2017 NCAA Tournament: Iowa State runs through Nevada in Midwest region

Iowa State advanced to play Purdue in the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament.

In what was one of the more entertaining games of the opening day of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, the No. 5 seed Iowa State Cyclones took down the No. 12 seed Nevada Wolf Pack, 84-73, in Milwaukee on Thursday evening.

The Cyclones advanced to the second round to face off against the Purdue Boilermakers for a chance to potentially play the Kansas Jayhawks in the Sweet 16.

Their showdown with Nevada was a classic strength versus strength battle between two offenses that can score points in bunches. Both the Cyclones and Wolf Pack rely heavily on transition points and three-pointers, creating a free-flowing game that consisted of limited fouls and stoppages of play.

While the Cyclones raced out to a 13-point lead at the break and looked like they had the game in the bag, Nevada used a second half run led by future pro Cameron Oliver (22 points and seven rebounds), Jordan Caroline (20 points and eight rebounds) and senior Marcus Marshall (16 points).

More from March Madness

Despite cutting the lead down to four points with 9:55 left, Iowa State’s offensive production was just too much for the Wolf Pack to handle.

Steve Prohm’s unit had five players who scored in double figures, including Monte Morris (19 points, eight rebounds and eight assists), Deonte Burton (14 points), Naz Mitrou-Long (13 points), Matt Thomas (13 points) and Donovan Jackson (12 points). Even though the Cyclones turned the ball over an uncharacteristic 13 times, they shot an absurd 56 percent from the field and drilled eight threes to make up for their lack of ball security.

Add in the fact that they missed just two free throws and had 17 assists on 30 field goals, and it was too difficult for Nevada to cut their deficit closer than four.

But it wasn’t just Iowa State’s offense that impressed. It was their much-improved defense.

The Cyclones let Nevada shoot 40 percent from the field but held them to just 31 percent from beyond the arc and forced Marshall, the team’s leading scorer, into some tough shots on his way to a 5-of-16 shooting night. Mitrou-Long had the task of guarding Marshall for most of the evening. He kept the ball in front of him, challenged every shot the senior took from the perimeter and kept him from getting out in transition.

Moving forward, Nevada will have the potential to be a dangerous team in 2017-18, especially if Oliver doesn’t depart for the NBA and Eric Musselman remains in Reno. With Caroline returning, along with Josh Hall, and the Martin twins and Kendall Stephens joining the roster, this could be a top 25 team if Oliver and Musselman stay in their places.

Next: Ranking the entire field of 68

Meanwhile, Iowa State has a legit shot at making it to the Sweet 16 and beyond. They don’t have the size to match-up in the paint with Purdue but if they can speed up the game and make Caleb Swanigan uncomfortable, they will move onto the next round. Kansas would likely be waiting in what would be a highly anticipated showdown between two Big 12 teams.

Home/March Madness