Jan 7, 2017; Ames, IA, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Deonte Burton (30) runs off the court after the game against the Texas Longhorns at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State won 79-70. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports
AMES — Check out Deonte Burton’s box score from Tuesday night’s 70-65 victory over Kansas State.
Forgot about the 3-for-10 from the field with nine points.
Check out the six rebounds, three steals and a career-high four blocks in 31 minutes of work.
That’s the guy Steve Prohm wants to see on a nightly baiss.
“Love him, hate him, I’m rolling with him because he’s a tough, tough dude,” Prohm said. “He made some big plays down the stretch.”
Indeed he did and much like in Saturday’s double overtime win at Oklahoma, many came when the Cyclones needed them the most.
“The post defense on Johnson when he got the steal was a hell of a play,” Prohm said. “The inbounds play, the steal and then the drive to finish and put us up four. Those are three high-level winning plays. We need him to have 15, 10 and then fill these other with blocks.”
The “do everything” game came after Burton’s 31-point performance at Oklahoma.
There has never been any doubt that Iowa State’s ceiling is much higher with Burton on the floor but that is especially the case if he is doing the little things well like he did on Tuesday night.
Merrill Holden’s encore
Make that two quality games in a row for Merrill Holden after riding the pine for nearly a month.
The Louisiana Tech transfer grabbed seven rebounds on Saturday in Norman and followed that up with five points, four rebounds and two blocked shots in 23 minutes of work vs. K-State.
“In the first half he was really, really good,” Prohm said.
Kansas State missed 18 shots but only grabbed one offensive rebound in the first half. Holden had a lot to do with it.
“I thought he was really good in the second half, our lineups were a little funkier,” Prohm said.
JOTTINGS
— After dishing out four, Monte Morris is now only three dimes away from breaking Jeff Hornacek’s career school record for assists.
— Tuesday marked only the second time all season where Iowa State (14) committed more turnovers than its opponent (12).
— Iowa State will travel to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt Saturday (3 p.m. on ESPN2) in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Vanderbilt lost to Arkansas, 71-70 on Tuesday night. The Commodores are 9-11 on the season with a 3-5 mark in the SEC.
— Iowa State’s next Big 12 game will be a big one next Tuesday vs. West Virginia (8 p.m. on ESPN2). The Mountaineers handed Kansas its first loss of the season on Tuesday night and along with Iowa State, are tied for third in the Big 12 standings.
