Cyclone State...Again: ISU 90 - Iowa 75

No Bryce Dejean-Jones? No problem. Iowa State dominated Iowa in the second half of Friday night's showdown and waltzed out of Iowa City with a 15-point road win.

The #14 Cyclones used an 18-0 run early in the second half to blow the game open and came away with a 90-75 win, marking the program's second win in its last three trips to Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Iowa State was carried into the break by a Matt Thomas three at the buzzer, putting the Cyclones up by 5, but it was a crucial series of 5 consecutive turnovers by Iowa that allowed Iowa State to break the game open.

In the absence of Dejean-Jones, Iowa State was led by an incredibly balanced performance from its rotation, including a surprising 19 points from Abdel Nader off the bench. Nader hit 4-6 3-point attempts and turned in what was easily his best performance as a Cyclone. Not to be outdone, Naz Long led all scorers with 21 points, including 5-9 shooting from deep.

Impressive as Nader and Long were, it was Monte Morris that set the tone for the Cyclone attack. The sophomore point guard, who's been lauded as one of the best in the country, turned in a pantheon performance and put this team on his back, proving that he's worthy of the praise. Morris scored 14 points and dished out 6 assists while also grabbing 5 rebounds. He also played a game-high 38 minutes.

Georges Niang didn't exactly turn in one of his better performances, but after shaking off a rough start where he tended to force the action, Niang finished with 16 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds. I implore you to sit back and read that sentence again. At no point in Friday night's game was Niang dominant, but he still finished with 16 points, 7 assists and 6 rebounds. Just let that sink in.

Dustin Hogue stepped up in a major way in Dejean-Jones' absence. He quietly turned in a 13 and 13 performance and played superb defense throughout the night. Iowa State had to get this type of effort from Hogue to win and he delivered.

For all the talk about Iowa's vaunted defense, Iowa State had little trouble asserting their will offensively on Friday night. The Cyclones shot 53.1% from the floor and 44.4% from outside. ISU was also +6 in rebounding and assists. Iowa on the other hand couldn't manufacture much of anything, shooting just 39.4% from the field and 35% from outside.

With the win, Iowa State moves to 7-1 and will host Southern on Sunday. The Cyclones will tip that game off at 5 PM CST.