The Iowa State Cyclones suffered one of the surprising losses of the weekend, going to Lubbock and losing to a Texas Tech team that was previously winless in the Big 12. Fred Hoiberg’s team will not have time to dwell on the loss, as they welcome the Texas Longhorns to Ames on Monday night (ESPN, 9 p.m. ET). ESPN college basketball insiders Fran Fraschilla and Seth Greenberg discussed what makes ISU susceptible after a loss like the one they suffered Saturday, and how well they expect the Cyclones to bounce back.
What was behind Iowa State’s loss to Texas Tech?
Seth Greenberg: As good as Iowa State is, the Cyclones are not without an Achilles' heel. Georges Niang is special and Jameel McKay plays off penetration, but they do not have a traditional low-post player. This makes them a jump-shooting team. If you live by the 3-pointer, you can die by it. The other concern is they get too reliant on their offense and outscoring their opponent. Iowa State needs to maintain a defensive intensity and commitment. They can’t just outscore opponents.
Fran Fraschilla: A big concern I have about the Cyclones that hopefully will be rectified by the humbling loss in Lubbock is that they have been believing the hype about how good they are.
