Cyclones unleash fury on Redhawks

~ The Redhawks fell to 3-10 with their fifth straight loss.

AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State has struggled to beat several mid-major opponents on its home floor this season, including a two-point win over Eastern Illinois of the Ohio Valley Conference.

But ISU had absolutely no problems with another OVC team Saturday, as the hot-shooting Cyclones rolled past Southeast Missouri State 87-71.

ISU, which like Southeast is rebuilding under a first-year coach, improved to 8-5. The Cyclones have not yet started Big 12 Conference play.

Southeast, tied for last place in the OVC at 1-4, fell to 3-10 overall with its fifth straight loss.

"They were just really hot in the first half. It seemed like everything they shot went in," Southeast senior guard Terrick Willoughby said.

Willoughby was fairly accurate in his assessment. The Cyclones made 11 of 19 3-point attempts in the first half -- they went 19 of 35 overall from the field in the period -- to basically put the game away early. ISU led 51-27 at halftime.

"It seemed like everything they put up was going in," Southeast coach Scott Edgar said of the first half.

ISU, under the direction of coach Greg McDermott -- who took over the program after having considerable success at Northern Iowa -- wound up tying a school record with 13 3-pointers, in 25 attempts (52 percent).

The Cyclones cooled off some in the second half overall and finished 28 of 58 from the floor in the contest (48.3 percent).

Southeast also shot the ball well, hitting 25 of 45 (55.6 percent), including seven of 13 3-pointers (53.8 percent). The Redhawks shot 62.5 percent in the second half, making 15 of 24.

The Redhawks' leading scorer, junior forward Brandon Foust -- he was averaging 11.3 points per game prior to Saturday -- did not start for just the second time this season.

According to Edgar, Foust began the contest on the bench as a minor disciplinary measure. He did not play at all in the first half, but started the second half and scored 13 points on five-of-seven shooting.

Freshman Jajuan Maxwell made his second Southeast start in place of Foust and had the best offensive game of his young college career.

Maxwell hit his first four shots -- including three 3-pointers -- and scored 14 first-half points on five-of-seven shooting, including three of four 3-pointers. He did not attempt a shot in the second half.

Maxwell, whose previous collegiate high had been 11 points at Evansville on Nov. 27, is Southeast's top 3-point shooter on the season with 11 of 20 (55 percent).

"Jajaun continues to improve," Edgar said. "He's made 3-pointers all year."

Junior guard David Johnson was a third-double figure scorer for Southeast with 10 points. He hit all three of his 3-point attempts.

The Cyclones were led by junior guard Mike Taylor with 18 points and freshman forward Wesley Johnson with 17 points.

Southeast actually began the day on fire itself, making its first four shots, including three 3-pointers, to lead 11-8.

But ISU scored the next 18 points to go ahead 26-11 midway through the opening half. And that was pretty much the game, as the Cyclones held a double-digit advantage the rest of the way.

The Cyclones led 51-27 at the intermission and quickly bumped that up to 55-27.

To the Redhawks' credit, they at least kept things from getting totally out of hand. Southeast pulled to within 13 points twice -- the last at 79-66 with about three minutes left -- but got no closer.

Southeast outscored ISU 44-36 in the second half.

"I was pleased with our effort, our attitude in the second half," Edgar said. "You play with those and good things will happen. That's how we need to play. I told the guys, 'I'm not taking 3-10 home with me. I'm taking the last 20 minutes of this game.'"

The Redhawks also picked up another nice paycheck for Southeast's cash-strapped athletic department.

Southeast opened the season on Nov. 10 with a 92-52 loss at Arkansas of the Southeastern Conference. The Razorbacks paid Southeast about $65,000, with the money going toward the university's general athletic department revenue.

Iowa State and Purdue of the Big 10 -- the Redhawks' third and final "guarantee" game, set for next Saturday in West Lafayette, Ind. -- will pay a combined total of about $105,000.