MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — The opinions regarding Iowa State’s postseason chances are as erratic as the Cyclones’ recent performances.
ESPN’s Joe Lunardi projects them as a No. 7 seed, while Jerry Palm of CBS Sports lists Iowa State among his last four teams in the field.
Coming off an 84-78 upset loss at Vanderbilt, the Cyclones host No. 7 West Virginia on Tuesday night, hoping to restore some magic to Hilton Coliseum.
The Mountaineers won there last February, erasing a 15-point deficit in what remains the program’s most impressive Big 12 road victory through five seasons.
This Iowa State edition has already dropped two home games — 55-54 to Cincinnati in overtime and 76-72 to Kansas — and a three-loss season at Hilton hasn’t occurred since 2011.
“When we play the right way — when we’re consistent with our effort defensively so that we can play in transition and we’re not just walking it up — we can be very, very good,” said Cyclones coach Steve Prohm.
The second-year coach still resides in the shadow of hometown hero Fred Hoiberg and could use a signature win after two-point losses to No. 1 Gonzaga and at No. 2 Baylor.
“You can say it gives you confidence, but also with the competitiveness in you, it frustrates you too,” Prohm said. “Because obviously those would have been monster wins.”
With point guard Monte Morris producing a stellar senior campaign (16.4 points, Big 12-best 5.8 assists), the Cyclones remain the league’s most trigger-happy 3-point team. Naz Mitou-Long (15.3 points) and Matt Thomas (11.9 points) are the main perimeter threats while 6-foot-4 Deonte Burton (13.7 points, 6.9 rebounds) is a wide-bodies slasher with a lethal left hand.
West Virginia must exploit its height advantage against the small-ball lineup of Iowa State, which ranks last in the Big 12 in rebounding margin.
Then there’s the on-again, off-again nature of “Press Virginia,” which leads the nation in forced turnovers (22.7) despite sometimes failing to match coach Bob Huggins’ intensity standards. Iowa State commits the sixth-fewest turnovers in Division I thanks to the steady guidance if Morris, who plays 34 minutes per game, second-most in the league.
“His ball security is terrific and I don’t know if we can get him to turn the ball over much either,” Bob Huggins said. “Hopefully we can continue to put new people on him and wear him down a little bit.”
National steals leader Jevon Carter (12.2 points, 4.5 rebounds) is the primary ball hound, and also on a curious streak of leading WVU in rebounding for four straight games.
Esa Ahmad (12.1 points), a week removed from his career-high 27-point output against Kansas, should present matchup dilemmas for the undersized Cyclones.
West Virginia (17-4, 5-3) at Iowa State (13-7, 5-3)
Tipoff: Tuesday, 9 p.m. in Ames, Iowa (ESPN2)
RPIs: West Virginia 27, Iowa State 46
Line: West Virginia favored by 2.5
Prediction: Iowa State 76-74