Fresh off an upset win over Michigan, the No. 21 Iowa State Cyclones defeated BYU on the road Wednesday, 90-88, to push their record to 4-0.
Iowa State vs. BYU final score: Cyclones hold on for 90-88 win
In a battle of unbeatens, Iowa State outlasted BYU in a rough battle from start to finish.
Chris Nicoll-USA TODAY Sports
The Cougars led for most of the evening, but were never able to gain much distance on Iowa State. Midway through the second half, the Cyclones started chipping away, then eventually tied the game with 7:20 to go.
A long three from Matt Thomas with 5:54 left gave Iowa State its first lead since the score was, 18-17. DeAndre Kane then stole the ball and Melvin Ejim laid it in to put the Cyclones up three, which forced BYU to call a timeout.
The Cyclones never relinquished the lead.
Part of the reason Iowa State was able to stay close and eventually pull ahead was that it was able to contain Tyler Haws, who came into the game averaging 29.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per contest. He did finish with 20 points, but was ineffective for most of the game. Haws shot just 6-19.
Matt Carlino had 19 points and Eric Mika added 17. They carried BYU while Haws struggled.
Kane and Ejim led Iowa State, scoring with 21 points each.
Kane, however, was ejected with 3:28 left after being called for a flagrant foul 2 on a play where he hit Mika in the face. Ejim then fouled out less than two minutes later, forcing Iowa State to finish the game without its two top scorers.
And it was a sub who came up with perhaps the biggest play of the game.
The Cyclones were up one with under 10 seconds left when Haws attempted what could have been the game-winner. Instead, Daniel Edozie blocked his shot and recovered the ball. He was quickly fouled and made one of two free throws. Kyle Collinsworth's jumper at the buzzer fell short, giving Iowa State the win.
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