Three Thoughts: Cyclones take down Milwaukee, 68-53

The Iowa State Men’s Basketball faced the Milwaukee Panthers today in Hilton Coliseum in a matchup where Iowa State came out on top 68-53. Jaren Holmes led all scorers with 19 points. The Cyclones are now 3-0 on the season.

Here are my takeaways of tonight’s matchup:

Great Defensive Start

The Cyclones defense to start the game was unmatched as they caused a lot of easy turnovers. The Cyclones caused 27 turnovers in tonight’s game, most of them coming in the first half to get them out on an early run.

A lot like last season, this team’s identity has to be defense. There’s a lot more bodies this year contributing to this squad’s defensive success.

A player that stood out was freshman guard Demaron Watson having 8 defensive boards off the bench tonight. This is an aspect in the game that later is valued highly and is great to see that effort coming from a freshman.

Holmes is STILL our guy

After our first 3 games, it’s clear as day that senior Jared Holmes is the Cyclones number option on offense. Not only leading the team in scoring, but Holmes also showed an impressive effort shooting 3-5 from behind the arc.

Holmes also has been doing a better job as of recently distributing the ball. This will take some of the playmaking responsibility off of Lipsey.

Great Night for Jones

Senior forward Rob Jones had a great offensive spark off the bench scoring 10 pts in just 12 minutes of play. Jones seems to be a lot more comfortable in his role this year and the backup 5 option. If he continues to produce at this rate, it will be great for the Cyclones going into the PKI tournament this Thursday.

The Cyclones next matchup is against a newly coached Villanova team on Thursday, November 24th at 12:30 PT on ESPN2.