ISU/Iowa matchup hits January for first time in years

Iowa State and Iowa will step out of conference play to renew their rivalry tomorrow night and it marks the first time since 1984 these teams have met in January. It is only temporary and that’s fine with Cyclone coach Wayne Morgan. He says they’d like to see it played earlier in the non-conference year, but that conflicted with Iowa’s finals schedule.Iowa coach Steve Alford says the game will return to its more traditional mid-December date next season. He says a big part of the move is their fault, and he says they seem to have it figured out to play it on a Friday in the future. Given Iowa’s thinning roster Alford says they could have used the week off. Iowa is 9-5 and Iowa State is 10-3.