AMES, Iowa – TCU (12-10, 5-8 Big 12) held on to defeat Iowa State (2-18, 0-15), 76-72, Saturday night in Hilton Coliseum.
The Cyclones were down by as many as 14 points in the first half, but stayed in the game behind Jalen Coleman-Lands’ 21 points, his third 20-point outing of the season. He made his first seven shots and ended the game 8-of-11 from the field, including a 4-of-6 effort from beyond the arc.
The Cyclones crawled back from the early deficit, but the Horned Frogs staved off the Cyclone comeback bid by making all 18 of their shots from the charity stripe.
Tre Jackson came off the bench to register 14 points and three steals.
R.J. Nembhard and Mike Miles led the Horned Frogs with 19 points each.
TCU led 37-30 at the break and held a 14-point advantage late in the opening period. ISU ended the half on a 9-2 run behind a pair of treys from Tyler Harris and Javan Johnson.
Iowa State closed the gap to two points (49-47) on six-straight points early in the second half. Solomon Young had a putback and Coleman-Lands hit a jumper to help the Cyclones inch closer.
Moments later, the Cyclones took their first lead on three-straight treys. Coleman-Lands knocked down a pair, including one setup by a nifty behind the back dribble, and Jackson hit a bomb from the corner to put ISU up 56-53 with 10:14 remaining.
ISU’s lead was brief, as TCU went on an 8-0 run to go back ahead 63-58 with under seven minutes remaining. Nembhard hit a 3-pointer to cap off the run.
The Cyclones trimmed the lead to one point (67-66) on a reverse lay-in by Johnson on a nice feed from Harris with 1:50 left in the game. However, on TCU’s next possession, Miles was fouled on a 3-pointer and made all three free-throw attempts to go ahead 70-66.
Harris made a jumper for the Cyclones with :15 seconds left to cut the lead to two (72-70). TCU iced the game by making four free-throws down the stretch.
Iowa State plays host to Texas on Tuesday (March 2).
