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Saturday, Mar. 4 7:00pm ET
Iowa State's last conference title? 1945 | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
WACO, Texas (AP) -- Marcus Fizer scored 34 points as Iowa State (No. 14 ESPN/USA Today, No. 10 AP) beat Baylor 75-54 Saturday night to clinch the Big 12 Conference regular-season title outright. Iowa State (26-4, 14-2 Big 12) led from start to finish after Fizer scored his team's first 10 points, eight of them before Baylor even made a basket. Fizer, the Big 12 scoring leader, had at least 30 points for the fourth time in five games."There is only a handful of games left. I just go out there with the mentality that every time I get the ball and I've got a good shot, I'm aiming to knock the shot down," Fizer said. "I came out with the mentality that we were going to win this game. My teammates got the ball in great places." The Cyclones, who had last won a conference title in 1945, have already set a school record for victories. They have won 11 more games than last season, the biggest increase from one season to the next for the Cyclones. "This is the crown jewel," Iowa State coach Larry Eustachy said. "We won the title outright. ... We didn't have to share it with anybody. The hardest part is over." When Baylor (13-14, 4-12) battled to 43-40 midway through the second half, Iowa State responded nine straight points -- only two of them by Fizer on a floater in the lane. Stevie Johnson's follow-up basket started the run, and Michael Nurse's long 3-pointer pushed the Cyclones ahead 52-40 with just under 10 minutes left. Iowa State is seeded No. 1 and gets a first-day bye in next week's Big 12 Conference tournament. Baylor is the No. 9 seed, and would face the Cyclones again Friday if its wins over Nebraska the day before. After Fizer made two free throws to give Iowa State a 41-30 lead with 17:38 left, Baylor had a 10-2 run to get close. Three different players had follow-up baskets and Tevis Stukes an underhand-scoop during the six-minute stretch. But the Bears, who had 20 turnovers and shot just 37 percent (19-of-52), couldn't avoid the expected rout. Baylor has lost all eight games this season against ranked Big 12 teams. Stukes, a senior playing his last home game, led Baylor with 19 points while fellow senior Jamie Kendrick added 12 points. The Bears shot just 37 percent (19-of-52) and couldn't overcome 20 turnovers. Michael Nurse added 13 points for Iowa State, while Kantrail Horton had 10. It is still uncertain if Fizer has played his last regular season game for Iowa State. Many expect him to declare early for the NBA draft, but he hasn't made public his decision. | ALSO SEE Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
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