Iowa State vs. Florida A&M Primer

Who: Iowa State (8-2, 0-0 Big 12) vs. Florida A&M (2-6, 0-0 SWAC)

Where: Hilton Coliseum (14,267) – Ames, Iowa

When: Sunday, Dec. 17, 2023 – 5:00 p.m.

Tipping Off: Winners of three straight – scoring 90-plus in three-straight games for the first time since Nov. 20-Dec. 7, 2013 – Iowa State welcomes a second straight SWAC school to Hilton for a Sunday afternoon matchup.

Of Note: Sunday's game is a Stripe Hilton game so please make sure to wear your appropriate color depending on the section!

Storylines:

Iowa State enters Sunday's contest coming off a 51-point victory over Prairie View A&M. Three of ISU's 15 largest margins of victory have come this season.
- ISU defeated Lindenwood and Grambling State by 55 before downing Prairie View A&M by 51.
The Cyclones' three-game win streak has been highlighted by offensive outputs.
- Against DePaul, ISU produced its most points (99) in a road contest since 2001 when it scored 109 in a 4OT loss to Missouri.
- Iowa State followed that up with a 25-point home win over Iowa. The 25-point margin of victory over Iowa is the largest by any ISU team in the 113-year history of the meeting.
- The most recent contest saw Iowa State best PVAMU 107-56. The 107 points were the most by any Cyclone team since 2019 when ISU bested Mississippi Valley State, scoring 110 points.
UNLV transfer Keshon Gilbert has been on a tear for the Cyclones, as he has scored 20-plus points in the last three contests.
- Gilbert is averaging a team-high 16.3 points per contest and is leading the team in both free throws made (51) and attempted (69) as well as field goals made (52) and field goals attempted (105).
  - He is second on the team in minutes, defensive rebounds (37), assists (43) and steals (19).
- Gilbert earned his first career double-double against VCU on Thanksgiving, dropping 22 points and pulling in 10 boards.
- Gilbert tied his career-high in scoring against Iowa, dropping 25 points – the most by any Cyclone this season in a single game.
  - Gilbert has four 20-plus point outings this year to lead the team.
- He flirted with a triple-double in the last outing against PVAMU, dropping 20 points, eight assists and eight rebounds.
Tamin Lipsey continues to make steady improvement for the Cyclones, as the hometown kid is averaging 15.1 points per game. He leads the team in rebounds (63), assists (61), steals (36) and minutes played.
- Lipsey set the school record for steals in a game last time out, picking Prairie View's pockets eight times.
  - The previous record, seven, was held by Fred Hoiberg and Justus Thigpen.
- Against DePaul, Lipsey recorded the seventh triple-double in school history, going for 15 points, 10 assists and 10 rebounds.
  - Lipsey became the first Cyclone since Tyrese Haliburton in 2020 to record a triple-double, joining the likes of Monté Morris, Royce White, Jamaal Tinsley, Curtis Stinson and Marc Urquhart as members of the illustrious club.
- Lipsey set a new personal best on Thanksgiving against VCU, scoring 22 points. He then set a personal best for rebounds against No. 12 Texas A&M with 14.
Iowa State freshman Milan Momcilovic has had a solid start to his freshman campaign, as the rookie from Pewaukee is averaging 13.2 points per game.
- Momcilovic has a team-high 24 3-pointers and strokes it at a 46.2% clip.
- He recorded 21 points against Virginia Tech in Florida – a career-high – and is one of five Cyclones to score at least 20 in a game this season.
- Through 10 games, Milan Momcilovic is one of just five true freshmen in the country with 24 3-pointers made.
Robert Jones has started the last seven games after being thrust into the starting lineup after center Hason Ward went down with an injury.
- Jones leads the team in field goal percentage, as the big man is shooting 73.6 percent from the floor. He also leads the team in blocks (11) and offensive rebounds (25).
Tre King is one of four Cyclones averaging double-figures, as the senior chips in 10.5 points per contest.
- Against DePaul, King tallied an Iowa State high of 24 points, going 10-15 from the field.
Jackson Paveletzke, Curtis Jones, Demarion Watson and Omaha Biliew make up the bench unit for the Cyclones.
- C. Jones has settled in lately, as he's averaging 11 points on 50 percent shooting from the floor and 47.6 percent from deep over the last four games.
  - C. Jones had an ISU-best 22 points against PVAMU, going 6-of-8 from deep.
As a head coach, Otz is 148-92 overall and has led the Cyclones to a 49-29 record over the last three seasons.

From the Notes:

Iowa State is 33-8 in games at Hilton Coliseum and is 32-7 in non-conference contests under Otzelberger. Otz is undefeated against non-conference opponents at home.
As of Saturday, Dec. 9, the Cyclones are ranked No. 8 in the NET. The Cyclones slot in at No. 18 in the KenPom rankings and are No. 6 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.
Iowa State and Prairie View will meet for the third time on Sunday. The series is split at one apiece and dates back to 1989
Both Lipsey and Gilbert have scored in double figures in eight of the nine contests this season.
The Cyclones are 19-1 under T.J. Otzelberger when four or more players score in double figures.
Iowa State scored over 85 points in the first four games of the season. It's the first time the Cyclones did so in four-straight games since February 2016 and the first time doing so in the first four games of the year since 1987-88.
The Cyclones have scored 90 or more points four times this season. It is the most times hitting that mark in a season since the 2016-17 team did so eight times.
Iowa State had double digit steals in each of the first four games this season. It's the first time since the 2016-17 season the Cyclones have done so in four-straight games.
Iowa State's 23-straight victories at home against non-conference opponents is the 15th-longest in the nation. It is the fourth-longest streak in school history.

Switching Sides:

FAMU was voted to finish eleventh out of 12 in the SWAC by the league's coaches and SIDs.
The Rattlers went through a winless November, playing four major conference teams to start the season but have won two straight to begin December.
Florida A&M averages 67.5 points per contest while allowing 82.5 points. The Rattlers shoot 41.5 percent from the floor and 32.5 percent from deep.
The Rattlers have eight returners from last season, two freshmen and seven transfers.
Keith Lamar – a two-time transfer – leads the team in rebounds and steals and is second in points scored.
- He's scored in double figures five times this season, including a career-high 29 points against Albany State, and is the only FAMU plater with over 100 points scored on the year.
As of Friday morning, Florida A&M is ranked No. 292 in the NET, No. 321 in KenPom and No. 354 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.
FAMU head coach Robert McCullum is in his seventh season coaching the Rattlers and owns a 63-115 record. He has previous head coaching stops at Western Michigan (2000-03) and South Florida (2003-07), owning an overall coaching record of 137-236.

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Players Mentioned

Omaha Biliew

Keshon Gilbert

Curtis Jones

Robert Jones

Tre King

Tamin Lipsey

Milan Momcilovic

Jackson Paveletzke

Hason Ward

Demarion Watson

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics