Cyclones Travel to No. 4 Ohio State

Iowa State (7-4) at No. 4 Ohio State (9-1)

Dec. 19, 2006 ? 7 p.m. ? Columbus, Ohio ? Value City Arena (18,500)

Radio: Cyclone Radio Network; John Walters (pxp), Eric Heft (color)

Television: Cyclone Television Network; Bill Doleman (pxp), Mark Adams (color)

Television Affiliates: WOI (Des Moines/Ames), KWKB (Cedar Rapids/Waterloo), KCAU (Sioux City), Mediacom (Mason City, Quad Cities), Cox Cable (Omaha/Council Bluffs)

The Iowa State-Ohio State game will be available on the ESPN Fullcourt package.

Gameday Quick Facts

Iowa State (7-4) travels to Ohio State (9-1) to face the fourth-ranked Buckeyes...it marks the first time this year where ISU played a ranked team...OSU is the third Big Ten opponent on ISU's schedule, playing all three on the road...ISU defeated Minnesota (68-63) and lost to Iowa (77-59)...the Cyclones are coming off a 76-66 loss to Bradley in the Mediacom Cyclone Capital Classic in Des Moines...it was the fifth game in a row where ISU played without center Ross Marsden, who is battling a case of mono...his status for Tuesday is still day-to-day...senior Jessan Gray suffered a broken nose in the Savannah State game...he played one minute against Bradley.

ISU Against Rated Opponents

ISU is 68-191 all-time against ranked opponents (ranked at tip)...Ohio State, ranked No. 4, is the first ranked opponent ISU has faced this season...ISU's last win against a ranked opponent was a 96-79 win over No. 25 Colorado on Feb. 5, 2006...25 of ISU's 68 wins vs. ranked opponents have occurred against top-10 teams...ISU is 7-95 vs. ranked teams on the road...ISU's last win against a ranked team on the road was a 63-61 overtime victory over Kansas on Feb. 19, 2005...ISU head coach Greg McDermott has never faced a ranked opponent while at Iowa State...he was 2-1 vs. ranked opponents in his final season with Northern Iowa last year, defeating No. 12 Iowa (67-63) and No. 24 Bucknell (65-61), both in overtime, and falling to No. 23 Georgetown (54-49) in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

Cyclone-Buckeye Quick Facts

Iowa State has never beaten an Ohio State team, owning an 0-4 lifetime mark...the teams met in a home and home in 1965 and 1966, as the Cyclone lost in Columbus 87-70 and then fell to the Buckeyes in the Armory 79-77...the next meeting between the two teams was a 75-64 defeat in the first round of the 1985 NCAA Tournament in Tulsa...the Buckeyes, who were coached by future Northern Iowa head coach Eldon Miller, were led by Ron Stokes, who scored 21 points (7-10 FG, 7-7 FT)...Stokes is currently the color man for OSU's basketball radio network...Miller would later coach ISU head coach Greg McDermott when he was a player at Northern Iowa...ISU fell to Ohio State in last season's Mediacom Cyclone Capital Classic, 70-67 in the Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines...McDermott has never faced Ohio State in his career and is 4-4 all-time against Big Ten teams (Iowa, 3-3; Minnesota, 1-0; Wisconsin, 0-1)...OSU head coach Thad Matta is 1-1 against Iowa State...in his final season as head coach at Xavier, the Cyclones defeated the Musketeers, 68-61 on Dec. 23, 2003...the Musketeers advanced to the Elite Eight that season...OSU's athletic director Gene Smith was Iowa State's athletic director from 1993-2000.

Cyclone Update

Iowa State dropped its fourth game in the last five against Bradley Saturday, falling to the Braves 76-66 in the Mediacom Cyclone Capital Classic in Des Moines...ISU fell behind by as many as 14 points in the second half, but battled back to five points late in the game...Bradley shot 50.9 percent from the field, the first time this season where ISU allowed an opponent to shoot over 50 percent from the floor...ISU was once again led by true freshman Wesley Johnson, who posted a career-high 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds...it was Johnson's fifth double-double of the season, which leads the Big 12 Conference...Johnson, who was 6-of-10 from the field and 2-of-4 from 3-point range against the Braves, has scored in double figures in six consecutive games, averaging 15.0 points in that span...ISU continued its improvement on the boards, outrebounding Bradley, 34-30...ISU has outrebounded its last three opponents by a +11.3 margin and has only been outrebounded three times in 11 games this season...Rahshon Clark tallied 11 points, eight boards, two blocks and two steals in the loss...Clark, who has grabbed eight or more rebounds in 10 of 11 games this season, moved past Stevie Johnson to 16th-place on ISU's career steal list (108)...he is also now tied for 10th on ISU's career blocked shot chart with 62...Clark is currently second in the Big 12 in rebounding at 8.9 rpg...Mike Taylor added 13 points for the Cyclones, going 6-of-16 from the field...Taylor has scored in double figures in eight of 11 games this season and has a team-high 26 3-pointers, making a trey in seven consecutive games.

# 4 Ohio State (9-1)

No. 4 Ohio State is one of the top teams in the nation, suffering just one blemish, a 98-89 defeat at North Carolina in its only road game of the season...that game was the last played before highly-touted recruit Greg Oden came back after sitting out with a wrist injury...Ohio State is fresh off a 72-50 win over Cincinnati in Indianapolis, Ind...the Buckeyes held a 42-14 advantage at the half...Oden had 14 points, 11 boards and five blocks to lead OSU...Oden, a 6-11 center from Indianapolis, Ind., has played in three games, averaging 14.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.3 blocks and shooting 89.5 percent from the field...the Buckeyes are led by senior guard Ron Lewis, who is averaging 16.1 points and hitting 45.1 percent from 3-point range...Lewis scored 13 points against ISU last season in the Wells Fargo Arena and scored a career-high 30 points in the North Carolina loss...another highly-touted freshman, Daequan Cook, has been impressive in his rookie season...Cook is averaging 15.6 points and connecting on 48.8 percent from 3-point range...freshman guard Mike Conley Jr., who was high school teammates with Oden at Lawrence North in Indianapolis, is also having an outstanding rookie season...Conley is averaging 9.2 points and has dished out a team-high 65 assists...OSU is shooting 51.6 percent from the field and outrebounding its opponents, 37.9-33.6.

Iowa State Team Quick Facts

? Iowa State has just four returning scholarship players from last season.

? 63.5 percent of the minutes played (1398) in ISU's 11 games were by newcomers on the roster.

? 66.9 percent of ISU's points this season (494) are from players who did not play a minute last year.

? ISU's 6-0 start tied for the fifth-best start in school history...only nine teams in school history had won its first six games.

? ISU head coach Greg McDermott is one of two coaches in ISU history to win his first six games at the helm.

? ISU head coach Greg McDermott is the first native Iowan to coach the Cyclone men's basketball team since Clayton Sutherland (1948-54)...McDermott is from Cascade; Sutherland was from Nashua.

? McDermott entered the season with the 41st-best winning percentage among active Division I coaches.

? Wesley Johnson broke Will Blalock's school-record for standing vertical leap at 34 inches...Blalock's record was at 33 1/2 inches...Johnson also had a 41-inch step vertical leap to break the school record.

? ISU head coach Greg McDermott is in his first season with the Cyclones, but he is already the seventh-longest tenured coach in the Big 12...of the six new coaches in the league (Mike Anderson, Missouri; Bob Huggins, Kansas State; Doc Sadler, Nebraska; Jeff Capel, Oklahoma; Sean Sutton, Oklahoma State; Greg McDermott, Iowa State), McDermott was the first to be hired.

? ESPN.com picked Hilton Coliseum as the "Hot Arena" in the Big 12...coaches in the league noted that, "regardless of talent, the Cyclones have a home court like no other."

? ISU junior college transfers Corey McIntosh and Mike Taylor have witnessed a ton of success in their collegiate playing career...McIntosh tallied a 59-9 record in his two seasons in JC ball, while Taylor recorded a 62-8 mark in his two seasons at Chipola JC...the pair posted a combined 121-17 record in their two years in junior college.

? ISU held Louisiana-Monroe to 27.3 percent from the field, the first time a Cyclone opponent was held under 30 percent shooting since Dec. 31, 2002 (Arkansas-Pine Bluff).

? 11 different Cyclones have made a 3-pointer this season.

? ISU hit a season-high 11 treys vs. Lake Superior State, tying for the 15th-best single-game total in ISU history.

? ISU has recorded two games with 10 or more 3-pointers this year.

? ISU tallied a season-high nine blocks vs. Northern Iowa, the most since blocking 10 against Drake (11-23-04).

? ISU has made a 3-pointer in 43 consecutive games.

? ISU ranks fourth in the Big 12 in rebounding (38.1 rpg) and rebounding margin (+4.7).

? ISU has outrebounded its last three opponents, 115-81, a +11.3 average margin.

? ISU has shot more free-throws than its opponents in eight of 11 games this year.

? ISU has outshot its opponents from the free-throw line, 163-79 in home games...but is getting outshot at the charity stripe, 60-32 in away games.

? ISU is 5-0 when ahead at the half and when it shoots better than its opponent.

? ISU is holding its opponents to 40.9 percent from the field.

? Only four teams (Northern Iowa, Drake, Iowa & Bradley) has scored 70 or more points against ISU this season...22 teams scored 70 or more points against the Cyclones last season.

? ISU ranks in the top-20 nationally in least amount of fouls per game (14.9)...only two teams (Northern Iowa & Iowa) have committed less fouls than ISU in a game this year.

Getting To The Line

In the preseason, Greg McDermott talked about the importance of getting to the free-throw line to increase your chances to win...so far, so good for ISU, as the Cyclones have been able to capitalize at the free-throw line...ISU has attempted more free-throw attempts than its opponent in eight of 11 games this season, holding a 213-156 (+5.2) advantage at the charity stripe...what a difference from last season when the Cyclones were outshot at the foul line, 735-548 (-6.2)...Minnesota, Northern Iowa and Iowa - ISU's three road games - are the only teams to shoot more free throws than ISU.

Don't Foul!

Keeping fouls at a minimum has allowed ISU to have an advantage at the free-throw line this season...the Cyclones currently rank in the top-20 nationally in fewest fouls per game at 14.9...the Cyclones have had just one player foul out of a game this season compared to last year when a Cyclone fouled out 22 times...in 22 halves this season, the Cyclones have allowed their opponents to have just six double-bonus situations (10 fouls) at the free-throw line...only two teams this season (Northern Iowa & Iowa) has tallied more fouls than ISU.

Hitting The Boards

Iowa State has made a vast improvement in rebounding compared to last year when the Cyclones were outrebounded 19 times...ISU currently has a +4.7 margin (38.1-33.4) over its opponents in rebounding to rank fourth in the league...the Cyclones have only been outrebounded three times this season (UC Riverside, Eastern Illinois & Northern Iowa)...ISU has outboarded its last four opponents for a +8.7 average margin.

Clark Is The Leader

Junior Rahshon Clark is the undisputed leader of the Cyclone team...now in his third-year as a starter and first year as team captain, Clark is ISU's most experienced and most seasoned player...he brings to the table incredible athleticism and jumping ability...the junior has drastically improved his rebounding, leading the team on the boards at 8.9 rpg, which ranks second in the Big 12 and top-50 nationally...his long arms and quick jumping ability allows him to outrebound bigger and stronger opponents...Clark has tallied eight or more rebounds in 10 of 11 games this season, including four double-digit rebounding efforts (12-Eastern Illinois, 11-Minnesota, 10-Northern Iowa, 11-Iowa)...he has two double-doubles on the season.

Taylor Made

Mike Taylor's high-energy style of play and outstanding shooting has excited ISU fans so far in the young season...he can stretch the defense with his range and explode to the hoop with his quickness...he tallied one of the greatest second halves in ISU history vs. Minnesota, recording 25 of his career-high 33 points after intermission...he tallied a career-high six 3-pointers, all in the second half vs. the Gophers...he followed that game with 22 points in the first half vs. Lake Superior State, drilling his first six treys...dating back to the Minnesota game, he had a streak of nine consecutive 3-pointers made...he leads the team in scoring (15.0), 3-pointers (26) and assists (50)...Taylor ranks 10th in the Big 12 in scoring (15.0 ppg) and eighth in assists (4.8).

Taylor's Incredible Run Earns Him Big 12 Co-Rookie Of The Week Honors

Mike Taylor posted arguably the greatest back-to-back half performances in school history against Minnesota and Lake Superior State, helping him earn Big 12 Co-Rookie of the Week honors...in the second half vs. Minnesota, Taylor had 25 points and six treys...he answered that performance in his next game, tallying 22 points and six treys in the first half vs. Lake Superior State...at one point, Taylor had a string of nine consecutive 3-pointers made...here is a closer look at his consecutive half performances:

Taylor Ties Single-Game Scoring Mark For First-Year Cyclones

Mike Taylor had a career night vs. Minnesota, pouring in 33 points to help ISU down the Gophers...Taylor's 33 points vs. Minnesota ties the school record for most points scored in a game by a Cyclone in their first season on the team.

Wesley Johnson- A Diamond In The Rough

True freshman Wesley Johnson has done a fantastic job early in his rookie season at ISU...Johnson has started all 11 games, averaging 12.6 ppg and 7.8 rpg...Johnson had fallen through the recruiting cracks after his prep school shut down in his senior season, thus not playing basketball in his final year...ISU assistant coach Jean Prioleau had recruited him when he was an assistant at Wichita State...when Prioleau was hired at ISU and the Cyclones needed players late in the March 2006 signing period, Prioleau contacted Johnson and convinced him to come to ISU...Johnson leads the team and the Big 12 with five double-doubles this season...he also leads ISU in blocks with 15, recording a career-high three vs. Norfolk State and Northern Iowa...he ranks 10 in the league in blocked shots (1.36 bpg)...he has recorded a block in eight of 11 games this season...despite his lack of size, Wesley's incredible leaping ability allows him to be an effective offensive rebounder...38 of his 86 rebounds have come on the offensive end, averaging 3.4 offensive rebounds per game, which ranks second in the Big 12...he has scored in double figures in nine of 11 games this season...in his last six games, he is averaging 15.0 points...in his last seven games he has connected on 56.8 percent from the field (33-58 FG)...he has recorded a double-double in three of his last four games, with the one game he didn't (at Iowa), he was one rebound shy of a double-double.

Johnson A Fast Starter

Wesley Johnson has proven to be a fast starter for the Cyclones...in half of ISU's games this year, he has been the main production in scoring immediately following tip-off...here is a look at Johnson's fast starts:Eastern Illinois- scored ISU's first six pointsNorfolk State- scored five of ISU's first eight pointsMinnesota- scored five of ISU's first seven pointsIowa-scored ISU's first nine pointsSavannah State-scored ISU's first five pointsBradley-scored ISU's first four points

70 Is The Magic Number

Keeping the opposition from getting into a high-scoring game increases ISU's chances of winning...ISU is 7-0 this season when its opponents score under 70 points...ISU has given up 70 points four times to its opponents so far this, all Cyclone losses (Northern Iowa-70, Drake-80, Iowa-77, Bradley-76).

Players Mentioned

Will Blalock

Rahshon Clark

Rahshon Clark

Jessan Gray

Jessan Gray

Wesley Johnson

Ross Marsden

Ross Marsden

Corey McIntosh

Mike Taylor

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