AMES — In the final seconds, junior forward Blake Buchanan and senior forward Joshua Jefferson formed as one to create plays that secured the Cyclones 70-67 upset victory over No. 2 Houston on Monday.
In a constant back-and-forth battle, with a close margin of points, Iowa State was able to pull away with a three-point victory due to multiple player contributions and a loud and gold colored Hilton Coliseum.
Down two points with two minutes left, freshman guard Jamarion Batemon hit a 3-point jumper with an assist from Buchanan to bring the Cyclones to take the lead at 66-65.
Not long after, at the 1:17 mark, redshirt senior guard Nate Heise brought the Cyclones to a higher lead, building momentum with a 3-point jumper with an assist by Jefferson during the final second before the shot clock went off.
“Over and over again, when somebody asks a question, ‘What do we need to do to be at absolutely best and to keep getting better?’ The common answer has been, Nate Heise is the key,” head coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “Nate Heise is the guy that I’ve got tremendous confidence in; I have tremendous belief in what he can do.”
Despite the two players making big plays to provide Iowa State a boost mentally and score-wise, Batemon and Heise discussed before how one of them would hit the game-winning shot. But little did they know it would be both of them, making a strong contribution to close out the game.
“It was funny, at about a minute and a half left, I went up to [Batemon] and I told him either him or I are gonna have a three in the corner and it’s gonna win us a game,” Heise said. “Ended up being both of us.”
With a heightened Cyclone defense in the final seconds, Houston made no shots in the final seconds and when attempted, Buchanan had his familiar spot underneath the basketball to grab the rebound.
“I mean, I sat for a lot of the second half, but still got to knock down shots, they did,” Houston redshirt senior guard Emanuel Sharp said. “They made shots at the end of the game; we didn’t.”
After a missed jump shot by Houston freshman forward/center Chris Cenac Jr. to tie up the score, Buchanan jumped to grab the defensive rebound in order to secure possession for Iowa State in the final four seconds.
“I think there’s a mental toughness piece that comes into you really want to take care of the basketball and you know how important it is to be successful in a game like this,” Oztelberger said. “For our guys to have the best performance we’ve had in terms of ball toughness against the best defensive team that we’ve played, it speaks a lot about our guys.”
When grabbing the rebound, the crowd erupted and Buchanan was fouled by Houston freshman guard Kingston Flemings, granting him the opportunity behind the charity stripe.
“When we started getting rebounds and stops and then getting the crowd into it, I think that was when really the momentum changed,” Heise said.
Despite missing the shot from behind the line, senior guard Tamin Lipsey went in for the offensive rebound. Following a pass from Lipsey, Jefferson was fouled by Sharp to bring Jefferson to the line himself.
Jefferson went on to make a second-chance free throw with one second left on the clock, which he made to secure the Cyclones a 3-point victory.
Missing his second shot behind the charity stripe, Flemings grabbed the defensive rebound before launching the ball across the court in hopes of bringing the game into overtime.
The fans inside Hilton Coliseum held their breath waiting for the ball to make it into the hoop. Then the crowd erupted in cheers as the ball fell short, securing Iowa State’s upset victory on home court.
Jefferson and Buchanan each paved the way for the Cyclones in a quieter fashion compared to the other big plays illustrated from deep. With Jefferson ending the night with a team-high of 12 points, a team-high five assists and six rebounds.
Heise was close behind with 11 points, going 3-for-3 from deep and securing six rebounds. Buchanan followed, earning 10-points, going 4-for-7 from the field and securing four rebounds.
