Magic returns to ISU basketball with Hilton Madness

Every year Iowa State has a sub-par football team to which students respond with: “Is it basketball season yet”?

Almost.

In three weeks Hilton Coliseum will be ready for the raucous students to cheer on their team as the Cyclones will play their first opponent. Friday gave fans and students the chance to catch a glimpse of some star players as well as some young talent and what they will contribute to the team.

The event, named Hilton Madness, is similar to that of the University of Kentucky’s Big Blue Madness. It’s basically an inter-squad scrimmage and the first chance fans get to see the players take the court. Because it’s a more relaxed scrimmage, there are sure to be some guaranteed dunks and other plays you might not see during the regular season. In addition to the scrimmage Hilton Madness also included a three-point and dunk competition.

The Madness began at 8 p.m. inside Hilton in Ames, Iowa.

Hilton Magic

It’s hard to describe what makes Hilton so special, and so difficult for opponents that come to Ames. One thing that coaches and players seem to acknowledge after every game is the crowd, particularly the students. One of the easiest ways for an opponent to feel inferior is by having 14,000 fans cheering against them while they try and set up a play. The cyclones feed off the energy from the crowd, which grows after every big play the team makes. Regardless of what it is, anything can happen on any given night. Some major upsets have happened in recent years on our basketball court, none seemingly better than beating Kansas. Dick Vitale has come and announced one of our games and thinks it’s one of the more tough venues in the country. It’s basically an assured thing if Dicky V. says so.

Upcoming season

The Cyclones finished last season ranked 15 and it’s expected they will begin the year around that same spot. Three notable players graduated last year in Georges Niang, Jameel McKay and Abdul Nader. Both Niang and Nader were drafted in the NBA for the Pacers and Celtics respectively. Though this three were key parts to the team, much of last year’s roster remains intact. The two most notable names on this years squad are Monte Morris and Matt Thomas. Morris is seen as one of the best point guards in the nation with his 4.2 assist/turnover ratio which helped give him a chance to be drafted but chose to stay his senior year. Thomas is one of the Cyclones top defenders and can also make it rain from behind the arc.

One other notable player fans are excited to see back in action is Naz Mitrou-Long. He’s hit some clutch shots to lead to some huge victories in his time at Iowa State. Similar to Thomas, he can also rain in the three ball. Last year Mitrou-Long was more a prominent figure on the bench having come off hip surgery. He provided some crucial energy when the cyclones needed it and visibly stepped up as more of a leader.

Last season was thought to be “the season” to make it to the NCAA National Championship by many Cyclone fans. This year there seems to be belief in this team as well, for many of the players it will be their final season to make that deep run in March Madness. In addition to Morris and Thomas the Cyclones will lose Merrill Holden, Darrell Bowie, Mitrou-Long, Deonte Burton and Steve Nezlek following the conclusion of this season.

Hilton Madness

People began to line up an hour prior to the doors being opened. The event was free to the public and the estimated attendance was just under 9,000.

The event began with competitions similar to that of the NBA All-Star game. Both men’s and women’s teams had four players take part in a three point contest, with one winner from the men’s and one from the women’s. The supposed favorites for the men’s side were both “upset” by Morris and Donovan Jackson. Jackson had the crowd behind him as he scored a ridiculous 25 of 30 possible points in one of his rounds. What made his performance even more absurd were the shoes he was wearing.

Following Jackson’s clutch round to win the contest four more Cyclones took part in a dunk competition. Most fans had come to see Burton and his insane dunks, he had won the previous two years of dunk competitions. Burton won yet again by throwing the ball off the backboard and slamming it home, the crowd went wild with approval.

The final part to the evening was a scrimmage between squads, 7 men’s and 7 women’s players made up each team. Similar to the NBA All-Star game there was little to no defense, the players mostly trying to give the fans a show. Several players threw down a variety of different dunks including Mitrou-Long with an alley-oop to start the game and Burton with a 360 behind the back slam. The main goal was to just have fun on the court, and smiles and laughter were shared between teammates.

This was the third year for Hilton Madness, what will hopefully become a tradition long into the future. An event like this helps bring the Cyclone community together and allows fans to get closer to the action than they might during a conference game. Basketball is a revenue producing sport and the university relies on making good profits over the season. Tickets are never considered cheap, so a free event like this is all the more important for those fans that may never make it to a game.

The future is looking bright for the Cyclones as they’re hoping to pick up where they left of last season. Though nothing is ever a guarantee when it comes to sports you can plan on seeing the Clones make a deep run in the tournament come March. The first game of the season is an exhibition match-up with Sioux Falls on November 6.

Let the true madness begin.