Iowa State Cyclones

Game recap, highlights: Iowa State sends No. 5 Marquette to first loss

No. 6 Iowa State scores key win for resume as Keshon Gilbert leads way with 24 points
Dana Becker|
The Iowa State men take on Marquette as part of the Big 12/Big East Battle Wednesday night.
The Iowa State men take on Marquette as part of the Big 12/Big East Battle Wednesday night. | Marco Garcia-Imagn Images

The sixth-ranked Iowa State men earned their biggest win of the season to date, handing No. 5 Marquette its first loss, 81-70, Wednesday night.

The Cyclones (6-1) earned a win in the Big 12/Big East Battle for the conference in front of a packed Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa.

After being denied a signature win at the Maui Invitational vs. No. 2 Auburn, Iowa State made sure to finish off the Golden Eagles when they had the chance.

Check out our live updates and in-game analysis of Iowa State vs. Marquette as part of the Big 12/Big East Battle: 

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Final Stats

Just an all-around solid performance by Iowa State, as they received a big night from Keshon Gilbert, as he led all scorers with 24 points to go along with seven assists. Joshua Jefferson with a double-double, scoring 15 points while grabbing 12 rebounds, and Curtis Jones with 14 off the bench. 

Dishon Jackson added 11 points as Tamin Lipsey was held without a field goal, scoring just one point. 

Iowa State shot 51 percent from the field and buried six 3-pointers, recording 16 assists on 30 made field goals. The Cyclones overcame a bit of a slump midway through the second half, finishing the game strong. 

For Marquette, Royce Parham scored 17 off the bench with Kam Jones adding 14 to go along with nine assists and eight rebounds. Parham sank three 3-pointers, as did Damarius Owens, who scored 11. 

The Golden Eagles were 11-for-31 from deep but shot just 39 percent from the floor with 11 turnovers.

Second Half Live Updates

Iowa State is gonna win this thing! Nate Heise silences any thoughts of a Marquette rally, scoring with 41 seconds left to make it 80-70 in favor of the Cyclones. This has been the most complete performance by Iowa State this season.

Iowa State 71, Marquette 61, 3:56 to play: Gilbert has 24 points, Jefferson 15 and Jones 12 off the bench for the Cyclones, who have a 10-point cushion at the under-4 timeout. Iowa State still shooting 52 percent from the field while Marquette has 11 triples. 

And-1 for Jefferson: A big old-fashioned 3-point play by Jefferson extends the Iowa State lead to 71-61 with 4:32 remaining. The Cyclones needed that after Marquette had climbed back into the game.

Here comes Marquette: Royce Parham buries a 3-pointer and Kam Jones follows with a layup, completely erasing the deficit and tying the game at 61-all with nine to play.

Iowa State 52, Marquette 40, 17:12 left in second half: Keshon Gilbert keeps the momentum from the opening half going, sinking a jumper to make it a 12-point lead for the Cyclones. A big Joshua Jefferson dunk helped get the Hilton faithful back on their feet.

Halftime Stats

Keshon Gilbert is a man locked in right now for Iowa State, dropping a game-high 18 points in the first 20 minutes. Gilbert knocked down a pair of 3-pointers and was 5-for-7 from the field. Five other Cyclones scored, as both Joshua Jefferson and Dishon Jackson have eight each.

As a team, Iowa State is shooting almost 67 percent from the field and has made 4 of 6 from long-range. They also have 10 assists on 18 made field goals.

For Marquette, strong 3-point shooting has kept them in it, including three triples off the bench by Damarius Owens. He leads the team with nine points while David Joplin has eight and Stevie Mitchell seven.

First Half Live Updates

After the first half: Iowa State 46, Marquette 37

Offenses clicking before break: Following some dry spells shooting, both Iowa State and Marquette got going on the offensive end just before the break. Royce Parham followed two Golden Eagle triples with a dunk while Joshua Jefferson and Curtis Jones sank jumpers to keep the Cyclones up, 44-35, with under a minute to play.

Iowa State 36, Marquette 25, 4:50 to go in half: The Golden Eagles cut into the deficit with a pair of 3-pointers but Dishon Jackson answered, sinking a jumper before throwing down a dunk to give Iowa State a 10-point advantage. A Keshon Gilbert triple kept the momentum going just before the half. 

Gilbert for three! Keshon Gilbert pushes the Iowa State advantage to 29-17 for the largest lead of the game with a 3-pointer just before the under-8 timeout. Iowa State has recorded 16 points in the paint and six points off five Marquette turnovers. 

Cyclones sharing the basketball! Iowa State has a 26-15 lead as we go under 10 minutes in the half. Along with shooting almost 70 percent from the field, they have seven assists on 11 made baskets. Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert with two each.

Iowa State 20, Marquette 12, 11:21 left in half: The Cyclones extend their lead on strong shooting from the field at the second official timeout. Along with draining both 3-point attempts, ISU is 8-for-11 from the field with five assists on those eight field goals.

Iowa State 16, Marquette 7, 13:05 left in half: TJ Otzelberger going to his bench early in this one, and they are rewarding him. Nate Heise with a dunk and Jones continues to be on the glass in a big way. Steals by Heise and Tamin Lipsey help give Iowa State control here in the early going.

Iowa State 8, Marquette 5, 15:44 left in half: Milan Momcilovic knocks down a big 3-pointer just before the under 16 timeout to give the Cyclones an early lead. Curtis Jones also with a triple in the early going while Dishon Jackson has a bucket. 

Pregame Updates

This game is part of the Big 12/Big East Battle, as the two leagues will square off in several matchups.

This marks the sixth year of the Big 12/Big East Battle. Villanova knocked off Cincinnati and Providence gave the Big East an early 2-0 lead with wins on Tuesday. Along with Iowa State-Marquette, Baylor faces Connecticut, Kansas plays Creighton and DePaul battles Texas Tech Wednesday night. 

Remaining games include Georgetown at West Virginia, Xavier at TCU, Kansas State and St. John’s, Butler at Houston and Oklahoma State at Seton Hall.

Wednesday is also the birthday of Iowa State hall of famer Hercle "Poison" Ivy, one of the greatest names in Cyclone history.

Published | Modified
Dana Becker
DANA BECKER

Dana Becker has been a sports writer in Iowa since 2000, writing for The Fort Dodge Messenger, Mason City Globe-Gazette, Cedar Rapids Gazette and others. Dana resides in north-central Iowa.

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