Defense does the job for Cyclones

AMES — A win is a win, right?

Not quite.

Not for No. 17 Iowa State, which struggled offensively in a variety of ways Sunday while eking out a 47-37 win over Jackson State (2-7) before 12,537 perplexed fans at Hilton Coliseum.

“Look, that certainly wasn’t the game offensively that we hoped it would be,” said Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger, whose team improved to 10-0. “(But) at the same time, how we built momentum in our habits is in our defense and our rebounding. We counted on those habits and they showed up for us.”

That grit-based silver lining served as the main talking point for the Cyclones, who have turned maximum defensive effort and intensity into their underlying identity.

Jackson State shot 40 percent from the field and clutched just two offensive rebounds while trailing the final 38:50 of the game.

Iowa State didn’t score a field goal in the final 4:44 and endured an earlier eight-plus minute drought from the field, but maintained at last a two-possession lead throughout the second half.

“We knew they were gonna come out aggressive on the defensive end,” said Cyclones forward Aljaz Kunc, who led all scorers with 12 points and drilled all three of his 3-point attempts. “I think we did a pretty decent job of not turning it over, but we just have to get great shots. We can’t settle for good shots.”

ISU forced 22 turnovers and stopped the Tigers on 14 consecutive offensive possessions during a 19-0 first-half spurt.

The Cyclones also converted just 10 of their 30 2-point field goal attempts and several of their misses occurred at or near the rim.

That lack of offensive punch came just three days after a 73-53 rout of Iowa — the largest margin of victory for ISU in Cy-Hawk series history.

“(Otzelberger) wanted our energy up for this game,” said Cyclones guard Gabe Kalscheur, who scored 11 points. “It’s tough coming from Iowa to this, but my mindset wasn’t trying to change from that. We were still focused on the task at hand.”

So was Sunday’s performance a letdown? Certainly on one end. Offensively, the Cyclones had few answers for Jackson State’s extended pressure, but they clamped down defensively for 40 minutes, which is Otzelberger’s primary goal each game, regardless of the opponent.

“It’s about self-awareness and knowing who we are and who we can be,” Otzelberger said. “That’s so important because look at (the) Creighton (win) the other night. Our offense wasn’t great, but then it came around for us late and we were 5 for 6 from 3 (-point range) down the stretch. We had a lot of timely offense. So as much as I know when young people, they don’t see the shot going through the basket, or they don’t have the same flow or pace to an offense that they normally have, it absolutely has a mental effect on your game. At the same time, our guys have been able to dig in and get stops.”

That remains a constant. It’s also why Otzelberger became the first first-year head coach in program history to start the season 10-0. His players refuse to relent on the defensive end — and that’s proven to be a win-win situation so far for the revamped and vastly-improved Cyclones.

“The effort-based things that we emphasize every day, it may not have looked the same, but they still showed up for us,” Otzelberger said.