# 2014–15 Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball team

The 2014–15 Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball team represented Iowa State University during the 2014–15 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cyclones were coached by Fred Hoiberg, who was in his fifth season. They played their home games at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa and competed in the Big 12 Conference.
They finished the season 25–9, 12–6 in Big 12 play to finish in second place. They defeated Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas to become champions of the Big 12 Conference tournament to earn an automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In the NCAA Tournament they were upset by UAB in the first round.
At the conclusion of the season, head coach Fred Hoiberg accepted the same position with the Chicago Bulls of the NBA.

## Previous season

The Cyclones finished 28–8, and 11–7 in Big 12 play to finish in a tie for 3rd place in the regular season conference standings. They defeated Kansas State, Kansas, and Baylor to become champions of the Big 12 Conference tournament to earn and automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. In the NCAA Tournament they defeated North Carolina Central and North Carolina to advance to the Sweet Sixteen where they lost to UConn.

### Offseason departures

Offseason Departures :
| Name | Position | Reason |
| Melvin Ejim | Forward | Graduated |
| DeAndre Kane | Guard | Graduated |
| Tyler Ellerman | Forward | Graduated |
| Percy Gibson | Forward | Transferred to Oakland |
| K.J. Bluford | Guard | Transferred to Northern Arizona |
| Reference: |||

## Recruiting
### Prep recruits

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes :
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date |
| Clayton Custer PG | Overland Park, Kansas | Blue Valley Northwest | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) | 160 lb (73 kg) | Nov 19, 2012 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 75 ||||||
| Georgios Tsalmpouris C | Katerini, GRE | 3rd High School of Katerini | 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) | N/A | May 10, 2014 |
| Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: N/A ESPN grade: NR ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: 247Sports: 115 ||||||
| Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Iowa State 2014 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "2014 Iowa State Basketball Commits". Scout.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. "2014 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 7, 2017. ||||||

### Incoming transfers

Incoming Transfers :
| Name | Position | Hometown | Previous School | Remaining Eligibility | Notes |
| Bryce Dejean-Jones | Guard | Los Angeles | UNLV | 1 | Dejean-Jones was eligible to play immediately. |
| Hallice Cooke | Guard | Union City, New Jersey | Oregon State | 2 | Cooke sat out the 2014–15 season due to NCAA eligibility rules. |
| Deonte Burton | Forward | Milwaukee | Marquette | 1.5 | Burton transferred after the fall semester of the 2014–15 season. He was eligible to play the spring semester of the 2015–16 season. |
| Reference: ||||||

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | High points | High rebounds | High assists | Site (attendance) city, state |
| Exhibition |||||||||
| November 7, 2014 7:00 pm, Cyclones.tv | | Viterbo | W 115–48 | – | – – | – – | – – | Hilton Coliseum (–) Ames, Iowa |
| Regular season |||||||||
| November 14, 2014* 7:00 pm, Cyclones.tv | No. 14 | Oakland CBE Hall of Fame Classic | W 93–82 | 1–0 | 30 – Niang | 11 – Dejean-Jones | 5 – Niang | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| November 17, 2014* 8:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 14 | Georgia State CBE Hall of Fame Classic | W 81–58 | 2–0 | 19 – Morris | 11 – Niang | 9 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (13,913) Ames, Iowa |
| November 24, 2014* 8:30 pm, ESPN2 | No. 13 | vs. Alabama CBE Hall of Fame Classic Semifinals | W 84–74 | 3–0 | 28 – Niang | 8 – Thomas | 12 – Morris | Sprint Center (8,321) Kansas City, Missouri |
| November 25, 2014* 8:30 pm, ESPNU | No. 13 | vs. Maryland CBE Hall of Fame Classic Championship | L 63–72 | 3–1 | 17 – Dejean-Jones | 7 – Dejean-Jones | 4 – Niang | Sprint Center (9,034) Kansas City, Missouri |
| December 2, 2014* 7:00 pm, Cyclones.tv | No. 20 | Lamar | W 96–59 | 4–1 | 14 – Thomas | 10 – Dejean-Jones | 8 – Dejean-Jones | Hilton Coliseum (13,907) Ames, Iowa |
| December 4, 2014* 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 20 | No. 18 Arkansas Big 12/SEC Challenge | W 95–77 | 5–1 | 27 – Dejean-Jones | 6 – Dejean-Jones | 8 – Niang | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| December 9, 2014* 6:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 14 | UMKC | W 73–56 | 6–1 | 22 – Dejean-Jones | 7 – Niang | 7 – Niang | Hilton Coliseum (13,902) Ames, Iowa |
| December 12, 2014* 7:00 pm, BTN | No. 14 | at Iowa Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk Series | W 90–75 | 7–1 | 21 – Long | 13 – Hogue | 7 – Niang | Carver–Hawkeye Arena (15,400) Iowa City, Iowa |
| December 14, 2014* 5:00 pm, Cyclones.tv | No. 14 | Southern | W 88–78 | 8–1 | 18 – Dejean-Jones | 8 – Nader | 5 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| December 20, 2014* 4:00 pm, Mediacom | No. 13 | vs. Drake Big Four Classic | W 83–54 | 9–1 | 13 – Long | 5 – Hogue | 5 – Dejean-Jones | Wells Fargo Arena (15,124) Des Moines, Iowa |
| December 31, 2014* 6:00 pm, Cyclones.tv | No. 9 | Mississippi Valley State | W 83–33 | 10–1 | 24 – Long | 9 – Edozie | 6 – Dejean-Jones | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| January 3, 2015* 5:00 pm, CBSSN | No. 9 | vs. South Carolina Brooklyn Hoops Showcase | L 60–64 | 10–2 | 15 – McKay | 8 – Niang | 3 – Niang | Barclays Center (3,546) Brooklyn, New York |
| January 6, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 17 | Oklahoma State | W 63–61 | 11–2 (1–0) | 17 – Hogue | 9 – Dejean-Jones | 6 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| January 10, 2015 7:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 17 | at No. 14 West Virginia | W 74–72 | 12–2 (2–0) | 19 – Nader | 7 – Nader | 6 – Morris | WVU Coliseum (12,076) Morgantown, West Virginia |
| January 14, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 11 | at No. 22 Baylor | L 73–74 | 12–3 (2–1) | 19 – Long | 7 – Morris | 9 – Morris | Ferrell Center (6,576) Waco, Texas |
| January 17, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | No. 9 Kansas ESPN College GameDay | W 86–81 | 13–3 (3–1) | 20 – Long | 7 – Dejean-Jones | 10 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| January 20, 2015 6:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 9 | Kansas State | W 77–71 | 14–3 (4–1) | 15 – McKay | 7 – McKay | 4 – Niang | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| January 24, 2015 3:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 9 | at Texas Tech | L 73–78 | 14–4 (4–2) | 20 – Morris | 10 – McKay | 3 – Morris | United Spirit Arena (9,310) Lubbock, Texas |
| January 26, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 15 | No. 19 Texas | W 89–86 | 15–4 (5–2) | 19 – Niang | 7 – Long | 6 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| January 31, 2015 1:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 15 | TCU | W 83–66 | 16–4 (6–2) | 23 – Niang | 8 – Niang | 6 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| February 2, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 11 | at No. 8 Kansas | L 76–89 | 16–5 (6–3) | 24 – Niang | 9 – Dejean-Jones | 5 – Niang | Allen Fieldhouse (16,300) Lawrence, Kansas |
| February 7, 2015 1:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 11 | Texas Tech | W 75–38 | 17–5 (7–3) | 17 – McKay | 8 – McKay | 6 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| February 9, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 14 | at No. 17 Oklahoma | L 83–94 | 17–6 (7–4) | 19 – Hogue | 9 – McKay | 4 – Niang | Lloyd Noble Center (11,099) Norman, Oklahoma |
| February 14, 2015 3:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 14 | No. 21 West Virginia | W 79–59 | 18–6 (8–4) | 19 – Morris | 8 – McKay | 5 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| February 18, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 14 | at No. 22 Oklahoma State | W 70–65 | 19–6 (9–4) | 17 – McKay | 14 – McKay | 5 – Morris | Gallagher-Iba Arena (7,612) Stillwater, Oklahoma |
| February 21, 2015 1:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 14 | at Texas | W 85–77 | 20–6 (10–4) | 17 – Niang | 9 – McKay | 5 – Morris | Frank Erwin Center (13,161) Austin, Texas |
| February 25, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPNU | No. 12 | No. 19 Baylor | L 70–79 | 20–7 (10–5) | 21 – McKay | 8 – McKay | 6 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| February 28, 2015 4:00 pm, ESPN2 | No. 12 | at Kansas State | L 69–70 | 20–8 (10–6) | 21 – Niang | 10 – McKay | 5 – Long | Bramlage Coliseum (12,528) Manhattan, Kansas |
| March 2, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN | No. 17 | No. 15 Oklahoma | W 77–70 | 21–8 (11–6) | 23 – Niang | 12 – McKay | 5 – Morris | Hilton Coliseum (14,384) Ames, Iowa |
| March 7, 2015 7:30 pm, ESPNews | No. 17 | at TCU | W 89–76 | 22–8 (12–6) | 19 – Niang | 10 – McKay | 6 – Niang | Wilkerson-Greines Center (5,076) Fort Worth, Texas |
| Big 12 Tournament |||||||||
| March 12, 2015 6:00 pm, ESPNU | (2) No. 13 | vs. (7) Texas Quarterfinals | W 69–67 | 23–8 | 24 – Morris | 9 – McKay | 6 – Niang | Sprint Center (18,972) Kansas City, Missouri |
| March 13, 2015 8:00 pm, ESPN2 | (2) No. 13 | vs. (3) No. 15 Oklahoma Semifinals | W 67–65 | 24–8 | 13 – Niang | 9 – McKay | 4 – Niang | Sprint Center (18,972) Kansas City, Missouri |
| March 14, 2015 5:00 pm, ESPN | (2) No. 13 | vs. (1) No. 9 Kansas Championship | W 70–66 | 25–8 | 19 – Niang | 8 – McKay | 6 – Morris | Sprint Center (18,972) Kansas City, Missouri |
| NCAA Tournament |||||||||
| March 19, 2015 11:40, truTV | (3 S) No. 9 | vs. (14 S) UAB Second round | L 59–60 | 25–9 | 15 – Morris | 12 – McKay | 4 – Morris | KFC Yum! Center Louisville, Kentucky |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. |||||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | Final |
| AP poll | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 20 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 17 | 11 | 9 | 15 | 11 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 17 | 13 | 9 | |
| Coaches Poll | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 19 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 9 | 16 | 13 | 12 | 16 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 13 | 17 | 15 | 10 | 19 |