MILWAUKEE — The Cyclones certainly didn’t make it easy, but they did what they needed to do Thursday night. 

No. 5 Iowa State (24-10, 12-6 Big 12) moved past the upset-riddled 12-5 matchup, beating No. 12 Nevada (28-7, 14-4 Mountain West) 84-73 in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at the Bradley Center.  The Cyclones will face No. 4 Purdue on Saturday at a time to be determined. 

While Iowa State didn’t flat-out dominate the the first half, it was helped by Nevada’s anemic shooting. The Wolf Pack went 9-for-30 (30%) in the first 20 minutes and just 4-for-13 from 3-point range. 

On the other side, Iowa State went 17-for-29 (59%) from the field and 5-for-13 (38%) from 3-point range. That shooting discrepancy helped the Cyclones build up a double-digit lead about halfway through the first half. They went into halftime with a 40-27 advantage.  

The Wolf Pack’s shooting evened out early in the second half. Nevada shot 62.2 percent to start the second period to pull within five. The Wolf Pack continued to keep it close and forced Iowa State point guard Monte Morris to leave the game with three fouls. 

That didn’t stop the Cyclones. Iowa State went on a 7-0 run take a 62-51 lead with 8:08 to play. But Nevada wasn’t going away easily either. The Wolf Pack pulled within five again with just less than three minutes to play. 

The Cyclones held them off, winning their third NCAA Tournament game in two years.