ISU must stay focused against reeling Red Raiders

AMES - Melvin Ejim took one too many elbows Saturday.

“As a person, it gets to a point where enough is enough,” the Iowa State forward said.

Finally, the sophomore from Toronto lashed out - with clenched hands, but not to the face, and not in the form of a punch.

The late-game blow to Oklahoma's Carl Blair led to Ejim's ejection from the 80-69 win, but he will not face suspension for Wednesday's 8 p.m. Big 12 matchup with Texas Tech at Hilton Coliseum.

“It was definitely a lapse in judgment,” said Ejim, who scored 10 points and soared for 14 rebounds against the Sooners despite sustaining a shoulder injury before being tossed. “That should never happen and I'm glad I learned that and as a team we learned that we can't do stuff like that.”

Another thing you won't catch the Cyclones (19-8, 9-5) doing: Daydreaming.

So what if its been seven years since the program appeared in a NCAA Tournament bracket?

And so what if almost all national prognosticators have already penciled them in to the March Madness field anywhere from ninth to 11th?

This transfer-laden team's expected to be in the conversation all along - no speculation or history lessons required.

“I'm having a ton of fun,” said eldest transfer Scott Christopherson, who has enjoyed more conference wins this season (nine) than in his previous two combined (seven). “This is the first time it's been February 20th since I've been here and Iowa State's been relevant in college basketball. This is what you dream of as a kid, having a chance to be part of team that goes to the NCAA Tournament. We understand we haven't qualified for it yet. That wont happen for a few weeks and we have a lot of work to get done.”

That begins Wednesday against foundering Tech (8-18,1-13).

The Red Raiders, Cyclone coach Fred Hoiberg said, have showed improvement under first-year coach Billy Gillispie.

ISU won the first meeting, 76-52, at Lubbock.

“I'll expect them to come in and play hard like Billy Gillespie (-coached) teams do,” Hoiberg said. “They'll really try to defend us. We just need to play our game and try to get stops, get out in transition and run, and do a great job on the boards.”

The fourth-place Cyclones stand one victory short of their first 20-win regular season and 10-win conference season since 2001.

After Tech, they'll travel to fifth-place Kansas State before closing at No. 3 Missouri and against No. 14 Baylor at home.

“We're not about milestones, we're about trying to take care of the next opponent,” Hoiberg said.

And Ejim's about standing up for himself and his team - but maybe not quite as forcefully next time.

“Part of it was showing a little toughness, a little grit for us as a team,” Ejim said. “Part of it was a learning experience.”