For much of the first half, it looked like the Kentucky Wildcats had control of this game. They were making shots and playing tenaciously on defense.
Then, Iowa State closed the first half on an 8-0 run in 89 seconds to turn a 30-23 deficit into a 31-30 lead. Kentucky never recovered.
Iowa State blitzed their way from there to an 82-63 win, ending the Cats’ season in the Round of 32. After the Cats were up 18-6, the Cyclones outscored them by 31 points the rest of the way. In total, it was 76-45.
Kentucky
had 20 turnovers to just 11 assists, shooting 9-25 from three-point range and 21-45 from the field.
Iowa State shot 9-28 from three-point range, including 9-17 after an 0-11 start. The Cyclones shot 28-61 from the field, and they only had seven turnovers to 17 assists.
The Cyclones won the rebound battle 31-30.
First Half
Collin Chandler made his first two three-pointers, and the Cats’ defense held the Cyclones to just 2-8 shooting in the first 4:34 of the game. It led to a 10-4 lead at the first media timeout. The Cats did have three turnovers in the first segment, but they had four assists. They also forced two turnovers on defense.
The Cats continued their hot start in the next segment, with Denzel Aberdeen banging in two three-pointers and Mouhamed Dioubate corralling two offensive rebounds for four points. It led to a 20-9 lead with 11:30 remaining.
A foul by Denzel Aberdeen, while Milan Momcilovic was shooting a three-pointer, started a 9-0 run by the Cyclones that cut it to 20-18 with 9:33 remaining. The Cats had seven turnovers at the time.
Foul trouble continued for the Cats, with Iowa State getting into the bonus before the under-eight media timeout. The Cyclones tied the game at 20-20 before Denzel Aberdeen drove to the basket for an and-one.
It was here when the game slowed to a slog. Both teams were struggling to make shots, especially the Cyclones. Iowa State was struggling mightily from three-point range, enabling Kentucky to keep a lead for the majority of the first half.
Three-pointers by Otega Oweh and Kam Williams helped the Cats to a 28-23 lead with 2:52 remaining in the first half. That lead grew to 30-23 with 1:29 remaining in the second half, but then disaster struck.
Milan Momcilovic made a three-pointer off a broken play with both teams going for a rebound off a missed three-pointer. It started an 8-0 run by the Cyclones that made it 31-30 Iowa State at halftime. In that run, the Cyclones had three turnovers. The Cats had 12 turnovers in the first half alone.
Despite shooting 29 percent from the floor in the first half and 3-16 from three-point range, the Cyclones still managed to lead by one point at halftime. Tamin Lipsey had four steals.
Kentucky shot 47.8 percent from the floor and 6-15 from three-point range. The rebound battle was tied at 18-18. Iowa State had 15 free-throw attempts to Kentucky’s three.
Aberdeen led the Cats with 10 points, while Momcilovic also had 10 points to lead the Cyclones.
Second Half
Both teams were whistled excessively for fouls early in the second half. By the first media timeout, Kentucky had five fouls and Iowa State had three. The Cyclones led 41-36 with 15:57 remaining, with Tamin Lipsey hitting two three-pointers early in the second half.
Otega Oweh, Denzel Aberdeen, and Collin Chandler all had three fouls at the first media timeout. It clearly was impacting the Cats, as Iowa State took advantage by playing free and attacking the rim and attacking on defense. The Cylones led 48-40 with 12:48 remaining.
With the Cats seemingly searching for answers to the Cyclones’ defense, the Cyclones made things even worse, opening up a 52-40 lead with less than 12 minutes remaining. It got to 56-41 with 10:21 remaining and then 65-45 with 7:42 remaining in the second half.
The Cats just didn’t have it. Nothing was going right. Iowa State proved to be too much with their relentless pressure. It changed the whole game.
Credit to Otega Oweh and Denzel Aberdeen for continuing to fight. They went out that way, which is what you want from your Senior leaders.
Tamin Lipsey had 17 of his 26 points in the second half for the Cyclones. Momcilovic had 20 points and four three-pointers. He was the catalyst in Iowa State outscoring Kentucky 51-33 in the second half.
Box Score
MVPs: Otega Oweh and Denzel Aberdeen
They gave everything they had. These two will be remembered, especially Oweh. In a season that was rocky from the beginning, Oweh kept the ship afloat and steady. Aberdeen was the glue of this team, always there to make a play when the Cats needed it.
Aberdeen finished with 20 points and four three-pointers in 37 minutes, while Oweh finished with 18 points and eight rebounds in 36 minutes.
Kentucky vs. Iowa State Twitter Reactions
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