HOUSTON – You wanted it, you got it, that national love some people thought the Iowa State men’s basketball team was lacking.
The Cyclones’ 82-74 victory against Texas Tech Saturday, coupled with Houston’s 82-61 win at home against Texas, has given us an 8 p.m., ESPN Big Monday that rivals any Big Monday the Cyclones have been a part of.
Tenth-ranked Iowa State at No. 3 Houston.
More: No. 10 Iowa State basketball dispatches Texas Tech to stay perfect at Hilton Coliseum
At stake: First place in America’s toughest basketball conference.
From that standpoint, it’s as big as it gets for coach T.J. Otzelberger’s turnaround program that’s on the verge of something that could resemble downright greatness.
That’s right. The way this team plays defense, I’d put it up against anybody when it’s on its A-game. Anyone.
And that’s what it’s going to take if sweeping Kelvin Sampson’s team is to happen. Sure, Iowa State beat the Cougars 57-53 in Ames last month. And absolutely, the Cyclones were the toughest team on the Hilton Coliseum floor that night.
But to make a Hall of Fame coach in waiting like Sampson declare a second time in just more than a month that his team “kind of peed down our leg” trying to combat Iowa State’s defense . . .
That’s probably too much to expect against a team that has as much juice in its 8,500-seat Fertitta Center as Iowa State has at Hilton.
Houston has won 14 home games in a row, compared to the Cyclones’ 15-0 record after Saturday’s victory against Texas Tech. Both are impressive, considering how good the Big 12 is.
But wait, you’re still not convinced Iowa State is getting the national-like credit it deserves. I saw and heard comments like that after the NCAA Tournament’s selection committee revealed its top 16 seeds Saturday morning – coincidentally at the same time Iowa State was running its overall record to 20-5.
According to that narrative, the committee’s list would have been fine with Iowa State being a No. 3 seed (and 11th-best selection overall), but wait:
Kansas, which Iowa State defeated, was a 2-seed.
Say what?
More: March Madness predictions: Projecting NCAA Tournament bracket for Big 12 basketball teams
Of course, the Jayhawks were ahead of Iowa State. They played a non-conference schedule that was a doozie – that included Kentucky, Tennessee and UConn.
And that was before Kansas beat Oklahoma Saturday afternoon, which brings us back to Big Monday.
An Iowa State win could be part of a resume that, at the end of the season, just might be impressive enough to result in preferential seeding – also known as landing in a regional being played in Omaha.
“I am starting to believe that Iowa State is the best team in the Big 12,” ESPN College GameDay host Jay Williams said at halftime of the network’s Kansas-Oklahoma game.
And this from former coach Seth Greenberg, also on the GameDay crew:
“(Iowa State’s) Curtis Jones off the bench is just a monster.”
Lights.
Camera.
Iowa State’s first Big Monday since losing by 20 at Kansas on Feb. 17, 2020.
Just another game?
“There’s not going to be anything external that is going to give us any additional motivation,” Otzelberger said after coaching his team to its 20th win Saturday. “The motivation is going to be to have a great practice, a great film session and focus on what’s in front of us.
“It’s my job as the coach to make sure that I keep everybody’s focus right where it needs to be — on the next thing — and not get anywhere past that.”
While Iowa State was a 3-seed in the NCAA’s Saturday reveal, Houston was on the 1-line with Purdue, Connecticut, and Arizona. For the past five seasons, the Cougars have been an NCAA Tournament 1-seed, a 2-seed or a 3-seed. They’ve been to a Final Four, an Elite Eight and two Sweet 16s.
And in ESPN’s Monday night high-profile game, it’s for first place in the nation’s best conference – a pair of 9-3 Big 12 teams that play top-five defenses with unparalleled physicality.
“These are really good teams, really good coaches, and they are relentless,” Otzelberger said Saturday about the Big 12. “You’ve got to make sure your focus is for the full 40 minutes because everybody’s going to keep coming at you.”
Therefore, this game is big during a regular season that, let’s be honest, has gone better (to this point) than many Cyclones fans expected.
How big?
Iowa State athletics director Jamie Pollard (an NCAA selection committee member), put it in perspective after Saturday’s game:
“It’s really not probably what it used to be, because there’s games every night,” he said. “The bigger thing about it is, you have to go on the road on a short turnaround.”
And remember this: there are still five games to play, regardless of how Monday turns out. The conference regular-season champ could have as many as five losses – possibly more. The top six teams in the conference are separated by just two games.
“Winning the Big 12 is hard,” Rob Jones said Saturday. “I think we’re right there, (but) we’ve got a couple games left before tournaments start.”
Iowa State columnist Randy Peterson is in his 52nd year writing sports for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at rpeterson@dmreg.com, on X @RandyPete, and at DesMoinesRegister.com/CyclonesTexts
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Peterson: Iowa State basketball’s Big Monday game at Houston is huge
