HONOLULU (AP) — Iowa State is flying home
from its holiday trip to Hawaii with three more wins and its best start
in school history.
The No. 14 Cyclones beat Boise State 70-66 on Wednesday night to
win the Diamond Head Classic, recovering from a season-low 27 points
in the first half.
The 70 total points also was a season low, but the result was still
the only one they've known so far — the latest of 11 wins.
"We've only played eight games coming into this tournament so it was
very important to get these and take care of business and give us
some momentum heading into conference," Iowa State coach Fred
Hoiberg said.
DeAndre Kane scored 23 points, winning tournament MVP honors for his
three-game performance. Iowa State beat George Mason and Akron to
get to the final.
Kane hit a 3-pointer with less than 2 minutes left to help seal the
win for the Cyclones. Boise State's Derrick Marks had a chance to
tie with less than 30 seconds left, but missed a 15-foot jumper.
Melvin Ejim had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Georges Niang had 16
points.
"The guys do a great job of sharing the ball and being unselfish and
understanding who's got the best mismatch out there on the floor,"
Hoiberg said. "DeAndre did a great job getting to spots and making
the right play. Georges hit some huge shots for us and Melvin did
what he always does for us by getting us extra possessions."
Kane said he, Ejim and Niang are "like a brotherhood."
"We hang together every day and all day and when one guy gets it
rolling we know that we're going to that guy no matter what," he
said.
Iowa State finished with 14 offensive rebounds, outscoring Boise
State 16-5 on second-chance points.
Iowa State pushed beyond its best-ever start after tying it Monday.
The Cyclones started with 10 straight wins in the 1996-97 season en
route to a final 16 appearance in the NCAA tournament.
Derrick Marks had 23 points for Boise State (10-3).
Iowa State came back after making less than a third of its
shots in the first half, improving to 50 percent in the second
half, including 6 of 13 3-pointers (46.2 percent).
"In the first half we were a little stagnant on offense, guys
were shooting shots, not running back and we weren't as hungry
as we were in the first half as we were in the second half,"
Kane said. "(Boise State) came out really aggressive and they
got up big on us."
Kane put Iowa State within a point about 6 minutes into the
second half. Kane took two dribbles with his right hand near the
top of the key, then hit a jumper and was fouled. He missed a
free throw to tie, but Ejim pulled down the rebound and hit a
layup to give the Cyclones their first lead of the game.
Marks tied it at 60 with a jumper and a 3-pointer on consecutive
possessions, but Iowa State responded with two free throws and a
straightaway 3-pointer by Kane with less than 2 minutes left.
Boise State coach Leon Rice said there's a reason Iowa State is
undefeated.
"Nobody's been able to do it and I think we did a great job both
offensively and defensively," he said. "We had a chance to be
there at the end and that's what we wanted, but they know how to
make plays, they know how to win games and there's a reason
they're undefeated."
Kane, Ejim and Georges Niang were selected to the tournament's
all-tournament team, winning trophies etched in paddles for
canoes or paddle surfing. Anthony Drmic made the all-tournament
team for Boise State.
