Must all good things come to an end?

The ISU men’s basketball team has won seven straight conference games, and the streak might not be over for a while. Four of those games have been against ranked opponents, and two of those games were on the road. The most amazing part about the streak is that they are doing it all with seven scholarship players.

The Cyclones are getting set for a run at the NCAA tournament for hopefully the first of many in the Wayne Morgan era. With the win at Kansas on Saturday, the Cyclones have put themselves in excellent shape. I think Iowa State will win the rest of its regular season games, but I also think it only needs two of those wins to be in the Big Dance.

When thinking about the Big Dance, you also need to think about the conference tournament. As weird as this sounds, Iowa State would much rather go in as the fifth seed than the fourth, and play Baylor on day one of the tournament.

If for some reason the Cyclones are on the bubble at that point, one win in the Big 12 tournament could be the deciding factor in making the Big Dance. The top four seeds get a bye in the first round, which would give Iowa State a day off, but it would then face either Oklahoma, Texas Tech or Texas in the second round.

I would like to see Iowa State be the fifth seed and get that extra for-sure win for seeding purposes in the Big Dance. But who knows — the way this team is playing, winning the conference tourney doesn’t even sound crazy anymore.

Tuesday’s Texas A&M game really scares me, though. The Aggies are only 5-7 in conference, but are an all-around scary team at home, as they have been known to knock off ranked opponents in their backyard. Playing at Colorado is another possible stumble for the Cyclones, considering how badly they have played there in the past, but I think this year’s team has proven that the past means absolutely nothing.

This year’s team is not a normal team. Usually, quality teams have depth.

Iowa State has no depth, and I honestly believe that’s one of the reasons the team is doing so well. The same seven guys play together all the time, and look at the chemistry. There are six guys on the team who can score in double figures any night.

The Cyclones have two unbelievable freshmen who have stepped up and matured faster than anyone imagined or could have asked them to.

Curtis Stinson could beat you without batting an eye, and will somebody please tell me who No. 22 is and what he’s done with Damion Staple? Wow, talk about a night and day difference from a month ago.

This team has something more than talent. This team has learned how to win. It has all the ingredients: Scorers, role players, the ability to knock down a three, and most importantly, defense, are all major factors to the winning streak.

When the ISU men’s basketball team beat Oklahoma to begin its seven-game winning streak, few thought that game would lead the team to where it is now, controllers of its own destiny to make the NCAA tournament.

The crazy thing about this run is that it’s not over — there’s a good possibility it may not end during the regular season. With four conference games left, Cyclone fans should now be asking themselves “Why not?” instead of the common “What if?”