The second half of the Iowa State men’s basketball team’s season opener presented a holding pattern, of sorts.

After taking a 13-point lead into the half, leading 36-23 over Alabama State, the Cyclones were stuck there, leading 48-36 and suffering from a string of sloppy plays.

So, Cyclones’ coach Steve Prohm trotted out a lineup of … Lindell Wigginton, Tyrese Haliburton, Zion Griffin, Terrence Lewis and George Conditt IV. In all, three true freshmen and two sophomores. It was a calculated risk that would have come back to bite Iowa State if the Hornets made a comeback.

Instead, by the time they came out of the game, the Cyclones were up 67-41 and cruising to a 79-53 win having taken care of business.

It was an unexpected lineup and an unexpected burst, one that will no doubt be promising to a team lacking in frontcourt depth until December, due to the suspensions of Cameron Lard and Zoran Talley Jr. for “not living up to the standards of the program,” Prohm said.

Prohm said rolling with the all-underclassmen lineup wasn’t a planned decision.

“I was looking over, trying to get a spark,” Prohm said. “They played together, they shared the ball, I thought it was a really good stretch.”

After the announcement by Prohm was made, the Cyclones’ active roster sits at nine players likely to make an impact, including all four freshmen from the Cyclones’ hyped-up 2018 recruiting class. 

The freshman that might have left the best impression on the Hilton crowd was likely Haliburton, a rangy guard who had 12 points, four assists and four steals in 29 minutes of action.

Haliburton said he loved the energy from the young lineup, especially on the defensive end. 

“Guys just hungry,” Haliburton said. “We just play with high energy, that’s all we gotta do.

“A lot of the teams are gonna be bigger than us, so we gotta get it going up and down [the floor].”

One sequence in particular got Iowa State fans in the arena off their feet rapidly. A Zion Griffin dunk off a pass from Wigginton was quickly followed by a steal and up-and-under layup from Haliburton.

The energy the young lineup showed led to a lot of fastbreak opportunities and forced turnovers. On the whole, the Hornets coughed the ball up 20 times leading to 13 fastbreak points for the Cyclones. Without two of their primary forwards, the Cyclones will need to push the pace in order to make up for the lack of size inside. 

This will likely mean more playing time for Conditt, a slim big man who blocked four shots Tuesday.

Junior forward Michael Jacobson, the starter in Lard’s absence, said he and Conditt will just need to keep their energy levels up. 

“George is catching on really well, he played really well in the second half,” Jacobson said. “We’re gonna need some guys to step up.”

Iowa State has a tough slate of games ahead, starting with Friday’s game against Missouri. The Tigers are not the same team that made the NCAA Tournament last season, but it presents a chance for the Cyclones’ inexperienced players to get a power-conference test under their belts before a Maui Invitational that kicks off with a game against perennial Pac-12 powerhouse Arizona.

Iowa State’s young players are going to get a baptism in fire over the next few weeks. How they respond will decide the course of their season.