Clones Confidential
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Lamar vs. Iowa State men’s basketball: Five players to watch

By Doug Winkey

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I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving weekend to relax and prepare for Tuesday night’s game against the Lamar Cardinals. Here are the players I am watching in the game.

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Lamar

Tyran de Lattibeaudiere (F, Sr., #5)

In addition to having a sweet name, he is also the team’s best player. So far he is averaging 15.3 points, 7.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. He also shoots 65 percent from the field without having attempted a three-pointer this season.

Even though he is listed at only 6’4″, he is clearly the do-everything Cardinal and will be the focal point for the D throughout the night. I think almost every Cyclone could end up defending him at times, but Georges Niang should be the primary man most of the evening.

After de Lattibeaudiere, the cupboard is fairly bare. Holliday is second in scoring with nine ppg, Ross is second in rebounding at 6.8 per contest, and Ross and Zjori Bosha shoot around 33 percent from distance, but average less than 8 points each. As much as I want to be fair, there just isn’t much to be afraid of from the team based on the season to this point.

Nov 25, 2014; Kansas City, MO, USA; Maryland Terrapins guard Richaud Pack (20) shoots the ball as Iowa State Cyclones guard Monte Morris (11) defends during the first half at Sprint Center. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports

Iowa State

Monte Morris (G, So., #11)

On Iowa State’s side, look for Morris to bounce back from his performance against Maryland. He only had one assist in that game and the team generally looked sluggish and uncompetitive. It’ll be up to the sophomore to deliver more and continue to command the team to its full potential.

Naz Long (G, Jr., #15)

Matt Thomas, Abdel Nader, and Long are also all on my list this week because I think there may be some shakeup on who starts of the three. Long has been the starter and fairly good, but I think he fades to the background on occasion and hasn’t shot as well this year when compared to last season.

Thomas has one good game and one bad, but has looked confident and versatile so far. And Nader has yet to impress and should be doing a lot more based on his incoming hype. All three should be able to perform well versus Lamar and solidify their places in the rotation.

Look for a big win Monday night and something to get everyone excited for the rest of the nonconference season.