make better decisions.”

Better decisions than freshman Diante Garrett, who has split time with

Petersen at the guard position. Garrett, who was averaging 17.5 minutes per

game, played a season-low 13 minutes in the win. McDermott elected to play

more of Petersen who already has 60 college games under his belt after two

seasons at Kirkwood Community College.

“He’s got a little bit better understanding than Diante does at this point on

how to run a team at this level,” McDermott said.

McDermott said he also has a nice shot. Petersen connected on eight of his 11

points in the second half, including a three pointer with 9:11 remaining in

the second half to give Iowa State a 63-40 lead.

“I got some good looks and I need to throw them down,” Petersen said.

And if they go down, Petersen hopes to hear the chants he heard at Clinton

High School.

“That’d be cool,” he said. “I don’t care – I just want to hit some shots. If

that happens, then I’ll go with it.”