Milan Momcilovic scores 21 as No. 7 Iowa State holds off Baylor

Milan Momcilovic scored 21 points as No. 7 Iowa State held on for a 72-69 win over Baylor in a Big 12 Conference tilt on Saturday in Ames, Iowa.

Joshua Jefferson tallied 15 points and Tamin Lipsey added 14 points and nine rebounds for the Cyclones (21-2, 8-2 Big 12) who won their fifth straight game.

Cameron Carr led Baylor (13-10, 3-8) with 24 points and hit 5 of 10 3-point attempts. Tounde Yessoufou added 17 points and five steals and Obi Agbim contributed 15 points for the Bears, who had their two game winning streak snapped.

Baylor shot 45.6% from the field and was 11 of 31 from 3-point range.

The Cyclones shot 50% from the field but were just 6 of 21 from the field.

Baylor reeled off an 11-0 rally in the final 1:42, sandwiched around 3-pointers from Carr and Yessoufou. But Iowa State inbounded the ball cleanly with 1.2 seconds remaining and the Bears couldn’t foul to stop the clock.

The Cyclones used a pair of second-half runs to shake off a persistent Baylor squad. A Momcilovic three punctuated a 7-0 Iowa State run and gave the Cyclones breathing room with a 57-49 lead. Iowa State’s defense tightened and kept the Bears in check before eventually pushing the lead to 15 with 3:04 left.

Yessoufou’s jumper sparked Baylor, but Blake Buchanan’s emphatic two-hand dunk off a Momcilovic miss got the Cyclones going again. Iowa State ripped off an 8-2 run and stretched its lead to 65-53. The Cyclones had a 14-8 edge on the offensive glass.

A tightly contested first half saw Baylor shoot 44.4% from the field (12 of 27) and 42.9% on 3-point attempts (6 of 14). Iowa State was slightly better at 46.4% (13 of 28) and 36.4% from behind the arc (4 of 11).

Baylor took its first lead at 21-19 on a Caden Powell offensive rebound putback. After the teams traded buckets, a deep 3-pointer from Yessoufou gave the Bears a 27-24 lead at the 7:23 mark.

Following a few calls that went against his team, Baylor coach Scott Drew picked up a technical foul at the 5:00 mark. Momcilovic hit the ensuing foul shots and tied the game at 27.

The Cyclones took a 37-33 lead into the locker room on a Nate Heise trey that capped an 8-3 scoring outburst.

–Field Level Media