The back of the jersey read “Stevens,” but a different basketball player was wearing No. 35 at Hilton Coliseum on Saturday. Darius Stevens, the son of the late Cyclones great Barry Stevens, helped honor his father by playing in the ISU Hilton Magic All-Star Celebrity Game.

“It was real great to just play with the players he played with, to come out to the court that he played at and to wear his number,” said Stevens, who had nine points in the game as the Johnny Orr All-Stars defeated the Larry Eustachy All-Stars, 77-70. “It was a real honor.”

The high school sophomore joined a long list of former Cyclone greats who came out to recognize Iowa State’s second leading scorer. Barry Stevens died of a heart attack last February. From Jeff Grayer to Jared Homan – fans got a glimpse of several decades of Cyclone basketball, including former ISU head coach Johnny Orr, who coached one of the teams.

“I was excited to see them all,” Orr said. “I thought they were great. I thought the fans were absolutely awesome.”

The 4,000 fans in attendance saw Fred Hoiberg hit a pair of 3-pointers, Jeff Hornacek dish five assists, and Homan slam down a dunk.

Hoiberg, who was a ball boy for the Cyclones while Grayer and Stevens played together, got a chance to guard some of the players he grew up idolizing as an Ames native.

“It was a real thrill for me to be on the same basketball court as those guys,” Hoiberg said.

It was also the first time he took the court in more than a year. Hoiberg retired from the NBA in 2006 after having open-heart surgery and having a pacemaker placed in. Although “The Mayor” saw limited playing time, he said making it to the event to share his story was important. Had it not been for a physical, Hoiberg said he would not have learned about a damaged aorta that was on the verge of rupturing.

“I feel very fortunate to be alive today,” he said. “I was very lucky that I found out about my heart condition.”

The event was also an opportunity for Hoiberg to get in a final game with his former coach Larry Eustachy. Eustachy, currently the head coach for the University of Southern Mississippi, coached opposite of Orr.

“It felt like I never left,” Eustachy said. “I feel very comfortable coming back in this arena. We had some great times.”

As for the younger Stevens, he didn’t rule out a return to Hilton after high school.

“I’ve already been to a couple of camps,” Stevens said. “So it’s a pretty good chance.”