Iowa State junior Mike Taylor has made an immediate impact in his first season as a Cyclone. Taylor, a 6-2 guard from Milwaukee, Wis., has proved to be one of the top long-range marksmen in the Big 12 Conference.
Taylor's ability to knock down 3-pointers at an efficient rate has forced Cyclone opponents to put Taylor No. 1 on their scouting report. Taylor has drilled 51 treys this season to already rank No. 14 on ISU's single-season 3-pointers made chart and his 2.68 3-pointer made per game ranks fourth among all Big 12 players.
His knack to heat up from the outside in a hurry has excited Cyclone fans this season. In ISU's first road trip at Minnesota, Taylor hit six 3-pointers en route to a career-high 33 points to help ISU defeat the Gophers. He has made six treys in a game two other times this season (Lake Superior State; Nebraska) to rank as the eighth-best single-game efforts in school history.
“When Mike is successful at hitting his shots, we have a great chance to win,” ISU head coach Greg McDermott said. “When Mike is making 3-point shots and getting into the paint, that sets a tone for the rest of our offense, because they have to do something to slow Mike down.”
Most fans would be shocked to know that Taylor never considered himself a good outside shooter until a year ago. Taylor used to rely on his outstanding quickness and athletic ability to help him score points when he was named Milwaukee Public League Player of the Year in 2004 out of Marshall High School. It wasn't until his second season at junior college power Chipola JC (Marianna, Fla.) where he developed his shooting touch.
“Coming from high school to junior college, I probably shot about 13 3-pointers my first season at Chipola,” Taylor said. “That summer before my sophomore year, I was up every morning at 6 a.m., shooting 3-pointers trying to get my stroke down. I did what I had to do to get to this level.”
His hard work paid off, as evident with his success in his sophomore season where he made drastic improvement. Taylor drilled 48-of-120 3-pointers (40 percent) to help his team earn a No. 1 junior college national ranking. He has continued his pace as a Cyclone, hitting at an impressive 38.6 percent clip (51-of-132) this season.
“When you are in the ?groove,' it is one of the best feelings in basketball besides winning,” Taylor added. “It goes back to all of the practice you put in. When you shoot so many shots a day, you expect to make most of them.”
