Iowa State Basketball: 2019-20 season preview for Cyclones

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KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI – MARCH 14: Lindell Wigginton #5, Marial Shayok #3, Cameron Lard #2, and Nick Weiler-Babb #1 of the Iowa State Cyclones react from the bench during the quarterfinal game of the Big 12 Basketball Tournament against the Baylor Bears at Sprint Center on March 14, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) /

Iowa State Basketball has lost serious production off its roster, so this season will be a reboot of sorts. Head coach Steve Prohm is ready for the task though.

Steve Prohm has certainly found his groove as head coach of Iowa State Basketball. In his first four seasons, he has a record that is 30 games over the .500 mark, two Big 12 conference tournament titles and taken his team to the NCAA Tournament in three of those years, including a Sweet 16 in his first year.

This season gives Prohm a challenge, with five of his top six scorers from last season no longer with the team. So, in August they embarked on a 10-day trip to Italy where they got to face international competition and work on building cohesion. While the opponents didn’t offer up much resistance, outscoring the Netherlands National Team B, Siena All-Stars, and Ivory Coast by 100 points, the extra on-court time teams get on these international trips are invaluable. For Iowa State, chemistry will be key, while last year’s team was talented, there were times when playing as a team was an issue.

While the Cyclones lose a lot of production off of last year’s team, the cupboard is far from bare for Prohm when it comes to 2019-20. The trip to Italy allowed returning players to shake off some rust and a couple of new players guards Caleb Grill and Tre Jackson were signaled out by Prohm for their play on the trip.

Thoughts on Iowa State vary widely for the upcoming season, some believe they still have enough talent to finish in the upper half of the Big 12, while others feel they could freefall to the bottom.

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