Official 15-16 Non Con Schedule

[WastedTalent]

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Ndsu and Buffalo additions

2015-16 Non-Conference Schedule Breakdown
Friday, Nov. 6 – TBA (Exhibition)

Friday, Nov. 13 – vs. Colorado (Sanford Pentagon – Sioux Falls, S.D.)
The Cyclones renew an old rivalry when they open the season against the Buffs at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. It will be the 148th meeting (ISU leads the series 77-70) between the schools but the first since CU left the Big 12 in 2011. Colorado went 16-18 last season. Senior Josh Scott is the Buffs’ top returning scorer after averaging 14.5 points in the post last season.

Monday, Nov. 16 – Chicago State (Ames, Iowa)
Chicago State comes to town as a regional matchup in the Emerald Coast Classic. Chicago State went 8-24 in 2014-15. ISU is 7-0 all-time against Chicago State, with the last meeting coming in 2010.

Monday, Nov. 23 – Chattanooga (Ames, Iowa)
Iowa State will meet the Mocs of Chattanooga for the first time on Nov. 23 in the final regional game of the Emerald Coast Classic. Chattanooga, which went 22-10 last season, will be under the leadership of new coach Matt McCall, who comes to the school after spending four years as an assistant to Billy Donovan at Florida.

Friday, Nov. 27 – vs. Virginia Tech (Emerald Coast Classic – Niceville, Fla.)
Buzz Williams is in his second season as head coach in Blacksburg after going 11-22 in his initial campaign. Williams will have a more talented roster in 2015-16 with a pair of four-star recruits and two three-stars entering the fold to play alongside Justin Bibbs, who was second on the team with 11.4 points as a freshman. Bibbs was recently named to USA Basketball’s U19 team. It will be the second meeting all-time against Virginia Tech, but the first since 1984.

Saturday, Nov. 28 – vs. Illinois/UAB (Emerald Coast Classic – Niceville, Fla.)
The second game of the Thanksgiving weekend tournament will pit the Cyclones against Illinois or give them a rematch of last year’s NCAA Tournament game against UAB. Illinois was 19-14 last season, while UAB finished 20-16.

Tuesday, Dec. 1 – North Dakota State (Ames, Iowa)
The Cyclones begin a four-game home stand against North Dakota State. The Bison will be the first of three games against opponents that advanced to the NCAA Tournament a year ago. NDSU went 23-10 last season, falling to Gonzaga by 10 in the second round of the tournament. The Bison will have to replace their leading scorer, but A.J. Jacobson returns after scoring 11.6 points per game as a freshman. It will be the fifth meeting between the schools, with ISU having won the first four contests.

Tuesday, Dec. 8 – Buffalo (Ames, Iowa)
The Cyclones will host Buffalo for the first time since 1992. Buffalo finished the 2014-15 season with a 23-10 mark and will have a new coach when the season starts. Nate Oats replaced Bobby Hurley after he left for Arizona State. Leading scorer Justin Moss returns after averaging 17.5 points last season. ISU graduate assistant Nate Schmidt was an assistant coach for Nate Oats at Romulus High School in Detroit. Buffalo’s roster features three players from Romulus High School.

Friday, Dec. 11 – Iowa (Ames, Iowa)
The Iowa Corn Cy-Hawk series returns to Ames on Dec. 11 in what will surely be an anticipated showdown. It will be the 68th meeting between the schools, with ISU looking to win for the fifth time in the last six seasons. The Cyclones beat the Hawkeyes 90-75 last season at Carver-Hawkeye Arena.

Sunday, Dec. 13 – Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Ames, Iowa)
The Cyclones wrap up their home stand against Arkansas-Pine Bluff. The Golden Lions went 12-20 last season and are traveling to Ames for the fourth time. The Cyclones are 3-0 in the series, with the last meeting coming in 2002.

Saturday, Dec. 19 – vs. UNI (Hy-Vee Big Four Classic – Des Moines, Iowa)
Iowa State looks to improve to 4-0 at the Hy-Vee Big Four Classic when it faces UNI. Last time the two teams met, ISU erased an 18-point second-half deficit to win in overtime. It will be the 49th meeting between the schools, with ISU owning a 36-12 edge in the series. The Panthers went 31-4 last season, advancing to the third round of the NCAA Tournament.

Tuesday, Dec. 22 – at Cincinnati (Cincinnati, Ohio)
Another quick turnaround awaits the Cyclones as they take to the road for game at Cincinnati before the holiday break. The game will feature a matchup of former Murray State coaches – Iowa State’s Steve Prohm and Cincinnati’s Mick Cronin. Cincinnati made the third round of the NCAA Tournament last season, going 23-11 and beating Purdue in the second round. The Bearcats return their top six scorers and have been very good at home, owning a 354-76 (.823) record at Fifth Third Arena. ISU is 1-3 all-time against Cincinnati.

Wednesday, Dec. 30 – Coppin State (Ames, Iowa)
The final tuneup for the Big 12 season comes on Dec. 30 when they Cyclones host Coppin State in the final game of 2015. Coppin State was just 8-23 last season.

Saturday, Jan. 30 – at Texas A&M (Big 12/SEC Challenge – College Station, Texas)
About a month into the Big 12 season, league play will break for a weekend for the Big 12/SEC Challenge. The Cyclones will face former conference foe Texas A&M, which will feature a matchup of Prohm and his former boss Billy Kennedy. Prohm spent much of his career coaching under Kennedy before taking over for him at Murray State. Texas A&M went 21-12 last season, advancing to the second round of the NIT. The Aggies were 14-4 at Reed Arena and they return their top three scorers and have the nation’s No. 7 recruiting class.

 

[CRAZYGREG]

That is one crappy home schedule.

 

[Chitowncy]

That is one crappy home schedule.

Not a bad stretch in early December though. The schedule is better than I thought it would be. Not bad at all! Tough road game at Cincy, neutral games against P-5 foes and the tough away game at A&M (along with the Hawks at home) should make for some fun.

Sure, we didn't get Kentucky, but this is a pretty solid schedule. I'm excited!

 

[jahfg]

That is one crappy home schedule.

That's the tradeoff of playing 6 P5 schools with 5 at neutral or road sites. Really need to get through that with 1 loss or less if we want to get a 2 seed or better.

 

[CycloneErik]

It's less disappointing than normal. That's progress.

 

[CloneDontCare]

Colorado, UNI, Cincinnati and Texas A&M all away from home could be real challenges. I definitely don't anticipate going 2 for 2 with the last 2.

 

[cycloneman003]

Yeah I get not liking that there is no marquee home non-con game, but seriously this schedule is going to be a good thing. We have had some pretty weak non-con schedules the last few years and this one is pretty darn good compared to those.

Those neutral/road games against Cincinnati, Colorado, UNI, VT and Illinois/UAB will be really good early season games for this team to test themselves against.

I think we should go 7-0 on those home games but Buffalo, Iowa and NDSU are going to be solid opposition.

Also, Texas A&M could be a pretty dangerous looking team come late January.

I'm gonna throw out a significantly early prediction of 11-2 in the non-con games and would be thrilled with that.

 

[jcisuclones]

Brace for more Lakesbison, everybody....

 

[isufbcurt]

As long as we win I am happy, I don't care if it is against Duke or Camanche State College.

 

[cyclonenation5]

For home games it's not great but as a whole it's actually pretty tough. Only a few real guaranteed wins. Good for getting experience on the road and in neutral court settings.

 

[LLCoolCY]

The Buffalo addition is solid and would have been even better if Hurley would have stayed. I still think UB is a likely tourney team next year which should help the end of year resume. Remember Buffalo played Kentucky well last year so it isn't just a normal non-P5 team that should be over looked.

 

[cstrunk]

That seems like a pretty tough schedule to me for a team with a new coach even if they're preseason top 10. I could see us with a couple of losses. Of course I hope not, but even really good teams tend to drop a few that they shouldn't.

 

[CYUL8R]

All I can say is I wouldn't want to be UAB, should we match up with them again.

 

[LindenCy]

It's a pretty solid slate. Look at some past years, and I think you'll find this looks pretty good overall. I remember a lot more cupcakes in the schedule in years past.

 

[alarson]

Its a decent strength of slate but wish we had at least one nice game in Hilton during the noncon stretch other than Iowa.

 

[Cardinal2001]

That's the tradeoff of playing 6 P5 schools with 5 at neutral or road sites. Really need to get through that with 1 loss or less if we want to get a 2 seed or better.

As a season ticket holder, I am happy with this schedule. Not many Delta Devils to beat up on, rather we're playing teams that made the tourny last year. I'm also happy to go to Cincinnati and take on the Bears, rather than beat up on somebody at home.

This will pay off come tournament time. A tougher team will come out of this schedule.

 

[Cyclonepride]

That seems like a pretty tough schedule to me for a team with a new coach even if they're preseason top 10. I could see us with a couple of losses. Of course I hope not, but even really good teams tend to drop a few that they shouldn't.

I agree. I could see 1-2 losses there. What matters is the conference season and how we finish going into March.

 

[mj4cy]

Keep the nonconf losses to 2 or less and I'm cool with it.

 

[JM4CY]

Colorado, UNI, Cincinnati and Texas A&M all away from home could be real challenges. I definitely don't anticipate going 2 for 2 with the last 2.

UNI lost everyone and colorado sucks

 

[JM4CY]

Fred would always drop one or two he shouldn't have. Be very interesting to see if Stevie can overcome that.