Lamar vs. Iowa State final score: Cyclones dominate Cardinals 96-59

It was a frustrating first 10 minutes or so, but Iowa State turned on the gas mid-way through the first half and didn’t let up en route to a dominating victory over Lamar.

The team had balanced scoring led by Matt Thomas‘ 14 points. Georges Niang had 13, and Bryce Dejean-Jones and Naz Long each had 12. BDJ also had 10 rebounds, 8 assists, 4 steals, and one monster block in the second half. Finally, Daniel Edozie was a pleasant surprise with 10 points and 7 rebounds. He is definitely looking comfortable on the floor this season and may push to be a fourth front-court player alongside Niang, Dustin Hogue, and the soon-to-be-eligible Jameel McKay.

Dec 2, 2014; Ames, IA, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Matt Thomas (21) dribbles the ball past Lamar Cardinals guard

(4) at James H. Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones won 96-59. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-USA TODAY Sports

Lamar was bottled up for most of the evening on defense. They committed a season-high 27 turnovers and really looked overwhelmed beyond the middle of the first-half. LeMon Gregory led the team with 13 points. Their best player, Tyran de Lattibeaudiere (great name, by the way), only played 11 minutes and scored three points thanks to terrific team-focus on D and foul trouble.

As far as my player preview is concerned, Long is probably going to remain the starter for the time being. He hit four threes and looked fine at his position, but he definitely needs to watch out for Thomas, who also hit four 3-pointers, but added three assists as well. This is looking like it could be a true position battle as the season drags on. Abdel Nader played fine, but is looking very much like Thomas did last year, mildly timid and not yet comfortable with his place on the court. He’ll get there.

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Otherwise it was excellent to see Clayton Custer, Georgios Tsalmpouris, and the rest of the gang play decent minutes. Custer and the Colossus both hit threes, dished an assist, and grabbed a rebound. I know I am not the only one anticipating the days these two are Cyclone fixtures.

However, there is no rest of the wicked as Arkansas comes to town Thursday night for one of the most anticipated games of the season. Check out this site often for game previews, predictions, and recaps and as always, “Go Cyclones!”