The Iowa State Cyclones open the Big-12 race on Saturday afternoon with a visit to Baylor. The Cyclones closed out non-conference play with a record of 10-5 and coach Greg McDermott feels his team is ready for the league race.
McDermott says they are getting better in large part because they’re getting healthy. He says that has helped them do more offensively. McDermott says the tempo of the game will play a big part in the outcome. He says Baylor is a dangerous offensive team and they can’t be allowed to score a lot of transition points.
McDermott says the Cyclones can not afford to try and outscore the Bears, as he says they will try to run the ball when they can, but will need to slow the transition game.
Scott Drew is in his fifth season of rebuilding the Baylor program. The Bears are 12-2 and figure to have a good shot at playing in the post-season. He says they’ve put themselves in a good position in the non-conference to have that opportunity.
Drew says added experience should help the Bears in conference play and says how the Bears do in close games will determine how successful this season will be.