Iowa State ramps up defense through first six games, readies for Buffalo

AMES - Buffalo had a tall task on its hands when it embarked on its weekend road trip.

A visit to No. 7 Duke on Saturday was the first stop for the Bulls - an 82-59 loss - but they couldn't dwell on it for long. The next stop in the buzz saw of a three-day schedule is at No. 5 Iowa State.

'Man, that's a tough three days,” said Iowa State coach Steve Prohm. 'If I'm them I'm thinking it's a great opportunity to get the chance to go play two top-10 teams on the road and find out about themselves. Buffalo, they're going to be good.”

The Cyclones (6-0) will also have a chance to find out a little more about themselves against Buffalo (4-4). A 20-point home win against North Dakota State last week allowed Iowa State to take six days away from games and get back to the basics and observe what it has done through six games.

An intensified effort on defense has been the mission since Prohm took over six months ago, which has paid dividends in the early part of the schedule. ISU opponents have turned it over 13.8 times per game on average and shoot just 38.8 percent from the field while the Cyclones have shot 51.9 percent.

'The biggest thing is becoming better defensively,” said senior Georges Niang. 'We'll go from 28 minutes being good defensively to 31, rather than just being solid defensively for just three straight minutes, OK for a few minutes and then really good for six minutes. We just really want to be consistent.”

Ball pressure has also been emphasized under Prohm, and the Cyclones have tallied 7.0 steals per game. Point guard Monte Morris has 12 steals on the season and has been the lead example in picking up the opposing point guard at the top of the key.

'Monte has definitely got some steals,” said Naz Mitrou-Long. 'I know he's known for getting some steals, but a guy like myself, I've got a couple too. Even when I see them pop out of the guys' hands, I'm a little surprised and I think it's because we've really been emphasizing it.”

Iowa State has outscored its opponents on average by 20.2 points and has shot over 50 percent from two-point range and 36.5 percent from 3-point range, but hasn't been hitting its intended mark at the free throw line. The Cyclones have gotten to the line 92 times this season and have shot 63 percent.

All five ISU starters are shooting 66.7 percent or better except for Jameel McKay, who is just 6-for-20 through six games. McKay shot almost 60 percent from the charity stripe last season and hasn't given his teammates much panic early on this season.

'Hopefully if Jameel's going to get there in conference, he went there like 17 times last year, so I think that's enough for one game,” Morris said with a laugh. 'If he's going to the line, we're all right.”

Tipoff for Iowa State and Buffalo is at 8 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum.

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