Iowa State men's basketball regrouping after Oklahoma State setback

AMES – Two things can be true for the Iowa State men’s basketball team. 

Fact 1: The Cyclones have lost four of their last five games, and their last outing, a home loss to Oklahoma State, featured the most out-of-character basketball of the season. 

Fact 2: The Big 12 has a way of making even the best teams hit serious rough patches in the midst of a grueling 18-game slate. 

So while No. 18 Iowa State has plenty to correct ahead of Wednesday’s game against No. 24 TCU (8 p.m.; ESPNU), there’s also room for some perspective. 

“You look at every team in this league and at some point, you’d say there’s some slippage,” said Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger on Tuesday. “Everybody has had it happen. Baylor lost three in a row. Kansas lost three in a row. Those teams could end up being one seeds in the NCAA tournament."

There’s little doubt the quality of competition along with the rapid pace at which it arrives on the Big 12 schedule has much to do with the slump Iowa State (16-8, 7-5) is currently experiencing. 

It's also true, though, that the Cyclones got walloped on the road at Missouri in the SEC-Big 12 Challenge, blew a 23-point second-half lead at Texas Tech and then had a pair of disappointing performances last week in losses to West Virginia and Oklahoma State. The loss to OSU, in particular, showcased a lack of mental toughness that's been a rarity during Otzelberger’s tenure with the Cyclones. 

“We reflected on it, watched film, saw what happened, what we did wrong,” said senior forward Jaz Kunc on Tuesday. “We already know what we have to do. We’ve been good at it ever since T.J. took over this program, and I feel like we’re going to be good at it (against TCU).” 

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One of the chief culprits in Iowa State’s weakening mental fortitude against the Cowboys seemed to be a preoccupation with how the game was being officiated. After being called for an astounding 30 fouls earlier at West Virginia, the Cyclones looked to be especially sensitive to the whistle Saturday. 

“What happens for young people, they see on social media or somebody comments and they see the foul count was 30-19 and they overturned (a call on review),” Otzelberger said. “You start to pay attention to the wrong stuff. Do I feel like we paid more attention to that than we needed to? For sure, we did.  

“We pride ourselves on being very mentally tough and getting on to the next thing, and for whatever reason, there was still lingering effect to that whole thing on Saturday.”  

Ultimately, Iowa State’s physical and pressuring defense is going to draw the attention of officials. 

“I don’t think there’s anything that we should feel bad about or we’re not getting (a good whistle),” Otzelberger said. “We’ve just got to be smarter. You’ve got to be tougher. We play a physical brand of defense.  

“We don’t have an issue if we’re trying to take a charge or block a shot at the rim when we come with force and we play physical. We don’t want to get fouls grabbing and holding or hand-checks.” 

More:Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger discusses his team’s foul trouble vs. West Virginia

And while the loss to Oklahoma State looked to represent rock bottom, it’s also the first time this season that Iowa State’s toughness has faltered. After a nearly two-year-long track record, it would probably be presumptuous to believe it will linger. 

“Time and time again, we’ve talked about our habits and the things we do daily, the work that we put in,” said senior forward Tre King, “and if we just stick to what we’re doing and stay together, we’ll be right back to where we were.” 

Iowa State doesn’t need to look any further than Wednesday’s opponent to see how the league can eat teams up. The Horned Frogs (17-8, 6-6) come to Hilton Coliseum on a three-game losing streak and with a pair of their best players (Mike Miles and Eddie Lampkin) questionable with injuries. 

“TCU is coming here desperate,” Kunc said. “We have to stay together. 

“It’s all about us and not about everything that’s happening around us.” 

While Iowa State’s chances at a regular-season Big 12 title have slimmed to about none, the Cyclones have NCAA seeding work to do that could be quite impactful with a spot in the Des Moines region still in play. 

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“Everything is in play. Everything is going to happen,” Otzelberger said. “You’ve got to take it one day at a time. Keep focusing on doing what you can control, and understand anything that happened, I don’t think it’s a trend or the sky is falling.  

“It’s more (of a) really good league, really good teams, really small margin. Get back to practice, do what you can and be ready for the next one.” 

Travis Hines covers Iowa State University sports for the Des Moines Register and Ames Tribune. Contact him at thines@amestrib.com or  (515) 284-8000. Follow him at @TravisHines21.