Men's Basketball Crushes Texas A&M, 72-53

COLLEGE STATION, Texas - Iowa State played one of its best games under the worst of conditions.

Jake Sullivan led a balanced offense with 14 points and the 17th-ranked Cyclones made 21 of 25 free throws in a 72-53 victory over Texas A&M on Sunday.

The Cyclones struggled with their emotions the day after 10 people, including two Oklahoma State basketball players, died in a plane crash while returning from a game in Colorado.

"It was far more than a somber day. I didn't sleep last night," Iowa State coach Larry Eustachy said. "I'm personally probably closer to the Oklahoma State program than I am with any other program in the conference. I cried a little bit, cried a lot. It's amazing."

"It's a tough, tough situation and our heart's pour out to them. It really does. It puts this game in perspective. We moved on, both teams, but we still have Oklahoma State on our minds."

The crowd at Reed Arena observed a moment of silence in honor of the crash victims.

"It just really shocked me. It made me realize you have to live your life every day," Cyclones forward Martin Rancik said. "We knew we had to concentrate on this game and come up with the win, but Oklahoma State was with us in the back of our minds."

The Cyclones (17-3, 5-2 Big 12) controlled the game from the start, hitting their first 11 free throws against the undersized Aggies (6-13, 0-7), who lost their seventh straight game and dropped to 0-5 against Iowa State.

Rancik finished with 13 points, while Jamaal Tinsley added 11 and Tyray Pearson had 10 for the Cyclones.

Bernard King led the Aggies with 21 points.

Iowa State has won four straight games since losing consecutive road games to Oklahoma State and Missouri.

"This was the best we've played in our last three games," Eustachy said. "I'm not talking about trying, we try. Texas A&M tried to the last second of this game, too. We're a tough team, but at times we don't think when we're playing.

"But it's disappointing because this is the smartest team we've ever had. I just want to get it through to the players because we're running out of time. The urgency should be just incredible."

The Cyclones went inside from the start and took advantage of A&M's foul trouble. Rancik made four free throws to start the game and followed with a basket and Iowa State pulled steadily into a commanding lead.

Iowa State finished the first half 16-of-18 at the free throw line. The Aggies made only three free throws in the first half and finished 10-of-13.

"We just did not play. No emotions," A&M coach Melvin Watkins said. "That's what's disappointing with this team. The minute you think we're getting closer, we come back home and totally do not show up ready to play.

"We do things to try and get them fired up, but boy we just didn't want to give it today. When we have efforts like this, it just blows your mind. We see it coming, too. Guys say 'Coach we're not ready."'

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Players Mentioned

Tyray Pearson

Tyray Pearson

Martin Rancik

Martin Rancik

Jake Sullivan

Jake Sullivan

Jamaal Tinsley

Jamaal Tinsley

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