AMES, Iowa – Iowa State (12-18, 5-12 Big 12) fought back vs. West Virginia (20-10, 8-9 Big 12) but ran out of gas at the end to fall to the Mountaineers, 77-71 Tuesday night in Hilton Coliseum.
Iowa State was down by 13 points at the half, but battled back to take a four-point lead with 9:30 left in the contest. However, the Cyclones werent able to finish down the stretch in the loss.
The Cyclones got a big game from Prentiss Nixon in his final home game. Nixon scored 16 of his 19 points in the second half, including a season-high five 3-pointers.
Rasir Bolton added 21 points with 17 in the second half to help the Cyclones overcome an early deficit. It was Boltons seventh 20-point game of the season.
Solomon Young added 11 points and seven rebounds.
How It Happened
Iowa State held a 19-17 lead at the midway point of the first half after Michael Jacobson scored in the paint. The Mountaineers then took control by going on a 9-0 run. The WVU lead stretched to 10 points (31-21) with 5:23 remaining in the half when Taz Sherman knocked down a 3-pointer.
The Mountaineers went into the half with a 44-31 lead, hitting 55.6 percent of their shots.
Iowa State got right back into the game by scoring the first 11 points of the second half. Bolton tallied five points in the run to cut the lead to 44-42. The Mountaineers missed their first five shots and committed three turnovers in the first four minutes of the second period.
Nixon then buried three 3-pointers and scored 11-straight Cyclone points to keep the surge going, giving the home team a 51-48 lead with 11:32 left in the game.
ISU briefly held a four-point lead, but WVU went back ahead by 10 points (70-60) with 2:45 left as the Cyclones hit a cold stretch, making just one field goal in a seven-minute period.
Three-pointers from Nixon and Tre Jackson cut the lead to 73-70 with :34 seconds left. Bolton was then fouled, making one of two free throws to make it 73-71. WVU iced the game with four-straight free throws in the last 16 seconds.
Players of Note
Prentiss Nixon played a key role in helping the Cyclones erase a 14-point deficit. Nixon tallied 16 of his 19 points in the second half, connecting on 6-of-8 shots after intermission. Nixon made a season-high five 3-pointers and fell one point from a season best.
Rasir Bolton tallied 17 of his 21 points in the second half to help the Cyclone crawl back into the game. It was Boltons seventh 20-point game of the season.
Individual Notes
Rasir Bolton
-Seventh 20-point game.
-23rd game in double figures, including 12 of the last 13 games.
-Had made 23 consecutive free throws over the last five games prior to a miss late in the second half.
-Also had a streak of 23 consecutive free throws earlier this season (Dec. 8 to Jan. 8).
Prentiss Nixon
-11th game in double figures.
-Tied a season high with four steals (vs. MVSU).
Solomon Young
-15th game in double figures.
-Tied a season high with four blocked shots.
George Conditt
-50 blocks this season are tied for 10th at ISU (Loren Meyer, 1995).
Up Next
Iowa State finishes off the regular season against Kansas State on Saturday in Manhattan. Tipoff is at 3 p.m.
