Partial lineup for ISU opener

AMES - For several players on Iowa State' roster, the opportunity is right there. Now it's just about taking it, and making the most of it.

The Cyclones will officially begin their season when they host Oakland at 7 p.m. Friday in Hilton Coliseum. Three key players will be out of the lineup.

Coach Fred Hoiberg will coach the way he always does - by the feel and flow of the game - and see if the rotations can play themselves out.

'The game tomorrow may be completely different than the game on Monday,” Hoiberg said of his substitution patterns. 'I know a lot of guys have gone out and performed well in practice and I'll say what I said the other day with the exhibition, I'm not sure the rotations have fully worked themselves out yet.”

Junior Abdel Nader and sophomore Matt Thomas will serve suspensions for the first two games for violation of unspecified team rules, and junior Jameel McKay will sit out until Dec. 20 under the NCAA transfer policy. The absence of those players will pave the way for guys like Sherron Dorsey-Walker, Clayton Custer and Daniel Edozie to make their presence known.

One player who took advantage of a similar situation a year ago was junior Naz Long. He said the early portion of Iowa State's schedule and missing components are important not just for his teammates, but him, too.

'It's an opportunity to seize the moment,” Long said. 'We've got some big games coming up in this nonconference schedule and we've got to take care of every single one as if it was the national championship game.”

Corrections the team has been implementing after its 115-48 exhibition win against Viterbo have mostly concerned defense and communication. With two games in four days against Oakland and Georgia State, staying on the same page on defense will be key that leads to opportunities on offense.

'We know if we talk to each other and get stops, we can get out in transition and you'll see a lot of nice plays,” sophomore Monte Morris said. 'Just playing basketball together, it's all about communication and if we talk, everybody's happy and we're just fine.”

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