Iowa State Opens NCAA Tournament Against Nevada

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AMES, Iowa - No. 17 Iowa State (23-10, 12-6 Big 12) begins NCAA Tournament play Thursday evening against Nevada (28-6, 14-4 Mountain West) at the BMO Harris Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

Where: Milwaukee, Wis. - Sprint Center (18,600)
When: Thursday, March 16, Approx. 9 p.m. (CST)
Radio: Cyclone Radio Network/Westwood One
CRN Talent: John Walters (PxP), Eric Heft (Color)
WWO Talent: Brandon Gaudin (PxP), Kelly Tripucka (Color)
TV: truTV (Mediacom: HD 869, Digital Box 43, Cable 53-23; DirecTV 246; DishNet 242)
Talent: Carter Blackburn (PxP), Mike Gminski (Analyst); Debbie Antonelli (Analyst); Lisa Byington (Reporter)
Webcast: March Madness Live
Sirius/XM: 137/205/963 (Internet)
Live Stats: Available at ncaasports.com

Game #34-Nevada
• Iowa State, the Big 12 Tournament champion, returns to the NCAA Tournament for the sixth-straight season and 19th time overall...the Cyclones and Wolf Pack are meeting for the first time...AP rankings weren't available at time of print.
#CycloneNotes
• Iowa State has won nine of its last 10 games...the Cyclones entered February with a 13-8 record...of the top-6 leagues in college basketball, only ISU, Villanova, Kentucky, UCLA and Arizona enter the tournament having won nine of the last 10 games.
• ISU has won at least 20 games overall and 10 Big 12 games in each of the last six seasons...ISU and Kansas are the only Big 12 schools with at least 10 league wins the last six seasons...Steve Prohm has averaged 25 wins per season in his first six as a head coach.
• Monté Morris collected All-Big 12 First-Team honors after a terrific regular season and followed by being named the Big 12 Tournament Most Outstanding Player...he has also been named an All-American by USA Today and NBCSports.com, becoming Iowa State's 20th player to earn All-America honors...Morris leads the Cyclones with 16.3 points and 6.1 assists...he is the only player nationally averaging 16.0 ppg, 6.0 apg, 4.0 rpg and fewer than 2.0 turnovers per game...since February 1, Morris is averaging 16.9 points and 6.9 assists with an assist-to-turnover ratio of 7.6...in 21 games against Big 12 teams this season, Morris had a 6.7 assist-to-turnover ratio.
• Morris is first nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (5.71) and is also the nation's active career leader (4.75)...only seven times in NCAA Division I men's basketball history has a player led the nation in any stat category three times in their career as Morris is on pace to do...he leads all NCAA Tournament players in assists (751), steals (222) and assist-to-turnover ratio.
• The Cyclones had four players earn All-Big 12 honors, matching Kansas for the most players in the Big 12 on either the first, second, third or honorable mention lists...along with Morris (first team), Nazareth Mitrou-Long (second), Deonte Burton (third) and Matt Thomas (honorable mention) also were recognized...in the last two seasons, ISU and Kansas lead the league with nine honorees among those groups.
• Mitrou-Long (94) and Thomas (84) have been making threes at a clip never before seen by an ISU duo...the pair has combined to make 178 threes, the most by any ISU duo in a season...combined they've shot 40.9 percent from behind the arc...in the last 15 games, they've averaged 6.3 threes made per game at a 46.8 percent clip...Thomas is 11th nationally at 44% on threes.
• For just the seventh time in school history, Iowa State has multiple players with 500 points scored in a season: Morris (538) and Mitrou-Long (512)... Milwaukee native Deonte Burton (488) could become the third player to reach the mark, joining the 2014 trio of DeAndre Kane, Melvin Ejim and Georges Niang as the only seasons with three players to score 500 points.
• As a team, ISU is 14th in 3-point percentage (40.2 percent) and 11th making 10.0 threes per game...in the last 14 games, nobody has been hotter than Milwaukee native Donovan Jackson is 23-for-39 (59%) on 3-pointers.
• Burton leads ISU in steals (59) & blocks (47) this season and is aiming to become the first Cyclone to lead the team in both categories since Royce White (2011-12)...only four Big 12 players have ever averaged 14 ppg and had 50 steals/50 blocks.
• ISU continues to rank among the nation's top teams in taking care of the basketball, allowing it to overcome lack of rebounding...the Cyclones average 10.2 turnovers per game, which leads the Big 12 and is seventh nationally...ISU's turnover percentage of 14.1 is No. 3 nationally and its turnover margin (+4.2) is seventh nationally...ISU has had fewer turnovers than its opponents in 26 of 33 games.

Iowa State Quick Hitters
• Iowa State has sold out 31 of the last 35 games at Hilton Coliseum...ISU is 26-5 at Hilton Coliseum under Prohm.
• ISU has been to a school-record six consecutive NCAA Tournaments...the Cyclones have made two Sweet 16 appearance in the last three seasons...ISU is the first school from the state of Iowa to reach six consecutive NCAA Tournaments.
• The Cyclones have won three of the last four Big 12 Tournament titles... Morris, Mitrou-Long and Thomas have won three Phillips 66 Big 12 Championships each.
• Wins By Big 12 Teams Since 2011-12: Kansas 172, Baylor 148, Iowa State 145.
• ISU has won 20 games the last six seasons...Steve Prohm has won at least 20 games in each of his six seasons as a head coach.
• Iowa State is one of 29 schools to win 20+ games the last five seasons...only 13 teams in the nation's top-six conferences (Big East, ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC) have won 20+ games five consecutive seasons.
• The Cyclones have won at least 10 league games in each of the last six seasons, which is a school record.
• The Cyclones have won 44 of their last 50 games at home, including 25 of 30 league games.
• The Cyclones are 34-12 under Prohm when committing fewer turnovers than their opponent...ISU has had fewer turnovers than its opponent in 26 of 33 games this season, including 12 games with fewer than 10 miscues.
• Morris has 751 assists and 158 turnovers in 138 career games...ISU is 63-21 when Morris has at least five assists.
• Morris has 15 career games with 10 or more assists...his assist-to-turnover ratio in those games is 8.9 (161 assists/18 turnovers).
• ISU is 10-0 this season and 20-3 under Prohm when outrebounding its opponent.
• ISU is ranked 285th nationally with just 572 free throws attempted (17.3 per game)...its opponents are averaging just 15.9 free throw attempts per contest...ISU has averaged 20.9 FT attempts the last nine games.
• ISU's three starting guards (Morris, Thomas, Mitrou-Long) are shooting a combined 81.2 percent from the FT line (186-229)...Thomas has made 26 consecutive free throws, the school record is 34 by Fred Hoiberg.
• In games which he hits a 3-pointer, Donovan Jackson is averaging 9.4 points and shooting 55.5 percent (61-110) from the field and 58.1 percent (43-74) from 3-point range...since Jan. 28, Jackson is shooting 59 percent behind the arc (23-39)..ISU is 2-5 when Jackson doesn't score.
• Entering the season, 66.1 percent of Mitrou-Long's made field goals were 3-pointers...this season that number is 52.5 percent...Mitrou-Long is shooting 64.4 percent on 2-point field goals.
• Morris is currently second in the Big 12 with 6.1 assists per game...he is trying to become the first player to lead the league three consecutive seasons since Doug Gottlieb (Oklahoma State) did it from 1998-2000.
• In Big 12 play, Morris averaged one turnover every 45.9 minutes played...in the second half of Big 12 games, Morris had just six turnovers in 345 minutes played (one TO every 57.5 second-half minutes).
• Morris and Mitrou-Long average a combined 31.8 points, third-most among Big 12 teammates.
• Morris is the second player in school history to record four 100-assist seasons (Gary Thompkins, 1985-88).
• Morris is first nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio at 5.71...Morris has the 2nd and fourth best single season marks in NCAA history and is trying to take the record back (Casey Benson, Oregon, 4.88)...in Big 12 Conference games, Morris owned a 7.9 a/to ratio...next best in the league was KU's Devonte' Graham at 2.4.
• Since Feb. 1, Morris has 83 assists and 11 turnovers in 12 games.
• In his career, Morris has accounted for 3,525 points via scoring and assisting (25.5 ppg)...he has assisted on 151 3-pointers made by Mitrou-Long and Thomas.
• Morris is the winningest player in ISU history having played in 99 career wins, while Mitrou-Long and Thomas have played in 97 wins each.
• Iowa State has 12 games with 10 or more steals...among the top-6 leagues, only West Virginia (16) has more.
• Mitrou-Long (256) and Thomas (249) have surpassed 200 career 3-pointers made...this season, they have combined to make 178, the most among Big 12 teammates and most by any ISU duo in a single season.
• Burton has made more threes (40) this year as he did his first three seasons combined.
• ISU has five players with at least 40 threes made for just the second time in school history (2013-14).
• Iowa State is the only team with three players ranked in the top 10 of the Big 12 in scoring.
• Mitrou-Long is shooting a career-best 47.6 percent from the field (previous high: 44.9 percent in 2014-15).
• No player in school history has attempted more 3-pointers than Mitrou-Long (674).
• In the last seven games, ISU is averaging 16.3 assists.
• In addition to having the third-best turnover percentage in the nation (14.1%), ISU is seventh in steal percentage (6.4).
• ISU's 40.2 3-point FG percentage is the third-best mark in school history: 1. 41.7, 2000-01; 2. 41.6, 1989-90.
• ISU's 10.6 three-pointers made in Big 12 play was the third-highest mark since the creation of the Big 12.
• ISU ranks among KenPom.com's top 50 in adjusted offensive efficiency (13) and defensive efficiency (43)...in the KenPom era (since 2001-02), its the best defensive efficiency since 2005 (10)...the Cyclones are No. 17 in KenPom rankings.
• ISU is 14-1 when Solomon Young plays at least 15 minutes and 9-1 with him as a starter.
• Burton scored his 1,000th collegiate point in the Big 12 finals against West Virginia, giving ISU four players with 1,000 points scored in college.
• ISU is one of six teams nationally and five in the tournament with three players with 480 or more points this season (Arizona State, ISU, Middle Tennessee, Nevada, Seton Hall and UNC-Wilmington).

Last Time Out - Cyclones Beat West Virginia For Third Tourney Title In Four Years
• Iowa State avenged a pair of regular season losses with an 80-74 win against West Virginia in the finals of the Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship in Kansas City...Iowa State led for 25:11 in the game and 95:47 of 120 minutes in the three tournament games.
• Just eight days after being outrebounded by 19 by West Virginia in the season finale, ISU held a 33-29 edge on the glass...in the season finale, WVU outscored ISU 40-12 in the paint...on Saturday, ISU held a 38-32 edge inside.
• The Cyclones shot 54.2 percent from the field, overcoming a rare poor shooting night behind the arc (6-19).
• Morris led the Cyclones with 17 points, while Burton added 16 and Thomas 12...Darrell Bowie came off the bench to score 10 points, reaching double figures for the second time in three games after only scoring in double figures once in Big 12 play during the regular season.
• The Cyclones had 11 steals compared to just five for West Virginia.

Re-live last night's Big 12 Championship game with our latest Spark page.https://t.co/iWJN6SsLKb pic.twitter.com/4GaR1jYJss
— Cyclone Basketball (@CycloneMBB) March 12, 2017

Iowa State-Nevada Series Notes
• Iowa State and Nevada are meeting for the first time...the Cyclones have never faced a current Mountain West team in NCAA Tournament.
• The Cyclones are 20-14 all-time against teams currently in the Mountain West...the last meeting came in 2013 when the Cyclones defeated Boise State (70-66) in the championship game of the Diamond Head Classic in Hawai'i.
• Nevada redshirt junior Hallice Cooke was a member of the Iowa State team from 2014-16...he redshirted 2014-15 after transferring from Oregon State before averaging 2.6 points in 32 games for ISU last season...following the season, Cooke left ISU and joined Nevada.

Iowa State NCAA Tournament History
• Iowa State is playing in its 19th NCAA Tournament in school history as a No. 5 seed in the Midwest Region...this will be the first time ISU will play a game in Milwaukee since playing at Marquette in the 1995-96 season.
• Iowa State is 18-18 all-time in the NCAA Tournament...Steve Prohm is the seventh coach to lead Iowa State to the NCAA Tournament and the fifth to have multiple NCAA appearances (Johnny Orr, Tim Floyd, Larry Eustachy, Fred Hoiberg, Steve Prohm).
• Iowa State has made a school-record six-straight NCAA Tournament appearances (2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017)...ISU's six-year NCAA streak ties for the ninth-longest nationally.
• Iowa State is the first school from the state of Iowa (Division I, II or III) to make six-straight NCAA Tournament appearances.
• Iowa State is a No. 5 seed for the first time in school history and is a top-five seed for the fourth season in a row...the highest seed ISU has ever earned is a No. 2 seed (2000 and 2001).
• Iowa State is 0-4 all-time against No. 1 seeds (Michigan State, 2000; North Carolina, 2005; Kentucky, 2012, Virginia, 2016)...three of the four teams were the number one overall seeds and went on to win the national title will all three games being played in the opponent's home state.
• ISU is 10-6 while playing in the Midwest Region in NCAA Tournament play.
• The farthest the Cyclones have advanced in the NCAA Tournament is the Final Four in 1944.
• ISU, which was one of eight teams to qualify in 1944, won its first game vs. Pepperdine to advance to the semifinals.
• The farthest Iowa State has advanced in the NCAA Tournament since the current 64/65/68-team field, which began in 1985, is the Elite Eight in 2000.
• Iowa State has advanced to the Sweet Sixteen five times (1986, 1997, 2000, 2014, 2016) in the modern era.
• The Cyclones have won their first game in nine of their last 11 NCAA Tournament appearances.
• ISU has had two players lead the NCAA Tournament in scoring average (minimum three games played) during their respective careers...Dedric Willoughby averaged 24.7 ppg in 1997 (three games) and Marcus Fizer led all players in 2000 with a 20.0 ppg average in four games played.
• Individual NCAA Tournament records: Points- 34 by Dedric Willoughby (vs. UCLA in 1997), 34 by Lafester Rhodes (vs. Georgia Tech in 1988) 34 by Dustin Hogue (vs. UCONN in 2014); Rebounds- 20 by Jared Homan (vs. North Carolina in 2005); Assists- 11 by Jamaal Tinsley (vs. UCLA in 2000); Blocks- 8 by Kelvin Cato (vs. Illinois State in 1997); Field Goals- 15 by Dustin Hogue (vs. UCONN in 2014); 3-Pointers- 8 by Dedric Willoughby (vs. UCLA in 1997).
• The first time two teams from the same conference played in the NCAA Tournament in the same year was 1944 when ISU and Missouri from the Big Six were among the 8 teams chosen.

ISU Tournament Tidbits
• Iowa State has a 10-7 record vs. 10 teams in the 2017 NCAA Tournament: Mount St. Mary's 1-0, Miami (Fla.) 1-0, Gonzaga 0-1, Cincinnati 0-1, Baylor 1-1, Oklahoma State 3-0, Vanderbilt 0-1, Kansas 1-1, West Virginia 1-2, Kansas State 2-0.
• 10 of ISU's 20 opponents advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
• Steve Prohm is one of seven Iowa State coaches (Louis Menze, Johnny Orr, Tim Floyd, Larry Eustachy, Wayne Morgan, Fred Hoiberg) to lead the Cyclones into the NCAA Tournament.
• Prohm is coaching in his third NCAA Tournament, owning a 3-2 record in five games...he is 1-1 at Murray State (2012: W, Colorado State; L, Marquette) and 2-1 at Iowa State (2016: W, Iona; W, Arkansas-Little Rock; L, Virginia).
• ISU has six returning players who have played in an NCAA Tournament game (Monte' Morris, Matt Thomas, Naz Mitrou-Long, Deonte Burton, Stu Nezlak, Simeon Carter).
• Morris, Thomas and Mitrou-Long will be playing in their fourth NCAA Tournament, joining All-American Georges Niang (2013-16) as the only Cyclones in school history to play on four teams which advanced to the NCAA Tournament.
• Morris and Thomas have played in seven NCAA Tournament games, which ties the school record for most games played in the Tournament with Georges Niang (2013-16), Melvin Ejim (2012-14), Stevie Johnson (1997, 2000) and Jacy Holloway (1995-97).
• Morris and Thomas have played in four NCAA Tournament victories in their careers...the school record for participating in the most NCAA Tournament wins is five by Stevie Johnson (1997, 2000).
• Morris, Thomas, Niang and Johnson are the only three Cyclones to play on two teams to advance past the the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament.
• Mitrou-Long's younger brother, Elijah Long, will be playing in the NCAA Tournament as the starting point guard at Mount St. Mary's.
• Morris has 34 career assists in NCAA Tournament play, one shy from the school record held by Jacy Holloway, who had 35 assists.
• Thomas has 14 career 3-pointers in NCAA Tournament play, tying for third in school history...the school mark is 19 by Dedric Willoughby (1996-97).

Milwaukee Connection
• Iowa State boasts three key players that hail from Milwaukee in Deonte Burton (Vincent HS), Darrell Bowie (Wauwatosa HS) and Donovan Jackson (Pius X).
• Burton transferred to Iowa State from Marquette, while Bowie came to the Cyclones from Northern Illinois...Jackson is a JUCO product from Iowa Western.
• Former 1,000-point scoring Cyclone and NBA player Diante Garrett played his high school ball at Vincent HS like Burton.
• Another Milwaukee native, Korie Lucious (Pius XI) transferred to ISU from Michigan State and helped ISU to the 2nd round in 2013.
• ISU has four-star prep and City Player of the Year Terrence Lewis (Riverside HS) signed to play for 2017-18.

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Players Mentioned

Darrell Bowie

Deonte Burton

Simeon Carter

Hallice Cooke

Donovan Jackson

Nazareth Mitrou-Long

Georges Niang

Matt Thomas

Solomon Young

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