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Iowa State
Road to the Final Four.............................................................................................
Remember those pre-season polls conducted by the Big 12 coaches and the media? Iowa State was No. 4 in the former and No. 5 in the latter. Wrong! Despite the early departure of Marcus Fizer, the Cyclones rolled to their second consecutive conference title by finishing a game ahead of pre-season favorite Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. Remember, too, that the Cyclones were just 1-2 in the Big 12 after suffering consecutive overtime losses at Oklahoma State and Missouri. From that point on, the Cyclones won 12 of their final 13 regular-season games. The high points of the regular season had to be the two victories over Kansas. The victories extended Iowa State's winning streak in the series to five games and reaffirmed the fact that the Cyclones, not the Jayhawks, carry the Big 12 banner. Player to Watch Where else could a discussion of Iowa State begin other than with senior point guard Jamaal Tinsley? The Cyclones closed the regular season with a 57-9 mark in two seasons with Tinsley as a starter. Tinsley, who helped the Cyclones to a berth in the Elite Eight last season, can break down any defense off the dribble. And what Tinsley loves to do more than anything else is set up his teammates for easy baskets. Although he is not a great perimeter shooter, he has tremendous range when he is hot. Finally, like all great players, he wants the ball in his hands with the game on the line. "Late in the game when you have the ball in Jamaal Tinsley's hands," Iowa State coach Larry Eustachy said, "you've got a great chance to win it." With the Ball Eustachy employs a three-guard lineup, featuring Tinsley, fellow senior Kantrail Horton and freshman Jake Sullivan. Tinsley is the catalyst. If he can penetrate, draw the interior defense and get the ball inside to either Paul Shirley or Martin Rancik, he'll do so for high-percentage shots. If the opposition worries about the inside game, Tinsley can find either Horton or Sullivan, both dangerous three-point shooters. Iowa State finished third in the Big 12 in field-goal percentage (.483) and No.1 in three-point shooting (.426). Defending the Ball Iowa State doesn't possess an intimidating shot-blocker. The Cyclones finished just sixth among Big 12 teams in scoring defense (68.8 points), sixth in field-goal percentage defense (.420) and only 11th in three-point field-goal percentage defense (.350). What they do well is play fundamentally sound, rebound well and rely on Tinsley and Horton to come up with big steals at key junctures. Iowa State led the Big 12 in rebounding margin (+9.1) and Tinsley showed his ability to disrupt opposing offenses with six steals in the second victory over Kansas. Seed Analysis Exceeding the Seed: Playing to Expectations Falling Short BRACKETOLOGY SCORE: 1.059 (1.000 is playing exactly to a team's historical seeding) Bracketology Report1985-2000: Bet the "chalk" with Iowa State. The Cyclones have played to their exact seeding in seven of 10 NCAA appearances since the tourney expanded to 64 teams in 1985. On the other three occasions, they were no more than one game on either side of their projected performance. This year marks only the second time Iowa State has been seeded higher than a No. 5. The Cyclones also received an at-large bid (and No. 13 seed) in 1985. Roster
 NCAA Basketball Championship Week It's March, which means the madness has started and invitations are being reserved throughout Championship Week.  Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories |  |
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