Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament Iowa State vs. Houston Preview
Here is everything you need to know about Iowa State and Houston in our Cyclones vs. Cougars Big 12 Tournament men’s basketball championship game preview.
Game 13: No. 2 Iowa State (26-7) vs. No. 1 Houston (30-3)
Time, TV: 5 p.m. Saturday, ESPN
Location: T-Mobile Center, Kansas City, MO
Season series (Tied, 1-1): Iowa State def. Houston, 57-53 (at Ames, Iowa); Houston def. Iowa State, 73-65 (at Houston, Texas).
Big 12 Tournament Results: Iowa State: def. Kansas State, 76-57 (quarterfinals); def. Baylor, 76-62 (semifinals); Houston: def TCU, 60-45 (quarterfinals); def. Texas Tech, 82-59 (semifinals).
Winner: Receives the Big 12 Conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
Here is the full Big 12 men’s tournament schedule and results.
Projected starting lineups
Houston: G Jamal Shead, G L.J. Cryer, F Javier Francis, F J’Wan Roberts, G Emanuel Sharp.
Iowa State: G Tamin Lipsey, G Keshon Gilbert, F Tre King, F Robert Jones, F Milan Momcilovic.
Players to watch
Iowa State
G Keshon Gilbert
Tamin Lipsey gets plenty of attention in the backcourt, but in the regular-season it was Gilbert that actually led the Cyclones in scoring with 13.5 points per game. He benefited from Lipsey’s ability to set up teammates. But he proved he could make timely 3-pointers despite only being a 33% shooter from distance. He averaged more than four rebounds and assists per game, making him a perfect tandem partner with Lipsey. Gilbert was a transfer who was on the Big 12’s All-Newcomer Team and selected to the Second Team. He led Iowa State with 20 point against Baylor.
Houston
G L.J. Cryer
Cryer had one of those nights for the Cougars on Friday, as he scored 20 points on 6-of-15 shooting with all six field goals being 3-pointers. Cryer has been a bit more feast-or-famine in his first season with the Cougars, but he’s has far more good days than bad. He enters the championship game averaging 15.4 points and shooting 38.6% from the 3-point line. He’s scored 20 or more points in three of his last five games and he’s heating up at the right time as he seeks his second career national title (Baylor, 2021).
Key storylines
Iowa State
Two games into the Big 12 Tournament it’s clear the double bye agreed with the Cyclones. They used it to clean up their offense and ratchet up their defense, which has been at a high level in this tournament. What the Cyclones did in the second half to Kansas State was incredible. They did something similar to Baylor, though they didn’t create as many turnovers against the Bears. This is the blueprint that works for coach T.J. Otzelberger and his team — defend at a high level and turn those mistakes into points. But this year, unlike the past two years, they have more offensive weapons that can create their own shots. That will make a difference in the NCAA Tournament.
Houston
Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said his team has never really been focused on being in the “Big 12” and is just focused on the next game. That approach has helped them navigate the toughest conference in the country in their first season in the league. The Cougars have won 30 or more games for the fourth time under Sampson and appear poised to claim a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, regardless of what happens on Saturday. But a win might lock down the overall No. 1 seed. Houston already has the regular-season crown. Why not get the matching set? The Cougars have won 15 of their last 16 games since their back-to-back Big 12 losses in early January.
Prediction
Houston 68, Iowa State 64. I’ve watched both games they played against each other and both games each played in Kansas City. This should be an incredible defensive game. It will be a ‘Hilton South’ kind of night in the arena. But Houston has so much more experience under its belt since that meeting in January and is in such a groove that I think the Cougars cap off their first year in the Big 12 with the tournament title.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
