By Ken Cross
ORLANDO, Fla. – Iowa State used a quick 10-3 run out of halftime to build its lead to 42-33, and guard Keshon Gilbert led four Cyclones in double figures with 15 points, and the Cyclones defeated UCF, 77-65, on Tuesday evening.
“We felt like the things that we were going to need to do to be successful were rebounding and keeping the ball out of the paint, and that would ignite our offense, especially in transition,” said Cyclones coach T.J. Otzelberger. “That was the case, especially to start the half.”
Iowa State outscored UCF, 20-18, in transition and 38-34 in the paint. The Cyclones shot 46 percent from the field and out-rebounded the Knights, 41-32, to connect on their second consecutive win.
Iowa State gained the upper hand immediately to start the second half as Joshua Jefferson’s athletic ability made him a tough matchup while guard Tamin Lipsey made a three to give the Cyclones a 53-41 lead with 10:25 remaining.
“Our defense, for the most part, we were able to get back, get set, and keep them out of the paint,” said Otzelberger. “Great location of shooters. I felt, for the most part, we were keeping the ball in front of us until late.”
Lipsey returned from a broken thumb, and his leadership role is one of the many positives which the Cyclones enjoy.
“The ball movement we have had and the action that we give to our offense these last two games,” said Lipsey. ‘I’m sure that has something to do with me coming back.”
Midway through the second half, Keyshawn Hall scored nine of his game-high 22 points to give UCF a chance. Hall, who leads UCF with 18.5 points per game, was able to score nine in a row from the paint before a Darius Johnson triple cut Iowa State’s lead to 59-48 with 7:16 remaining.
“He does a good job in our system of finding spots to make plays for us and score for us,” explained UCF head coach Johnny Dawkins. “He has done that for us all year. I expect him to play the way he played for us tonight.”
Otzelberger liked the way his squad protected the paint as the game closed.
“Hall was driving it at us and at the end, ultimately, we knew we had to keep them out of the paint,” said Otzelberger. “We knew we had to limit them to one shot. I thought our guys had to focus on those, and it paid off for us.”
With 12:07 remaining in the first half, Iowa State led 18-9, but UCF went on a 12-2 run over the next six minutes when Jordan Ivy-Curry scored on a pull-up to give the Knights a 21-20 lead.
The Cyclones used a balanced attack to close the half and lead, 32-30, at the break after a 12-4 run ended the first 20 minutes.
“We are fortunate to have a lot of weapons offensively, so when the ball stays on the move and we attack closeouts, it opens the floor up for everybody and they get great opportunities,” said Otzelberger. “We are fortunate tonight to keep that ball on the move.”
Iowa State has been a quality defensive squad all season in allowing opponents to shoot only 41.3 percent from the floor, and they have a five-rebound average per game.
The Cyclones defeated UCF, 108-83, at Hilton Coliseum in January and Otzelberger knew that this would be a much tougher fight in Orlando.
“We have to do a better job starting the second half, so we are locked into what we are doing and that will make it more difficult for other teams,” said Dawkins. “They are a top 10 team in the nation, and I thought they showed at times why they are that.”