It was a tale of two halves in No. 5 Iowa State’s first game of the Maui Invitational. The Cyclones did their best to hold on, but a last-second putback sealed the comeback win for No. 4 Auburn, handing the Cyclones their first loss of the season by a score of 83-81. 

Cyclones shine in the first half

Though the final score doesn’t show it, Iowa State dominated the game in the first half, leading 49-33 at the break. 

It seemed like the Cyclones could do no wrong on either side of the ball.

On the offensive side, the Cyclones scored 49 of their 81 points in the first half, their highest point total in a half this season.

In the first half, Iowa State shot 58.3% from the field, 45.5% from 3-point range and 72.7% from the free throw line. 

Guard Keshon Gilbert and forward Joshua Jefferson led the Cyclones’ first-half offensive outburst. Gilbert led the team in scoring with 10 points, going 5-for-5 from the field. Jefferson was also perfect from the field, going 3-for-3 from the field, 2-for-2 from 3-point range and added a free throw to bring his first-half point total to nine. 

On the defensive side, Iowa State suffocated Auburn in the first half. 

The Tigers shot just 38.5% from the field and 28.6% from 3-point range. 

The Cyclones, who averaged 20 forced turnovers a game going into Monday night, forced seven against Auburn in the first half, leading directly to 11 points on the offensive side. 

Auburn returns the favor in the second half

Just as Iowa State dominated in the first half, Auburn returned the favor and then some in the second half, out-scoring Iowa State 50-32 en route to completing the 16-point comeback. 

The Cyclones took a huge step back in the second half on both sides of the court. 

On the offensive side, the Cyclones shot just 31.8% from the field and 28.5% from 3-point range in the second half, a stark drop from their impressive numbers in the first half. 

Iowa State also turned the ball over seven times in the second half after turning the ball over just twice in the first half. 

The only bright spot for the Cyclones offense in the second half was an impressive 16-for-18 from the free throw line. 

Defensively, Iowa State struggled to contain Auburn’s fast-paced offense in the second half. 

Auburn shot the ball much better than it did in the first half, going 54.5% from the field and 38.5% from 3-point range. 

The Tigers were led by senior guard Chad Baker-Mazara, who scored 16 second-half points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field, 3-for-4 from 3-point range and 5-for-5 from the free throw line. Baker-Mazara scored just two points in the first half after taking only one shot.

With the game tied at 81, Auburn forced a turnover with just 11 seconds to play. The Tigers drove the ball down the court and missed its first attempt but senior forward Johni Broome was able to make the game-winning putback, making the score 83-31 Auburn with just over a second left in the game. 

Gilbert shines, Lipsey struggles

Iowa State’s starting backcourt players had different games, to say the least, as Gilbert played his best game of the season so far while guard Tamin Lipsey struggled to get into a rhythm. 

Gilbert was the best player on the court for the Cyclones against Auburn. He led the game in scoring, going for a season-high 23 points on 8-for-10 shooting from the field, 1-for-2 from 3-point range and 6-for-7 from the free throw line.

Unfortunately for Gilbert and the Cyclones, due to foul trouble, Gilbert only played 21 minutes in the game. Gilbert committed his fourth foul with just over eight minutes remaining in the game, forcing him to the bench during a pivotal stretch. 

Gilbert’s backcourt running mate did not have as productive of a performance.

Lipsey couldn’t get anything going offensively in this game. The junior guard went 3-for-9 from the field, 0-for-3 from 3-point range and 0-for-2 from the free throw line. Lipsey also recorded two rebounds, two assists, two steals and one turnover. 

Lipsey struggled the most in the Cyclones’ disastrous second half. He went just 1-for-5 from the field, 0-for-1 from 3-point range and missed both of his free throws that could have increased Iowa State’s lead to seven with just over seven minutes to go. 

The Cyclones will need Lipsey, as well as the rest of the team, to improve from their second-half performance if they want to bounce back on Tuesday night. 

Iowa State now awaits the loser of No. 12 North Carolina vs. Dayton at 7:30 p.m. CT Tuesday. The game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.