Cyclones Drop Winston-Salem State In Opener

AMES, Iowa?Craig Brackins posted a double-double (13 points, 10 rebounds) in his freshman debut to pace Iowa State to a 58-44 victory over Winston-Salem State in its season-opener Friday night in Hilton Coliseum. Brackins became the first Cyclone rookie to post a double-double in his debut game.

"This game wasn't a thing of beauty," said Iowa State head coach Greg McDermott. "We are going to have nights like this, especially with Wesley Johnson out of the lineup. Without him, we have to get guys to step up. I thought Cory Johnson gave us a big lift off the bench in the second half. We needed Craig (Brackins) to have a big game, and I talked to him before the game about having a good post presence tonight. There is an outside chance that Wesley will play tomorrow night."

Winston-Salem State held an early 13-12 lead at the 9:53 mark behind a pair of deep treys from Darrell Wonge. The Cyclones struggled to find their rhythm in the early going, committing five quick turnovers and four fouls. ISU had to play the game without its leader Wesley Johnson, who was sidelined with a sprained ankle.

Diante Garrett found Jiri Hubalek for a hoop followed by a conventional 3-point play by Garrett and a fast-break dunk by Rahshon Clark to put ISU on top 26-18 with 1:24 remaining in the opening period. After a 3-pointer by WSSU's Brian Fisher, Garrett ended the half with a last-second lay-in to give the Cyclones a 28-21 edge at the break. ISU closed the half on a 12-3 run.

The Cyclones shot just 41.4 percent in the opening period and misfired on all six attempts from beyond the arc. The Rams made just 21.9 percent in the first half, but connected on 5-of-16 shots from downtown. Brackins grabbed nine rebounds in the first half alone, as ISU held a 24-18 edge on the boards at intermission.

Fisher drained two treys in the opening minutes of the second half, as WSSU cut ISU's lead to 30-27. Back-to-back baskets by Michael Puckett and Jamal Durham edged the Rams closer at 32-31 with 13:24 left in the game. The Cyclones roared back with nine-straight points behind a pair of baskets from Cory Johnson to establish a 10-point lead (41-31) with 9:37 left.

The Rams would not go away, however, cutting ISU's lead to 47-42 behind a pair of treys from Wonge with 2:45 left. The Cyclones then rallied with two-straight baskets from Clark and Johnson to put the game away. Johnson came off the bench to score 10 second half points for the Cyclones.

Hubalek, who played for the first time this season after missing both exhibition games with a broken foot, scored nine points and grabbed a career-high 13 rebounds in the win. The Cyclones blocked 10 shots in the game, marking the first time they reached double digits in blocks since swatting 10 against Drake on Nov. 23, 2004. ISU could not find the mark from the outside, missing all 12 of its 3-point attempts, ending its 63-game streak of making at least one 3-pointer.

The Cyclones will battle Centenary in the championship game of the Cyclone Challenge tomorrow night at 8 p.m. Centenary was a 72-69 winner over Lipscomb in the opening game of the tournament.

Game Notes
- Freshman Craig Brackins started in the first game of his career...it marked the sixth season in a row where the Cyclones started a true freshman in the season opener.
- Brackins became the first Cyclone freshman to record a double-double in his debut...he had 13 points and 10 rebounds.
- ISU started three newcomers in its season opener (Craig Brackins, Sean Haluska, Bryan Petersen).
- Iowa State is now 81-20 in home openers.
- Iowa State is now 13-1 all-time against teams from the MEAC Conference.
- The Cyclones ended its 63-game streak of making a 3-pointer by going 0-for-12...the last time ISU did not make a trey was Feb. 12, 2005 vs. Texas Tech.
- ISU recorded 10 blocks, tallying 10 or more swats for the first time since blocking 10 shots vs. Drake on Nov. 23, 2004, also a season-opener.
- Jiri Hubalek tallied a career-high 13 boards.

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Team Stats

Craig Brackins

Diante Garrett

Rahshon Clark

Cory Johnson

Players Mentioned

Craig Brackins

Rahshon Clark

Rahshon Clark

Diante Garrett

Sean Haluska

Jiri Hubalek

Jiri Hubalek

Cory Johnson

Cory Johnson

Wesley Johnson

Wesley Johnson

Bryan Petersen

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