ISU Drops Big 12 Opener to K-State, 91-75

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State (9-3, 0-1 Big 12) started the Big 12 portion of its schedule with an 91-7 loss to Kansas State (11-2, 1-0 Big 12) Friday night at Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones were unable to maintain a 68-percent shooting first half, as Kansas State drained 13 3-pointers, led by 34 points including six treys from Dean Wade.

Iowa State's effort was led by 23 points from Lindell Wigginton, his fifth 20-point game of his freshman campaign, while Solomon Young added a season-high 16, Nick Weiler-Babb had 14 points and Cameron Lard posted 13 points and nine rebounds.

How It Happened
Iowa State got its shooting going early, hitting eight of its first 10 field goal attempts to get out to a 20-14 lead. However, K-State was able to hang with ISU, hitting nine 3-pointers in the first half and pulling back the Cyclones from a 39-33 advantage to knot it up again at 39-39.

A first half that featured eight ties and six lead changes swung in favor of the Wildcats heading into the locker room at 53-50. Despite shooting 68 percent (17-of-25) from the field in the first period, ISU was hindered by eight turnovers, which the visitors turned into 11 points. Barry Brown, Jr., Kamau Stokes and Dean Wade combined for 51 of KSU's 53 points in the first 20 minutes.

The Cyclones were kept off the board for the first 3:39 of the second half, allowing K-State to push ahead by eight points at 58-50. ISU's hot-shooting did not keep up, as ISU hit just one of its first 12 shots to begin the period as the Cats pushed the lead to 15 points at 75-60.

A path back into the contest never rematerialized for Iowa State. The Cyclones were hampered by 23.1 percent (6-of-26) shooting from the field in the period, while the Cats fired at 60 percent in the final 20 minutes to get the victory.

Players of Note
Solomon Young made his biggest offensive contributions of the season Friday night. The sophomore recorded a season-high 16 points, which included a 7-of-8 night from the free throw line.

Lindell Wigginton had a stellar first half, recording 15 points on 5-of-5 shooting from the field. The freshman finished the contest with 23 points, his fifth 20-point game of the season.

Cameron Lard provided his usual energy off the bench, getting 13 points and nine rebounds.

Cyclone Quick Hits
*Iowa State's first half shooting percentage of 68 percent was its best in a half this season.
*Nick Weiler-Babb had 14 points, his ninth game of the season in double figures and 12th of his Cyclone career.
*Cameron Lard recorded 13 points, his seventh game of the season in double figures.
*Lindell Wigginton posted 23 points, his ninth game of the season in double figures.
*Solomon Young notched 16 points, his season-high and his fifth career game in double figures.

Up Next
Iowa State is back in action at Hilton Coliseum on Monday for a New Year's Day showdown against Texas. Tip between the Cyclones and Longhorns will be at 6 p.m., with ESPNU broadcasting the contest.

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Team Stats

Lindell Wigginton

Solomon Young

Nick Weiler-Babb

Cameron Lard

Players Mentioned

Cameron Lard

Nick Weiler-Babb

Lindell Wigginton

Solomon Young

Players Mentioned

Cameron Lard

Nick Weiler-Babb

Lindell Wigginton

Solomon Young

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