Cyclone men's hoops future taking shape

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The future of Iowa State men's basketball became clear Monday with news that Greg McDermott would continue to be the head coach.

It was even more transparent Wednesday night shortly after the Cyclones' disappointing season ended with a 82-75 opening-round Big 12 Tournament loss to Texas at the Sprint Center.

Marquis Gilstrap's appeal to the NCAA for a sixth year of eligibility has been denied, ending his hopes of a return.

Was it Craig Brackins' final appearance in an ISU uniform, as well?

The all-Big 12 forward said he'll probably decide by this time next week, but Brackins sure sounded like he was putting a bow on his career in his locker room comments after the loss to the Longhorns.

He would be leaving ISU without a Big 12 Tournament victory or a winning season.

“There's a lot of games I felt like our team could have won while I was here,” he said. “I don't regret anything that I've done. I've given my all. I love this program. I love the fans. I love my teammates. I wouldn't regret anything.”

The Cyclones ended the season at 15-17 overall and 4-12 in Big 12 play.

ISU could accept an invitation to play in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) tournament, but McDermott all but shot that down.

“We are pretty banged up right now. I'm not sure that is the best idea,” he said.

The bumps in the road this season included two players (Lucca Staiger, L.A. Pomlee) leaving the team, two others (Jamie Vanderbeken, Charles Boozer) sustaining season-ending injuries and two more (Chris Colvin and LaRon Dendy) missing time for disciplinary reasons.

And don't forget reserve guard Scott Christopherson's two month-long bout with mononucleosis.

He continued to play, and was thrust into the starting lineup when Staiger quit the team Jan. 19 to go play professionally back home in Germany.

“We've had a lot of things that we've had to deal with,” McDermott said. “These guys never pointed fingers or made excuses and gone out and worked. I'm really proud of them for that.”

ISU had a hard time closing out the games they had chances of winning, which also caused considerable frustration.

Eight of the 13 losses to Big 12 opponents were by seven or fewer points.

“We had a rough year but we stuck it out,” Brackins said. “With Scott playing with mono and people departing the team… we went through a rough stretch. We lost some games but I felt we left it all out on the floor.”

Gilstrap's final game was a typical for him, finishing with a team-best 17 points and eight rebounds.

The 6-7 forward was the only player in the Big 12 to average a double-double in conference games. Now, he'll look toward a pro career after only one season at the Division I level.

“I had the best time,” Gilstrap said. “It is probably the best year of basketball I played.”

The Cyclones have signed three players for next season and are looking to add a few more in the late signing period.

Turbulent is probably the best word to describe the season. Stability is what next year's returners are looking for.

“We went through a lot,” said point guard Diante Garrett, a member of next year's senior class. “I think we are going to learn a lot from what we went through this year.”