ISU Returns Home To Face Baylor

Iowa State (11-10, 2-5) vs. Baylor (12-9, 2-6)

Feb. 3, 2007 ? 5 p.m. ? Ames, Iowa ? Hilton Coliseum (14,356)

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

Television: Cyclone Television Network; Bill Doleman (pxp), Kelly Hanfelt (color)

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

Gameday Quick Facts

Iowa State (11-10, 2-5) takes on its third-straight Big 12 South opponent, playing host to Baylor (12-9, 2-6) Saturday evening in Hilton Coliseum...the Cyclones will try and end their five-game losing streak, their first five-game skid since losing their first five games in the conference at the beginning of the 2004-05 season...ISU has not lost six conference games in a row since losing eight-straight in the 2001-02 season...ISU is 9-3 at home this season...junior Rahshon Clark is 67.8 percent (19-of-28) from the field in his career vs. Baylor, averaging 14.3 points and 6.3 rebounds in three games against the Bears.

Cyclone-Bear Quick Facts

Iowa State leads the all-time series against Baylor at 9-6, one of five Big 12 opponents ISU owns the series lead over (Texas Tech, Texas, Texas A&M and Colorado are the others)...ISU has never lost to Baylor in Ames, owning a 6-0 mark...all six games were played in Hilton Coliseum...Baylor is the only team in the Big 12 that ISU has an undefeated home mark against...Baylor head coach Scott Drew, who is now in his fourth season at BU, is 2-2 all-time against Iowa State...ISU head coach Greg McDermott has never faced Baylor or head coach Scott Drew...Drew was an assistant coach at Valparaiso for his father Homer from 1998-2002...he replaced his father as head coach for one season (2002-03) at Valpo and then left for Baylor for the 2003-04 season...his father then took over the reins of the program again...McDermott defeated Valparaiso, coached by Drew's father, in the 2004-05 season, 67-49...Baylor has seven players from Texas on its roster...the Cyclones have three players from Texas (Wesley Johnson, Chris Ceaser and Jeff Bergstrom) on their roster.

Cyclone Update

Iowa State lost to its second consecutive ranked opponent and dropped its fifth-straight game on Wednesday, falling 73-49 at No. 10 Texas A&M...ISU shot a season-low 30.9 percent from the field and committed 21 turnovers, its fifth 20-turnover game of the season...the Aggies raced out to an 18-3 lead, as ISU had 10 turnovers in the first 11 minutes of the game...the Cyclones were led by freshman Wesley Johnson, who tallied 17 points, including 13 in the first half...Johnson went 7-of-11 from the field and tied a career high with three 3-pointers...it was Johnson's 16th double-digit scoring outing of the season...Johnson has made 19 3-pointers on the season to rank eighth on ISU's freshman 3-pointers made chart...he currently ranks second in the Big 12 in rebounding at 8.9 rpg and has the second-best rebounding average among all NCAA freshmen...Mike Taylor recorded 13 points, six boards and five assists in the loss...Taylor made one 3-pointer to give him 54 on the season, ranking 13th on ISU's single-season 3-pointers made chart...Taylor has now made a 3-pointer in 17 consecutive games, the second-longest 3-pointer made streak in school history...the school mark is 21 games in a row held by Dedric Willoughby (1996-97)...Taylor, who leads the team in scoring at 16.4 ppg, has made a 3-pointer in 20 of 21 games this season...he has scored in double figures in 11 consecutive games and has failed to tally 10 points in a game just three times this season...ISU continued its outstanding work on the boards, outrebounding the Aggies, 40-37...ISU has outrebounded 11 of its last 14 opponents by a +5.0 margin...Cory Johnson, Jiri Hubalek and Taylor all had six boards to pace the Cyclones on the glass...Cory Johnson added six points on 2-of-4 shooting from the field...the rookie leads ISU in field goal percentage at 54.7 percent (35-64 FG)...the Cyclones held TAMU to 41.7 percent shooting...the Cyclones have held their opponents to 42.3 percent from the field in Big 12 play...ISU has allowed just eight teams to score over 70 points this season, going 1-7 in those games.

Baylor (12-9, 2-6)

Baylor (12-9, 2-6) will be ISU's third-straight Big 12 South opponent...ISU has never lost to BU in Ames, owning a 6-0 mark in games played in Hilton Coliseum...the Bears won their second league game of the season on Tuesday, defeating Colorado, 97-83 in Waco...Henry Dugat led the Bears against the Buffaloes, tallying 19 points (8-9 FG) and nine boards...the Colorado win was on the heels of a close loss to Texas (84-79) in Austin...BU features an extremely young lineup, with no seniors in the top-five...junior Aaron Bruce, the 2005 Big 12 Freshman of the Year, is one of the best shooters in the league...Bruce, a native of Horsham, Victoria, Australia, was a member of Australia's senior national team that tied for ninth in the 2006 FIBA World Championship...Bruce is averaging 12.2 ppg and has made 161 career 3-pointers...Bruce drilled six treys in a 73-70 win over Texas Tech and had five 3-pointers en route to a team-high 25 points in the loss against Texas...he needs 11 points (989) to join Baylor's 1,000-point club...sophomore point guard Curtis Jerrells leads the team in scoring (12.6 ppg) and assists (3.9 apg)...Jerrells, who made the Big 12 all-Freshman team a year ago, ranks eighth in the Big 12 in assists (3.9 apg)...sophomore Kevin Rogers is averaging 12.3 ppg and has a team-high 7.6 rpg average...the 6-9, 235-pound Dallas native is averaging 9.9 rebounds in conference play to rank third in the league...freshman guard Tweety Carter has made an immediate impact for the Bears this season, averaging 9.3 ppg...Carter, a 2006 McDonald's All-American, has the second-most treys for Big 12 freshman with 30...he scored a career-high 31 points on 7-of-12 shooting from beyond the arc in Baylor's 94-71 loss at Syracuse...7-0 center Mamadou Diene, a native of of Yeumbeul, Senegal, is one of the best shot-blockers in the Big 12...he ranks second in the Big 12 in blocks at 1.8 bpg...he missed the last two games while battling knee and ankle injuries...Baylor has four players who have made 30 or more 3-pointers this season, as the Bears rank second in the Big 12 in 3-pointers made per game (8.2 3FG per game)...the Bears' 76.0 ppg scoring average ranks fifth in the Big 12.

Iowa State Team Quick Facts

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

? 64.3 percent of the minutes played (2717) this season are by newcomers on the roster.

? 65.9 percent of ISU's points this season (906) 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 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."

? Iowa State's student spirit group for men's basketball is called "Cyclone Alley"...a record number of over 3,000 students are members of Cyclone Alley, where the students sit behind both ends of the baskets.

? 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 tied the school record by making 13 treys (13-25, 52.0 percent) vs. SEMO, including 11 in the first half.

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

? ISU ranks fifth in the Big 12 in 3-pointers per game (6.81 3FG).

? ISU is sixth in the Big 12 (league games only) in 3-pointers made per game (6.29).

? 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 53 consecutive games.

? ISU ranks fifth in the Big 12 in rebounding margin (+4.1).

? ISU has outrebounded 11 of its last 14 opponents, 530-460 a +5.0 average margin.

? ISU has outshot its opponents from the free-throw line, 268-174 in home games...but is getting outshot at the charity stripe, 164-91 in away games.

? Only eight teams (Northern Iowa, Drake, Iowa, Bradley, Ohio State, Southeast Missouri State, Colorado, Texas A&M) have scored 70 or more points against ISU this season...22 teams scored 70 or more points against ISU last season.

? ISU ranks 22nd nationally in least amount of fouls per game (16.0)...only six teams (Northern Iowa, Iowa, Kansas, Colorado, Kansas State, Oklahoma State) have committed less fouls than ISU in a game this year.

? ISU has made seven or more 3-pointers in a game this year 10 times.

? ISU is 8-0 when outshooting its opponent.

? ISU has held its last eight opponents to 40.5 percent from the field (185-456).

? In ISU's seven Big 12 games, the Cyclones are averaging 9.8 turnovers (69) in the first half and 5.0 turnovers (35) in the second half.

? ISU is 0-3 when having the lead at the half in Big 12 games...ISU is 2-2 when its opponents have the lead at the half in Big 12 games.

? ISU is last in the Big 12 in field goal percentage (league games only) at 37.5 percent.

? In ISU's seven Big 12 games, only five players have made 10 or more field goals.

? ISU is 33.1 percent (56-169 FG) from the field in its last three games.

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 22nd nationally in fewest fouls per game at 16.0...the Cyclones have had just four players foul out of a game this season compared to last year when a Cyclone fouled out 22 times...in 42 halves this season, the Cyclones have allowed their opponents to have just 13 double-bonus situations (10 fouls) at the free-throw line...only six teams this season (Northern Iowa, Iowa, Ohio State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State) have tallied less 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 +4.1 margin (38.0-33.9) over its opponents in rebounding to rank sixth in the league...the Cyclones have only been outrebounded six times this season (UC Riverside, Eastern Illinois, Northern Iowa, Ohio State, Kansas, Colorado)...ISU has outboarded 11 of its last 14 opponents for a +5.0 average margin...ISU has not finished a season with a positive rebounding margin since 2003-04.

3-Point Attack

Iowa State currently ranks fifth in the Big 12 in 3-pointers made per game at 6.8 and is sixth in league games only at 6.29...five times this season the Cyclones have made 10 or more 3-pointers in a game, including a school-record-tying 13 against Southeast Missouri State...the Cyclones are on pace to break the school mark of 3-pointers made in a season set by last year's team with 201...ISU currently has 143...the 2005-06 squad tallied 10 or more 3-pointers in a game six times...ISU has made seven or more 3-pointers in a game 10 times this season.

Second Half Comebacks

Iowa State has won two road games this season (Minnesota and Missouri), both in dramatic fashion, rallying from double-digit second half deficits...in the Minnesota game, ISU rallied from a 10-point deficit at the 16:58 mark in the second period...Mike Taylor scored 25 points after intermission to aid the comeback...against Missouri, the Cyclones were down by 16 points (44-28 with 15:14 left in the game) before staging their second-best second-half comeback in school history...it ranks second to ISU's come-from-behind win against No. 2 Oklahoma State (84-83 ot) on Feb. 15, 1992...ISU was down by 18 points in the second half in that game...freshmen Dodie Dunson and Wesley Johnson were the keys to the comeback against Mizzou...Dunson scored 16 and Johnson tallied 12 points in the second half...Johnson scored four points in the final :11 seconds, including the game-winner with a putback with :01.6 left on the clock.

70 Is The Magic Number

Keeping the opposition from getting into a high-scoring game increases ISU's chances of winning...ISU is 10-3 this season when its opponents score under 70 points...ISU has given up 70 points eight times to its opponents this season, going 1-7 in those games.

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, ranking second on the team at 6.8 rpg, which ranks ninth in the Big 12...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 21 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 this 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 (16.4), 3-pointers (54), assists (89) and steals (25)...he also has a team-high seven 20-point games...Taylor ranks eighth in the Big 12 in scoring (16.4 ppg) and sixth in assists (4.24)...three times this season Taylor has made six 3-pointers in a game, all tying for eighth on ISU's single game record list...Taylor's 54 3-pointers ranks 13th in school history...he is currently riding a 17-game streak of making at least one 3-pointer...the streak ranks second all-time in school history.

Taylor Earns Big 12 Rookie Of The Week Honors Twice

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...he earned his second Big 12 ROW honor after averaging 21.0 points and drilling 10 treys as ISU split games vs. Nebraska and Kansas...Taylor was 6-of-10 from downtown vs. Nebraska to record his third 6-trey game of the season.

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 in a game by a Cyclone in their first season on the team.

Taylor's 3-Point Streak

Mike Taylor has made a 3-pointer in an impressive 17 consecutive games...out of 21 games this season, Taylor has been shut out from beyond the arc just once...Taylor's mark of making a trey in 17 consecutive games is the second-best streak all-time in the Cyclone annals.

Wesley Johnson- A Diamond In The Rough

True freshman Wesley Johnson has done a fantastic job early in his rookie season at ISU...if it wasn't for the amazing play of Texas freshman Kevin Durant, he would be considered the frontrunner for Big 12 Freshman of the Year...Johnson has started all 21 games, averaging 12.3 ppg and 8.9 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 ranks second in the Big 12 (behind Durant) with 10 double-doubles this season...he has recorded a double-double in eight of his last 14 games...he ranks second in the Big 12 (again behind Durant) in rebounding at 9.2 rpg...despite his lack of size, Wesley's incredible leaping ability allows him to be an effective offensive rebounder...81 of his 187 rebounds have come on the offensive end, averaging 3.86 offensive rebounds per game, which is tops in the league...none of his offensive rebounds was bigger than his putback on a miss in the last second to help ISU defeat Missouri, 66-65 in the Big 12 Conference opener...he posted a career-high 14 rebounds vs. Colorado, tying for the fourth-best single-game freshman rebounding effort in school history...he has scored in double figures in 16 of 21 games this season...he has recorded double-digits on the boards in 10 of his last 14 games...in Big 12 games only, he is averaging 12.6 ppg and 9.9 rpg.

Johnson Among Best Freshmen Rebounders

Wesley Johnson currently ranks second in the Big 12 and 27th nationally in rebounding at 8.9 rpg...his rebounding average ranks second among all NCAA Division I freshmen as of 1-28-07...here is a look at the top freshmen rebounders this season:

Johnson Racking Up Double-Doubles

Wesley Johnson already has 10 double-doubles in 21 games in his rookie season to rank second in the Big 12 Conference...Johnson is tied with Dean Uthoff for the most double-doubles by an ISU freshman...Uthoff had 10 double-doubles in his rookie season in 1976-77...Uthoff is ISU's and the Big Eight's all-time leading rebounder...here is a look at the most ISU freshman double-doubles in school history since freshmen became eligible by the NCAA in the mid-1970s:

Johnson Trying To Become Third Cyclone To Start Every Game As A Rookie

True freshman Wesley Johnson got the starting nod in ISU's season-opening game vs. UC-Riverside and has been in the Cyclones' top-five ever since...he is trying to become just the third Cyclone freshman in school history to start every game of their rookie campaign...Ron Harris, who started every game of his four-year Cyclone career (111 games), started all 27 games of ISU's 1980-81 season en route to Big Eight Freshman of the Year honors...Adam Haluska played just one season at Iowa State, but started all 31 games in his rookie season with the Cyclones in 2002-03...Haluska, who transferred to Iowa after the season ended, was named to the 2003 Big 12 all-Freshman team...Curtis Stinson was close to joining the list in his freshman year in 2003-04, but he missed one start in ISU's 33 games that year en route to Big 12 Freshman of the Year honors...his only missed start was on "senior night" in ISU's last home game that season.

Johnson Honored By Big 12 Twice

Iowa State freshman forward Wesley Johnson has earned two Big 12 awards this season, claiming Big 12 Player of the Week Honors (Dec. 18) and earning Big 12 Rookie of the Week accolades (Jan. 8)...he posted a pair of double-doubles to help him earn Big 12 Player of the Week honors for games played from Dec. 11-17...Johnson was just the third freshman in Big 12 history to win player of the week honors, following Mario Chalmers of Kansas (Feb. 13, 2006) and Oklahoma's Drew Lavender (Dec. 15, 2003)...Johnson averaged 16.5 points and 10.5 rebounds that week...Johnson tallied 14 points and 13 boards against Missouri to help him win Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors...he scored four points in the final :11 seconds, including the game-winner with :01.6 on the clock to secure ISU's 66-65 win over the Tigers.

Hubalek Breaks Out

Junior Center Jiri Hubalek's improved play has given ISU a much needed lift in the post...Hubalek got off to a slow start to the season, missing the first six games because of a NCAA rules violation...head coach Greg McDermott has asked Hubalek to be more of a presence in the post, and he has responded with outstanding efforts in the last nine games...Hubalek has recorded a double-double in four of his last eight games...in his last nine games, Hubalek is shooting 44-of-87 (50.6 percent) from the field and averaging 1.5 bpg...in conference games only, Hubalek is averaging 10.9 points and 8.6 rebounds...in conference games only, Hubalek ranks fifth in the Big 12 in rebounding (8.6) and is fourth in blocks (1.4).

Dodie Time

Dodie Dunson is another freshman who has been impressive for the Cyclones since conference play began...Dunson has scored in double figures in four of seven conference games, averaging 8.6 ppg...Dunson was 4-of-7 from 3-point range vs. Missouri and 3-of-4 from downtown vs. Kansas...Dunson is ISU's top free-throw shooter, connecting on 88.5 percent of his shots (23-26) at the charity stripe...in league games he is shooting 91.7 percent from the free-throw line...he had a streak of 18 consecutive free-throws made end vs. Kansas.

Iowa State Celebrates 100 Years Of Men's Hoops Next Season

Iowa State fans can be a part of the Cyclone athletic department's celebration of 100 years of men's basketball by helping select the school's All-Century Team through on-line voting at cyclones.com...a total of 15 former greats will comprise the All-Century Team...eight spots will be automatically occupied by ISU's All-Americans...fans will vote for the remaining seven spots from the ballot of 44 former Cyclones that met one of the following criteria: first-team all-conference, 1,000-point career scorer or played in the NBA...voting for the All-Century Team is unlimited...the All-Century Team will be announced next season...Iowa State will honor its All-Century Team at a special letterwinners reunion and at a game during Big 12 play next season...short bios on all of the Cyclone greats, along with a direct link to vote, are available at cyclones.com.

Players Mentioned

Jeff Bergstrom

Jeff Bergstrom

Will Blalock

Chris Ceaser

Chris Ceaser

Rahshon Clark

Rahshon Clark

Rahshon Clark

Dodie Dunson

Jiri Hubalek

Jiri Hubalek

Jiri Hubalek

Cory Johnson

Cory Johnson

Wesley Johnson

Wesley Johnson

Curtis Stinson

Mike Taylor

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