After their stifling defense led them to an 82-70 win against Xavier, the Iowa State Cyclones had a 5-0 start.

It also meant that T.J. Otzelberger and his squad would meet the No. 9 Memphis Tigers in the NIT Season Tip-Off Championship, and would be tested against top-10 competition in Brooklyn.

But the Cyclones would have no problem against the top-10 Tigers.

The Cyclones started well, gaining an 8-2 edge early thanks to four early points from Gabe Kalscheur, one coming off an easy steal and finish. The Cyclones forced seven turnovers in the first eight minutes of game action. 

It was a low-scoring start for both teams, as the Cyclones led 14-10 at the under-eight timeout. Iowa State made five of its first 21 shots, but Memphis turnovers and offensive fouls gave the Cyclones the chance to get ahead early.

Tyrese Hunter, after his career night against Xavier, made just two of his first eight shots, but clearly brought the aggressiveness that got him strong numbers in his prior game.

It was Kalscheur who continued to bring the offense for the Cyclones, as he had 15 points and six rebounds at halftime, and Iowa State led 32-27 after 20 minutes.

There were 21 combined turnovers in the first half, and with neither team shooting well it made for a clunky, low-scoring half of basketball. As evidenced by the Cyclones’ first five games, that seems to be exactly how they like it.

Kalscheur started the second half strong as well, and it led to Iowa State taking an eight point lead early in half number two.

The Minnesota transfer had 23 points and also contributed five steals to the stat sheet, and was leading the charge on both ends as the Cyclones looked to close in on an upset win.

The Cyclones pushed the lead to double digits about halfway through the period, but the Tigers continued to apply constant full-court pressure off of made shots. It was something that caused some sticky situations, but if Iowa State broke through the press they usually had odd-numbered offensive attacks.

The lead ballooned up to 17 with about six minutes to go and it was fueled in part by a plethora of Memphis misses, but the Cyclones were using easy buckets in transition after breaking the press to build up the margin.

Iowa State kept piling it on, and Memphis was force-fed the medicine that the Cyclones have promised to give teams. 21 Tiger turnovers, 22 personal fouls, and shooting under 35 percent meant the upset victory was in sight.

It was 71-49 with under four minutes to go, and Otzelberger and his team could feel it. Aljaz Kunc provided a nice spark off the bench, adding 11 points.

When all was said and done, the final score was 78-59, and it the record read 6-0 for the first time since the 2015-16 season.

Kalscheur finished with 30 points, eight rebounds and five steals. Tristan Enaruna and Kunc were the only two others in double figures, each had 11 points.