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Texas Tech basketball: Scouting the Iowa State Cyclones

By Matthew Conner

LUBBOCK, TX - JANUARY 16: Iowa State Cyclones celebrate their play on the court during the second half of the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on January 16, 2019 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. Iowa State defeated Texas Tech 68-64. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
LUBBOCK, TX - JANUARY 16: Iowa State Cyclones celebrate their play on the court during the second half of the game against the Texas Tech Red Raiders on January 16, 2019 at United Supermarkets Arena in Lubbock, Texas. Iowa State defeated Texas Tech 68-64. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images) /
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Solomon Young #33 of the Iowa State Cyclones (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
Solomon Young #33 of the Iowa State Cyclones (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images) /

The Cyclones are an awful rebounding team

Tuesday night, the Red Raiders’ work on the glass was a reason they beat Kansas State.  Holding an edge of eight offensive boards in that game, they finally used the glass to their advantage.  That needs to be something they repeat Saturday because ISU is even worse in that aspect of the game than the Wildcats.

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For the season, they have been outrebounded by their opponents by 2.44 boards per game.  That’s by far, the worst margin of any Big 12 team.

They will have a bit of a size edge over the Red Raiders, but almost every team does.  They start 6-foot-10 forward George Conditt IV and the 6-foot-9 Jacobsen.   Additionally, Prohm will bring 6-foot-8 Solomon Young off the bench.

But as we know, rebounding isn’t all about height.  Rather, it’s about toughness and grit.  That’s something that was a significant talking point for the Cyclones after their loss to Baylor.

"“We have to get tougher,” Bolton said. “We have to get gritty. We can’t come out in the second half and start slow. That’s when you lose the game.”"

Given that the Cyclones rank just 248th in the country in rebound margin, they obviously need to get more physical on the boards.  What’s more, they are just 179th in the country and 7th in the Big 12 when it comes to offensive rebounds.  They pull down just 10.1 each game.

The last time the Cyclones came to Lubbock, a huge reason they stunned the Red Raiders was timely offensive rebounds.  They held a 5-rebound edge overall and Jacobsen was key with three offensive boards.

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To prevent a repeat of that outcome, Tech has to make certain to take care of the glass the way we saw Chris Beard’s team handle their business Tuesday night.  If they do, they should be able to handle the Cyclones and keep them from earning a second-straight stunning win in Lubbock.

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