Izaiah Brockington's hard-nosed approach helps Iowa State entering Sweet 16 against Miami

CHICAGO — Izaiah Brockington assessed the playground situation.

His prospects seemed bleak. The then-9-year-old’s two-on-two teammate didn’t have much game, and his opponents laughed in his face, looking down to talk smack.

That flipped a switch.

Brockington — who has helped 11th-seed Iowa State reach Friday’s 8:45 p.m. Sweet 16 NCAA tournament matchup with 10th-seeded Miami (Fla.) at the United Center — stood under the shadow of a metal hoop at Pollock Elementary School in Philadelphia and rose to the moment.

“I wanted to shut them up,” said Brockington, who has morphed into a leader and standard-bearer for a Cyclones program that is in the midst of the biggest turnaround in school history. “So I remember just going super hard and winning the game pretty much by myself. They wanted to rematch and I did it again. And it was just, you know, it was a small moment. But for me at that age, I was like, ‘Man, I just beat those guys by myself.’ I was like, ‘I'm the best player at this park.'”

Brockington, who leads ISU in scoring (17.1 points) and rebounding (6.8), is on his third college team. A stint at St Bonaventure didn’t work out, so he transferred to Penn State. Then his head coach, Pat Chambers, resigned amid controversy, forcing Brockington to once again search for a new home.

That’s when he connected with the Cyclones’ first-year head coach T.J. Otzelberger, who convinced him to come to Ames. No promises were made. Brockington just went to work, toiling beyond the spotlight, poised for a personal breakthrough that would dovetail with his new team’s rapid recovery from a 2-22 season.

“I saw an opportunity for us to do something special,” Brockington said.

ISU (22-12) will face a Hurricanes team that ranks 18th in adjusted offensive efficiency and sixth in offensive turnover percentage, according to KenPom. Miami (25-10) features six players who average between 9.3 and 17.1 points per game and excels offensively in transition.

ISU ranks fourth nationally in defensive turnover percentage, so disrupting the Hurricanes’ usual flow will be a challenge, but one the Cyclones believe they can meet.

“When we are playing in the Big 12, it’s physical every night,” ISU point guard Tyrese Hunter said. “And when we don’t play Big 12 teams, we go out there and be physical and just show them this is what we primarily do.”

That’s dig deep. That’s play with an edge. That’s contingent upon being the toughest team on the court — and when it’s mattered most, that’s who the Cyclones have been.

“We’ve maintained that level of urgency that we came (with) when we started this journey, the first day on the job, and we’ve maintained that same level of urgency with everything we do every single day,” Otzelberger said. “Everything matters.”

Including “small,” but symbolic childhood moments. Brockington’s profile eventually grew in Philadelphia and now he’s finally in the Sweet 16. Will he rise to the moment this time, on this stage, with ISU’s first trip to the Elite Eight since 2000 on the line?

Watch and see.

“I take basketball very personally,” he said. “I feel like I kind of turn into a different person almost when I’m out on the court. And I feel I can attribute that to Philly.”

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