For the first time ever, the Iowa State men’s basketball team was swept in its three intrastate games, after losing to the Iowa Hawkeyes on Saturday night.

After missing on two shot attempts in the last ten seconds, the Cyclones fell to the 10th-ranked Hawkeyes 60-59.

The Cyclones failed to score in the last 2:46 of the game, after two Jerry Curry free throws put the Cyclones up 59-58. A Ryan Bowen put-back with 1:41 was the game-winning basket.

ISU held the Hawkeyes 32 points below their season average, but they still could not avoid a home loss. It was the fourth straight year the visiting team has won the battle.

ISU Coach Tim Floyd said his group competed hard, but he gave credit to Iowa for playing well down the stretch. It was tough for Floyd to pinpoint a glaring weakness in ISU’s game, although he said defensive rebounding could have improved.

“It wouldn’t be our guys’ effort or our heart,” he said. “I felt like we began to grow up in the second half.”

The Cyclones surrendered only 23 points to the Hawkeyes in the game’s final 20 minutes. The Hawkeyes managed only 28 percent shooting in the half and 38 percent for the game against the Cyclone defense.

Another improvement in the second half was ISU’s ability to handle the constant Hawkeye press.

The Cyclones only turned the ball over three times after the intermission. In the first half, ISU was forced to use five timeouts to escape the Hawkeye pressure.

Once again, ISU’s woes came at the free throw line. They made only 10 of 18 from the charity stripe and had trouble grabbing defensive boards off Hawkeye misses. A lane violation also gave the Hawkeyes a much-needed point.

Curry connected on five three-pointers and led the Cyclones with 19 points. Marcus Fizer chipped in 12 but recorded only two in the second half.

As a team. ISU hit a season-high nine three-pointers on the night but struggled to score consistently on the interior.

The game was tied five times during the first half, and the lead changed hands several times. However, the Hawkeyes surged in the final five minutes to lead 37-31 at the break.

After consecutive three-pointers, Iowa roared to a 12-point lead less than three minutes into the second stanza.

But the Cyclones recovered and went on an 18-6 run, getting the overflow crowd of 14,151 back into the ball game. ISU finally evened the score at 49-49 on a three-pointer by Matt Knoll.

From then on, the biggest margin for either team was two points.

Iowa received balanced scoring, with four players netting double figures. Freshman Ricky Davis tallied 12, Guy Rucker and Dean Oliver tossed in 11 and Darryl Moore added 10.

Moore, a 6’2″ former walk-on, led all players in rebounding with 14 to record his third-ever double-double.

Floyd said that Moore was the key to the Hawkeye victory. “Moore was a real competitor. He fought it on the glass all night. I thought he was the difference.”

Iowa Coach Tom Davis agreed that the battle of the boards was won by his seniors, Moore and Ryan Bowen.

Davis said Moore’s rebounding totals are amazing for his size but attributed them to his personality and desire.

“He has that knack, and he has the heart and the work ethic.”

Davis said Iowa played with more poise on Saturday than during the loss to Northern Iowa earlier in the week.

Klay Edwards, the Cyclones’ leading scorer heading into the contest, only had one free throw for his point total. However, the Iowa native hauled in a team-leading 10 rebounds.

The Hawkeyes improved to 7-1 on the season, while ISU dropped to 4-3.The Cyclones next compete in the ISU Holiday Classic at 8 p.m. on Saturday night against Alaska-Anchorage.