NCAA Tournament 2017, Iowa State vs Nevada: Highlights, score and recap

A recap of the NCAA Tournament game between the Iowa State Cyclones and Nevada Wolf Pack

Iowa State is among the most experienced teams in the NCAA tournament. They’re led by a slew of senior contributors, including Deonte Burton, Monte Morris, Nazareth Mitrou-Long, and Matt Thomas. What Iowa State does best is offense – specifically, hit 3s, and avoid turnovers. Their 40.2 percentage from deep was good for 11th in the country, and they only turned the ball over on 14.1 percent of possessions.

The Nevada Wolf Pack are also dependent on their 3-point attack. They’ve been among the best in the nation at taking and making 3s, and they’re driven by attacking guards Marcus Marshall and Lindsey Drew. The two take turns initiating for the offense, with assist rates north of 20 percent. But they’re also solid from 3. Marshall in particular has taken more threes than just about anyone else in Division 1, and is connecting on 38.6 percent of them.

While Iowa State started a bit cold from 3 today, they heated up at the right time. Just as Nevada closed the gap to within four points in the 2nd half — while Monte Morris was sitting on the bench with three fouls — they nailed consecutive triples to push the lead back to double digits. Nevada continued to fight, but they never closed the gap enough to really challenge for the win, as Iowa State managed to come up with a basket or free throws at the right times.

Three Stars

The 3-pointer was the biggest star of today’s game. Simply, Iowa State hit its shots from deep, and Nevada didn’t. The Cyclones finished 8 of 19 from 3, while the Wolf Pack shot under 30 percent on 25 attempts. Sometimes it’s just that simple.

Naz Mitrou-Long and Matt Thomas led the charge from three for Iowa State. The pair of guards finished 6 of 10 from 3, hitting all but two of Iowa States attempts on the night. But Monte Morris was the architect. The excellent point guard consistently got to the rim, scored 19 points, and set his teammates up (with 8 assists) on a night where he struggled with foul trouble.

Jordan Caroline put up a valiant losing effort. Though a bit cold from three, he muscled his way to the free throw line for 10 attempts, and scored 20 points on the night to go along with 8 rebounds and 4 assists. He helped lead several charges for Nevada near the end of the game, but they came up just a bit short in the upset bid.

Highlights

Next Game

Iowa State moves on to face 4th-seeded Purdue, who beat Vermont earlier in the night. Iowa State’s firebombing offense will run up against Purdue’s balance and size. It should be one of the better second round matchups we get, as the two battle for a spot in the Sweet 16. Make sure to follow along with our coverage on FanSided as comprehensively cover the NCAA Tournament.