A must win tonight?

[ISUonthemove]

I think it might be, in order for us to go Dancing. We NEED 13 non conference wins. 14 would make me feel very comfortable. Conference wins will really have to be earned this year. I think we win 8 or 9 in conference. We do all that, then I think we're in.

But Drake and UNI could be the difference between 13-14 non-con wins, or 11-12 non-con wins. We CANNOT drop these non conference games. 22 wins look much better than 20.

[jtdoyle1]

Well I'm glad them team didn't pack it in after losing to Drake in the 2000 season, but I think the good guys win tonight anyway.

[cyclonestate]

Drake will live and die by the 3point shot this season, so I hope we're guarding the perimeter well tonight. Also, they're going to zone us all night because their weakness is in the paint, so we're going to have to make some shots.

[cstrunk]

Yes, this is a must win. It may or may not break our season depending on how the rest of the season goes... but we need all the wins we can get with a difficult schedule.

[drmwevr08]

Not really a must win from a season long standpoint but very important for the confidence of the team and the fans (one of those being far more critical of course).

[Stewo]

Drake will live and die by the 3point shot this season, so I hope we're guarding the perimeter well tonight. Also, they're going to zone us all night because their weakness is in the paint, so we're going to have to make some shots.

I've noticed in our 4 games so far that we aren't leaving the 3 ball open. Last year, I wanted to jump out of my seat because we'd always leave the 3 ball open. Tonight will be the first real challenge.

[Cydkar]

For my wallet, yes.

[mapnerd]

I wonder if we'll see more Boozer tonight. IIRC, he was good on D last year.

[tccoach]

It is a "must win" in regards that we "should" beat Drake.
Hopefully Young doesn't go off on tonight...but even if he does...Brackins could/should have a monster game on the inside.

[kg-cyclone]

I've noticed in our 4 games so far that we aren't leaving the 3 ball open. Last year, I wanted to jump out of my seat because we'd always leave the 3 ball open. Tonight will be the first real challenge.

Part of that was done on purpose...pick out the worst shooter and let him take all the shots he wants.

I also see an argument against doing that.

[ISUBejarno]

If we can stop the three tonight, cyclones roll by 30

[Cy1969]

Well I'm glad them team didn't pack it in after losing to Drake in the 2000 season, but I think the good guys win tonight anyway.

Wow, it took two whole posts to bring this up.

YES, this is a very important game. Greg is 0-3 against Drake as Iowa State coach.

This is one of those perception wins for the fans. If we are going to seriously be considered a contender for an NCAA bid, it starts here.

The UNI game is a little different, because they return almost everybody from a 23 win team. But Drake, without their best player, is a MUST win.

[larrysarmy]

In a word...YES. For this program to advance, to truly show growth from Mac's first year to now...I think we need to win and win big.

Year 4...we are experienced, deep and ready to make a move. These are the games we need to impose our will and make a statement.

[drmwevr08]

Excellent first post...

We aren't going to completely stop it and frankly if we did we still would not win by 30.

[clone4lyfe]

I think the key is to pressure the ball on the perimeter when we are on D and take care of it against their pressure when we are on O. If we don't turn the ball over and we make them take bad shots on the outside then we will win pretty easily. I'm predicting a 12-15 point win tonight and hoping for bigger.