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Tag: turnovers

  • No. 9 Iowa State turns focus to defense vs. Oklahoma State

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    (Photo credit: Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images)

    No. 9 Iowa State would like nothing more than to string together another long set of victories.

    The Cyclones (17-2, 4-2 Big 12 Conference) will go for back-to-back wins when they tip off against Oklahoma State (14-5, 2-4) on Saturday afternoon in Stillwater, Okla.

    Iowa State won its first 16 games of the season before enduring back-to-back road losses at Kansas and Cincinnati. The Cyclones recovered with an 87-57 home win over UCF on Tuesday night, reminding fans that it can dominate on both ends of the court.

    Cyclones coach T.J. Otzelberger consistently has emphasized defense as the key for his team’s success. He praised his players for limiting UCF to 57 points after allowing an average of 81.5 points in the previous two losses.

    Joshua Jefferson played a vital role in the defensive improvement, Otzelberger said. It is something he hopes to see continue when the Cyclones take on Oklahoma State.

    ‘I’d say, defensively, he had an edge to how he played,’ Otzelberger said. ‘He was really helping pressure and getting turnovers, and then for him, we’ve got to do the best job we can trying to (get into the) open court. But when he can get a dunk in transition, and he can get a finish where the whole defense isn’t loaded up, that’s going to build his confidence. I think he earned that on the defensive end.

    ‘And then he took a leadership position in terms of, we’re going to move the ball, we’re going to share the ball, we’re going to keep it on the move. And to have 12 assists and no turnovers, I mean, that’s ridiculous. Not to mention the rebounds and the points. So, I’m just proud of his ability mentally to lock in on the things that are important for us to be successful, and now we’ve just got to work together and maintain that every night out.’

    Milan Momcilovic is Iowa State’s top scorer with 18.2 points per game on 54.4 percent shooting, including 54.0 percent shooting from beyond the arc. Jefferson is next with 17.3 points per game to go along with a team-high 7.9 rebounds per game, and Tamin Lipsey also is scoring in double digits with 13.2 points per game.

    Oklahoma State has lost four of its past six games, including a 68-65 loss at TCU on Tuesday night. The Cowboys already played Iowa State on Jan. 10, losing 83-71 on the road, and they will look to improve upon their 1-2 record against ranked opponents.

    Anthony Roy leads Oklahoma State with 17.6 points per game. Three other players are scoring in double digits including Parsa Fallah (14.4 points per game), Vyctorius Miller (13.9) and Jaylen Curry (10.5).

    Cowboys coach Steve Lutz knows that his team is in for a challenge on its home court.

    ‘The league is so darn good, there’s going to be carnage along the way,’ Lutz said. ‘… I think last year we started off 2-7 in the league, and it was really hard to recover from that. It’s very important that we don’t repeat that performance.’

    –Field Level Media

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  • Coach tells Oklahoma St. to ‘look in the mirror’ before K-State clash

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    (Photo credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images)

    Oklahoma State coach Steve Lutz has been preaching defense all season, and the Cowboys finally seemed to have listened last week when they held UCF and Iowa State below their season averages.

    That all went out the window in a 94-79 loss to Baylor Tuesday.

    Oklahoma State (13-4, 1-3 Big 12) will try to get back on track Saturday when it hosts Kansas State (9-8, 0-4) in Stillwater, Okla.

    The loss to Baylor left the Cowboys, who had high hopes during nonconference play, behind the 8-ball in the Big 12 race.

    ‘At the end of the day, if you allow someone to come on your floor and score 94 points, you better look in the mirror,’ Lutz said.

    The Cowboys gave up 57 points in the first half and trailed by 18. They cut it to 10 in the second half, but could not get within striking distance of the Bears.

    ‘You can’t play the game of basketball, especially in the No. 1 league in the country, like it is an AAU game,’ Lutz said. ‘You have to play with intent. We did that a little better in the second half.

    ‘In college basketball, you can’t start winning until you stop losing. You can’t do things that make you lose. Not defending the 3 makes you lose. Turning the ball over eight times in the first half makes you lose. Getting offensive rebounds and not making them pay. Those are losing qualities. You have to flip that.’

    Anthony Roy continues to lead the Cowboys in scoring with 17.6 points, along with 4.2 rebounds per game. Parsa Fallah is scoring 15.1 and pulling down a team-high 6.5 rebounds.

    The Wildcats are coming off an 82-73 loss to UCF that kept them winless in the conference.

    ‘This calling of coaching is not for the faint of heart, especially in this league,’ Kansas State coach Jerome Tang said. ‘In the first eight minutes, we had eight turnovers and a couple of shots that might as well have been turnovers and they were able to get out in transition. When you dig yourself a hole, it is just hard.’

    P.J. Haggerty leads the Wildcats with 22.9 points and 4.6 assists per game.

    Abdi Bashir Jr., a 44.3% 3-point shooter, had 12 points against UCF on 4-of-13 shooting from distance. His aim has been hot and cold this month, following an 0-for-5 performance at No. 1 Arizona with a 6-for-12 day behind the arc when Kansas State faced Arizona State three days later.

    –Field Level Media

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  • NBA roundup: Spurs off to first 5-0 start in team history

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    (Photo credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images)

    Victor Wembanyama posted 27 points, 18 rebounds, six assists and five blocks while leading the host San Antonio Spurs to a 107-101 victory over the Miami Heat on Thursday night.

    The Spurs, who have won five NBA titles, are off to a 5-0 start for the first time in franchise history. San Antonio also got 21 points, eight assists, six rebounds and four steals from Stephon Castle.

    Bam Adebayo scored a game-high 31 points and pulled down 10 rebounds while Andrew Wiggins added 24 points for the Heat, whose three-game winning streak ended.

    San Antonio, which entered the game with the best scoring defense in the NBA (104.5 points per game), won a battle against a Heat team that entered the day with the league’s No. 1 scoring offense (131.5).

    Bucks 120, Warriors 110

    Ryan Rollins scored a career-high 32 points and handed out eight assists, and seven other Bucks players reached double figures to lead Milwaukee to a victory over visiting Golden State without Giannis Antetokounmpo.

    Myles Turner delivered his best game as a Buck with 17 points and seven rebounds. Cole Anthony added 16 points despite fouling out with more than seven minutes remaining.

    Stephen Curry scored 27 points to lead the Warriors, with Jonathan Kuminga (24) and Jimmy Butler III (23) not far behind. Butler grabbed 11 boards.

    Thunder 127, Wizards 108

    Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 31 points, seven assists and no turnovers, leading Oklahoma City to a home win over Washington.

    The defending NBA champion Thunder are 6-0 for the second consecutive season after starting their championship season with seven straight victories. Oklahoma City turned up the heat defensively from the start, scoring 26 points off 23 Wizards’ turnovers while the Thunder turned the ball over just six times.

    After missing the first four games due to an offseason thumb injury, Bilal Coulibaly made his season debut for the Wizards. Coulibaly scored 16 points and added eight rebounds, four assists and three blocks in 24 minutes.

    Magic 123, Hornets 107

    Franz Wagner scored 21 points while Paolo Banchero and Anthony Black each added 20 points as Orlando defeated Charlotte for its first road win of the season.

    The Magic, who snapped a four-game overall losing streak, shot 51.7% from the field and made 16 3-pointers. Tristan da Silva added 19 points off the bench.

    Collin Sexton led the Hornets with 19 points off the bench, while Ryan Kalkbrenner and LaMelo Ball each scored 17 points. Charlotte was coming off a 1-2 road trip.

    –Field Level Media

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  • After blowout loss, Pistons try to rebound vs. struggling Magic

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    (Photo credit: David Reginek-Imagn Images)

    J.B. Bickerstaff isn’t concerned about one bad outing. The Detroit Pistons coach saw his team get blown out by Cleveland on Monday.

    The Pistons will host the struggling Orlando Magic on Wednesday night.

    The Cavaliers, who had the Eastern Conference’s best record last season, rolled to a 116-95 victory over host Detroit.

    ‘They’re a good defensive team. We just had a rough night (Monday),’ Bickerstaff said. ‘We turned the ball over 26 times. It’s hard moving your offense when you’re turning the basketball over. But it’s one night — we’ll be better.’

    The Pistons’ star player, Cade Cunningham, was limited to 12 points on 3-of-14 shooting and also committed five turnovers. Cunningham, who was listed as probable with a left hip contusion, averages 23 points and nine assists after Detroit’s first four games.

    ‘(The Cavaliers) got a ton of size, and they do a great job of shrinking the floor and make you play in crowded spaces,’ Bickerstaff said. ‘I’ve got to do a better job of helping (Cunningham) in those situations, create more space for him in those situations. But again, we’re early in the season. We’ll continue to build from it.’

    The game got away from Detroit early. The Cavs scored the last 11 points of the first quarter and led by 22 at halftime. The Pistons, who defeated the Houston Rockets and Boston Celtics prior to Monday’s contest, never threatened in the second half.

    ‘Some of the shots don’t go in, a part of it is just trying to stay process-driven in those stretches and make sure you’re trying to generate the right looks, playing the right way,’ Pistons wing Duncan Robinson said. ‘Sometimes there’s going to be stretches where it doesn’t go in, but that’s where you’ve got to buckle down defensively and get stops.’

    The Magic have won eight of their last nine meetings with the Pistons. They’ll look to keep that trend going in order to end a three-game slide.

    Following a season-opening win over the Miami Heat, Orlando has lost to the Atlanta Hawks, Chicago Bulls and Philadelphia 76ers. The host Sixers shot 49.5% from the field and committed just seven turnovers while defeating the Magic 136-124 on Monday.

    Magic forward Paolo Banchero’s 32-point outing was wasted in the process. Orlando shot 54.9% from the field, but defense lapses led to its demise. The Magic gave up 130 or more points for the first time since Jan. 29, 2024, in a 131-129 loss at Dallas.

    ‘Definitely not what we’re used to. Hasn’t been very good, giving up a lot of points,’ Banchero said of the defense. ‘But that’s kind of what you give up when you speed the pace up. Teams are able to get out and run, and (it) causes crossmatches and miscommunications and stuff like that. So, we’ve just got to figure it out.’

    The Magic, which opened a five-game road trip on Monday, especially need to do a better job regarding their backcourt defense. Sixers starting guards Tyrese Maxey and VJ Edgecombe combined for 69 points and 15 assists.

    ‘Give them credit, they’ve got some guards that can go out and attack and get downhill and space the floor,’ Orlando coach Jamahl Mosley said. ‘But we have to do better, mixing in how physical we are with defending without fouling.’

    –Field Level Media

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