Iowa State has to avoid being ambushed by the Red Raiders

AMES - It might be relatively easy for No. 12 Iowa State to overlook Texas Tech today.

The Red Raiders are winless in the Big 12, and history from the last couple of years proves that could be trap for the Cyclones.

Saturday at 3 p.m. in Lubbock, Texas, Iowa State will hope to exorcise the demons from tight games with the Red Raiders. The Cyclones lost, 56-51, in Lubbock in 2013 and won both games last season by 11 points or fewer.

'They played two great basketball games against us,” said ISU Coach Fred Hoiberg. 'We were fortunate to walk away with both wins. Down there, we had a 15-point lead at halftime and they came back on us.”

In the first of two installments against Texas Tech (10-9, 0-6) this season, Iowa State (14-3, 4-1) is trying to assert itself to finally have a game in which it doesn't relinquish a double-digit lead. The Cyclones have given up 10-point leads in two conference wins, and its largest margin of victory is six points against Kansas State.

Hoiberg said the next step for his team is to put the foot down and develop a 'killer mentality” after gaining a lead. He stressed the importance of establishing a quick tempo early.

'We know how hard Tubby's (Smith) teams play,” Hoiberg said. 'If we can get off to a good start, that sure makes it easier down the stretch.”

'We should probably start doing that and handling business when we need to,” said junior Georges Niang. 'I think that's something we've been working on a ton in practice. It probably hasn't been showing in games, but we work on it day in and day out and I think once we get that killer mentality I don't think anything can stop us.”

As the top-scoring team in the Big 12 at 80.1 points per game, Iowa State will try to avoid being lulled by a Texas Tech offense that gets just 63.9 points per game. The Red Raiders rely more on defense and creating turnovers, so taking care of the ball will be critical.

There is perhaps nobody in the country taking better care of the ball than sophomore Monte Morris, who leads the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio at 5.4-to-1. Controlling the pace from the tipoff should put Iowa State in a good position, plus Morris said it will make Hoiberg feel a bit better after the game.

'We all want to get away from playing them nail-biters,” Morris said with a laugh. 'You've got Hoiberg coming into the locker room, and his back is drenched in sweat. We're scaring him a little bit. We're trying to go out there Saturday, keep him calm and see if he's sweating after the game.”