Cyclones trying to continue a tradition of tournament winning

AMES - Abdel Nader and Jameel McKay watched from home as their teammates hoisted the 2014 Big 12 tournament trophy on the floor of the Sprint Center, wanting a chance to do the same.

As each member of the 2014 Iowa State team was fitted for their championship rings, Nader and McKay weren't able to get one. But that was just fine with them. They wanted to go win their own.

'That's where the competitive edge comes out,” McKay said. 'We helped them at practice last year, but you want to go win your own. You never want to feel like you just want to keep it competitive.”

Fast forward a year and not only were Nader and McKay cutting down the nets in Kansas City as the 2015 Big 12 tournament champions, they played integral parts in getting it done.

Iowa State Coach Fred Hoiberg inserted McKay into the starting lineup near the middle of the conference season, but Nader's spark off the bench against Oklahoma and Kansas in the Big 12 tournament was just what the Cyclones needed.

Against the Sooners, Nader scored seven points in a 9-4 ISU run to cut the OU lead to six points with roughly five minutes left in the first half. That spark came from the junior guard aggressively taking the ball to the rim, which is something he knew he had to do if shots weren't falling from outside.

'Stay aggressive,” Nader told himself. '(Don't) let missed shots or anything like that get to me. Coach (Hoiberg) puts a lot of confidence in my ability to play so just stay confident and aggressive.”

In the championship against the Jayhawks, Nader chipped in 13 points, four rebounds and a block in 25 minutes for his fifth game in double-figure scoring.

'Abdel may have played his best stretch of the season when he was going out and getting his baskets,” Hoiberg said. 'We outscored (Kansas), 46-22, in the paint. That was huge on a night when our shots weren't falling to be able to attack and Abdel was a big part of that.”

McKay scored 27 points in the three tournament games, collecting his 53rd block of the season against Oklahoma. That mark moved him to sixth on the ISU single-season blocked shot chart.

The junior forward came to Iowa State after a semester at Marquette hoping to bring a defensive identity. He's certainly given the Cyclones a presence on that end, but his energy and ability to spark runs offensively has give Iowa State another dimension.

With his team down 40-23 in the Big 12 title game, McKay had a sequence of a dunk, steal, and layup in a matter of 17 seconds. He ignited the run that saw the Cyclones tie the game, 51-51, with eight minutes left, finishing with 11 points and eight rebounds in 29 minutes.

'Not many 6-foot-9 guys can play that many minutes with the energy that he does,” Hoiberg said. 'He just has such an impact on the game.”

As Iowa State readies for its second-round NCAA tournament game against UAB on Thursday, McKay and Nader's importance increase even more. At this stage in the season, having options certainly isn't a bad thing.

'We've got so many guys that can go out there and be leading scorers,” said sophomore point guard Monte Morris. 'So with all those weapons, it's going to be tough to put Iowa State out of the tournament.”