No. 14 Iowa State beats No. 4 Kansas 85-72

“I would say we need to get better in every part of the game”, sophomore forward Vladimir Brodziansky said.

Miami 80, Duke 69: Sheldon McClellan scored 21 points, and Angel Rodriguez had 13 points and 11 assists to lead the No. 15 Hurricanes (16-3, 5-2 Atlantic Coast) past the visiting No. 24 Blue Devils (15-6, 4-4).

Iowa State is one of the top-scoring teams on the road, averaging 86.5 points per game (ranked second).

Self did not identify the player in question, but his reaction to a first-half three-pointer from Selden with 16 seconds left on the shot clock, a stunned expression, palms pointing to the air, indicated that could have been the shot to the coach’s gut.

“We didn’t show much composure when it got hot”, Self said.

In falling to 16-4 overall and 5-3 in the Big 12 with its third straight road defeat, Kansas committed 10 of its 16 turnovers in the second half, including six by Mason.

Morris was 7 of 11 from the field as the best-shooting team in the Big 12 finished at 54 percent to 39 percent for TCU, which is last in the league in field goal percentage. Iowa State won three of the previous four meetings against Kansas and went in looking to become the first Big 12 program to beat a Bill Self-coached Kansas team four times in five meetings…. The Cyclones were No. 7 on the Coaches’ preseason poll, jumped to second on the fifth and sixth polls, then headed downward after losing at Oklahoma, at home against Baylor and at Texas during a four-game stretch. Kansas could not dig out of the 66-59 hole which they themselves had dug (although credit ISU for taking advantage), and Iowa State pulled away for a surprisingly easy win.

It has to come from the players so that when good momentum turns bad, someone can light a fire and extinguish the home team’s. The Sooners received 36 first-place votes, compared with 29 for second-ranked North Carolina.

“We go how (Morris) goes”, Niang said.

And the Jayhawks went cold. The Cyclones struggled throughout the first half in this one, but the final 20 minutes were a different story.

Iowa State: Deonte Burton scored 10 points, and Jameel McKay had a game-high 10 rebounds…. While I think the Cyclones have a good shot at the victory, I like Kansas’ defense to muddle things up and keep us around 155. The Cyclones were even helped by a 3-pointer at the end of the first half when senior forward Abdel Nader knocked down a shot at the buzzer for a 37-28 lead going into the locker rooms. “I also believe our defensive intensity (slipped)”. The Jayhawks joined No. 1 Oklahoma and No. 3 Iowa as teams who have lost in Ames this season.

Kansas: Four Kansas starters had at least three field goals in the first half – and all of them shot at least 50 percent…. If Iowa State’s to remain in contention for the Big 12 title, tonight is a must-win.