Joshua Jefferson poured in 23 points with eight rebounds and five assists, Blake Buchanan added 16 points and 11 rebounds for his second double-double of the season, and No. 3 Iowa State pulled away for an 89-61 home victory over Houston Christian on Monday night in Ames, Iowa.
Milan Momcilovic finished with 13 points and Killyan Toure had 11 points for the Cyclones, who were coming off an eight-day break. Iowa State improved to 13-0 for the second time in program history, joining the 2013-14 team.
The Cyclones started slowly. Midway through the first half, Houston Christian was within 22-21 on a 3-pointer by Ryan Bartley with 7:33 left.
But Iowa State found its rhythm after that, going on a 15-2 run to build a 37-23 lead by the 2:34 mark. That stretch started with a driving layup by Jefferson, featured a 3-pointer by Momcilovic and was capped with a two-handed slam by Buchanan.
At half, the Cyclones led 41-28.
In the second half, Houston Christian held its own. The Huskies cut the deficit to 55-44 on a fast-break dunk by Mambourou Mara with 11:36 left. They got within 59-49 on a 3 by Bartley with just under 10 minutes left.
But the Cyclones responded and pulled away with a 20-2 run. The scoring spree was capped by Buchanan’s dunk off a pick-and-roll with Cade Kelderman that put Iowa State up 79-51 with just under five minutes left.
After the Huskies made a pair of free throws, Buchanan flushed an alley-oop dunk from Tamin Lipsey on the Cyclones’ next possession for an 81-53 lead.
Iowa State went on to lead by as many as 31.
Houston Christian (5-8) has lost four straight. Demari Williams had 19 points, and Bartley and D’Aundre Samuels both finished with 14 to lead the Huskies.
Up next, Iowa State opens Big 12 play against West Virginia on Friday. Houston Christian plays Incarnate Word on Saturday in a Southland Conference matchup.
–Field Level Media
