Iowa State has nightmarish shooting performance in loss

Iowa State Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

Iowa State has nightmarish shooting performance in NCAA Tournament loss

By Eric Smithling | Last updated 3/17/23

Iowa State picked a bad time to forget how to shoot a basketball. The sixth-seeded Cyclones fell to 11th-seeded Pittsburgh by a 59-41 final score, thanks to what we can only hope is going to be the worst offensive performance of this NCAA Tournament.

To recap some of the misery, Iowa State failed to make a field goal until 9:54 remained in the first half, missing its first 11 attempts. The Cyclones trailed 22-2 by the time they made their first shot from the field and again was cold to begin the second half, missing 14 of their first 15 attempts.

Iowa State shot a combined 2-for-28 in the first 10 minutes of both halves today. Scored seven points total.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) March 17, 2023

While the Cyclones at least managed to trim the 20-point deficit to single digits during the first half, there were few real signs of life on the afternoon.

The team made ust five field goals in the second half of the contest. With 3:10 remaining in the game, the Cyclones were shooting 19.6 percent (11-of-56). They finished the game as a whole, hitting on only a slightly higher number of shots percentage-wise, at 14-of-60 (23.3 percent).

The putrid performance was made even worse by the fact that Pittsburgh was also a mess on offense and gave Iowa State every chance to win.

The Panthers finished the game with 15 turnovers to 14 made field goals and were out-rebounded on the offensive glass 16-7.

There was issue with the rim on the Cyclones' side of the court that forced the team to miss their pregame shootaround, for what it is worth, though the Cyclones were apparently offered extra time to warmup and declined.

Statement from the NCAA on today’s pregame rim fix:

“Iowa State asked us during pregame warmups to check if the rim was level. Building personnel checked it and made a minor adjustment prior to the game beginning. We offered them additional warmup time but they declined.”
— Kellis Robinett (@KellisRobinett) March 17, 2023