Dustin Hogue block helps Iowa State defeat Oklahoma State (VIDEO)
By Brian Spaen
Iowa State basketball was able to survive in their Big 12 opener against Oklahoma State thanks to a Dustin Hogue block and his late game heroics.
After another night that started off with scoring woes from the Cyclones, Hogue emerged in the second half and did work on both sides of the ball. He finished with a team-high 17 points and added eight rebounds. While he didn’t make a free throw (0-2), he certainly made it up by hitting three of the team’s seven made 3-pointers. He also had this incredible dunk as Oklahoma State, down by two, was desperate for a game-winning shot.
Georges Niang didn’t have a great day from the field again hitting on just 3-of-12 field goal attempts and missing all five 3-pointers, but he had the second block right after Hogue’s swat. It didn’t help that the Cowboys had to force up a shot with just .9 seconds remaining.
At the start of the game, it looked like Iowa State was going to have another very cold night shooting from the perimeter. They made just 1-of-18 3-pointers against South Carolina on Saturday and missed the first eight attempts in Tuesday night’s game. However, the team finally took off the lid and made four straight and eventually hit 50 percent down the stretch.
Eventually, the “Hoiball” that we all know and love came to fruition. Monte Morris struggled from the field as well but made up for it with six assists to one turnover. The Cyclones had 16 assists on 25 field goals made.
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Questions still surround Bryce Dejean-Jones, who made up for his limited offensive production with a team-high nine rebounds. But he went just 2-for-7 from the field (although he did hit a 3-pointer) and finished with six points. Again, his minutes on the floor (21) took a hit, and was out there for the smallest amount of time among other starters.
Quick notes
- Naz Long has made a 3-pointer in every game, but has really slid by. He was the only Cyclone that made one against the Gamecocks and had just one again vs. OSU. He is now 2-for-10 in his last two games.
- Matt Thomas had his best night of the season. He missed just two shots (4-for-6), made two 3-pointers to spark the team before half, and finished with 10 points.
- Iowa State took my gameplan to heart — let Le’Bryan Nash and Phil Forte III do all the work and limit everybody else. Both Nash and Forte had a combined 40 points. The rest of the team had 21.