AMES – Robert Jones and Curtis Jones combined for 33 points and 13-of-20 shooting from the field to aid the Cyclones (10-2, 0-0 Big 12) in an 80-48 victory over Eastern Illinois (6-7, 0-0 Ohio Valley) Thursday night in Hilton Coliseum.
The victory kept Iowa State unbeaten at home (8-0) and gave head coach T.J. Otzelberger win No. 150 in his career.
Curtis Jones drilled five 3-pointers and tallied 15 of his game-high 18 points in the first half, and Robert Jones added 16 points on a 7-of-9 effort from the field. He also had a team-high six boards. Tamin Lipsey posted 11 of his 16 points after intermission and Milan Momcilovic netted 16 points after being scoreless at the break.
Iowa State, which led by as many as 37 points late in the game, was 10-of-23 from 3-point range (43.5 pct.) and connected on 16-of-18 at the charity stripe (88.9 pct.).
How It Happened
Curtis Jones gave the Cyclones a spark from the bench in the early moments. He scored nine quick points behind a pair of 3-pointers to give the Cyclones an 18-9 lead. After increasing their lead to 26-12, the Cyclones went on a four-minute scoring drought to allow the Panthers trim the deficit to under double digits at 26-18 with under eight minutes remaining.
Curtis Jones made two more treys down the stretch to give the Cyclones a 39-26 advantage at the break. The Cyclones were 6-of-13 from beyond the arc in the first 20 minutes.
A Lipsey steal and nifty pass to Robert Jones for a bucket began second half scoring for the Cyclones. Robert Jones scored another basket on ISU’s next possession, as ISU soon forged ahead 48-30.
Lipsey and Momcilovic each scored seven points in the first nine minutes of the second period to increase the Cyclone lead to 58-34.
The lead grew to 33 points (76-43) after a Momcilovic trey with 3:15 remaining in the game.
Top Performer
Tamin Lipsey scored 16 points, but he made his mark in multiple areas in the victory. Lipsey added seven assists, six rebounds and notched four steals, his 10th-straight game with three or more thefts. Lipsey now has 116 steals in his young 45-game career, already ranking No. 18 in school history.
Notes
Tre King recorded his 100th career defensive rebounds at ISU.
Tamin Lipsey eclipsed 200 career rebounds on the day and now has 203.
Lipsey is three steals shy of No. 18 all-time in school history.
Curtis Jones recorded his 200th career defensive rebounds on the evening.
Keshon Gilbert played in his 75th career game this evening.
Gilbert broke the 200-assist mark on the night and now has 204.
Robert Jones played in career game number 125 on the night.
Jones tallied his 100th career assist.
What’s Next
Iowa State’s next game is a New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31) matchup vs. New Hampshire at Noon. The game is on Big 12 Network/ESPN+.
