There’s a new sheriff in town for the ISU men’s basketball team.

Former University of Northern Iowa head coach Greg McDermott was introduced as the Cyclones new leader Tuesday evening at Hilton Coliseum in front of a crowd of students and the general public.

ISU Athletics Director Jamie Pollard made the announcement after explaining exactly how the search process worked.

“When I started this search last Friday I knew three things,” Pollard said. “It had to be thorough, it had to be efficient and it had to be confidential. I wanted to find a proven winner, an individual with a clear formula for success both academically and athletically.

“But I also wanted to find an individual who has a sincere passion for being the next coach at Iowa State. One coach emerged as the clear-cut favorite. He’s a rising star in our profession and he’s absolutely committed to bringing back Hilton Magic – and that’s Greg McDermott.”

With the pep band blasting the fight song and the ISU Spirit Squad throwing shirts into the stands, McDermott made his way through Cyclone Alley down to the floor to address the crowd.

McDermott said he was “honored and humbled” to be the next coach at Iowa State and thanked everyone at Northern Iowa before speaking about the difficulty of his decision.

“This was a heartwrenching decision for me,” McDermott said. “I left a special place to come here. The University of Northern Iowa is a big part of who I am.

“But this place was special enough for me to leave home to come here and be the next coach of Iowa State.”

ISU President Gregory Geoffroy was also in attendance and spoke to the crowd of his pleasure with the search and hire.

“Our intercollegiate athletics program is very important to Iowa State University,” Geoffroy said. “And I can tell you that I am absolutely delighted with the outcome and the process that we used.”

The quick turnaround from the firing of Wayne Morgan to the hiring of McDermott was shocking to some, but Pollard assured the crowd that he found exactly what he wanted in McDermott.

“We went after it efficiently with a thorough search and we weren’t going to mess around,” Pollard said. “There’s 30 openings right now and we weren’t going to wait around and let somebody go after and take the people we wanted. We owe it to our student athletes to get the best coach we can get. And we did that.”

Pollard also gave thanks to Cyclone great Gary Thompson for his help “as a confidant, friend and Cyclone” during the four-day coaching search.

McDermott showed plenty of the fire during the press conference that sold Pollard on his ability to lead the Cyclones to success in the future by laying out his goals at Iowa State and taking a few jabs at a certain rival school to the east.

“Part of me could’ve stayed at UNI forever, but the competitive side of me wanted to coach in the Big 12 Conference, and attempt to win a championship in the Big 12 Conference,” McDermott said. “I wanted to have a chance to [win in a major conference] and not give up family and friends or leave the state to do that, and that only leaves two places.

“And beating the Hawkeyes is way too much fun.”

McDermott drew applause from the crowd when he said he hopes Iowa State could return to the postseason as early as next March, and vowed to restore Hilton Magic to one of the toughest venues in America.

“At Northern Iowa we played in some tough places like LSU and Cincinnati, and we played at some great venues across the Missouri Valley Conference,” McDermott said. “People always talk about how tough places are to play, but I always said that it’s not as tough as playing at Hilton Coliseum.”

Pollard cited McDermott being a native Iowan as another reason that he is the right man for the job. McDermott’s ability to relate to the fans, Pollard said, will help put a face on the program that can be shared by the fans.

McDermott showed off some wit when he turned his attention to his plans for Cyclone Alley.

“[Cyclone Alley] is going to have to come up with some new names for me,” McDermott said. “Because I don’t think what I’ve been called before walking through that tunnel cuts it anymore.”

The former Panther player and coach said Iowa State will also reclaim the state of Iowa recruiting-wise and restore team play to the Cyclones.

“Next year’s Cyclones are going to defend,” he said. “They’re going to play for the team and we’re going to have a program people can be proud of. The Iowa state high school coaches are going to know that Iowa State University exists as an option for their players.

“We’re going to be the No. 1 choice for students capable of competing at this level. We can’t have them going to Iowa.”

McDermott wrapped up his opening statement with one fitting sentence that summed up his goals at Iowa State and pleased all fans in attendance.

“Hilton Magic will return. It’s just around the corner.”