Colorado 77, Iowa State 75: The Road Ends Here

A herculean effort by Jake Anderson and a gritty overall effort for the Cyclones this afternoon came up empty once again as the 12th seeded Cyclones dropped a close one to the bubblicious Colorado Buffaloes, 77-75.

Anderson's 33 point effort was one of the most impressive by a Cyclone all year, but, in the end, Alec Burks and his 29 points were too much for an Iowa State team that has made a living dropping games in the waning minutes. The game was all but likely the final games in a Cyclone uniform for Anderson, Diante Garrett, Jamie Vanderbeken and Andrew Mitchell. 

One can hash and rehash today's game (which Mark will likely do) and the season as being mirror images of each other - a quick start that slowly slips away as the Cyclones fail to hang on at the end. Colorado just had too many weapons as the Cyclones ran out of gas. 

Effort was never a question in this game or during this season. A Cyclone team hasn't been this much fun to watch since the 2004-2005 Cyclone team decided to embrace #winning. While the thoughts of Cyclone fans move ahead to next football season and the upcoming basketball campaign, don't forget this year's squad. The effort they showed on the court is one hell of a blueprint for what we'd like to see out of all Cyclone squads in the future.

Iowa State will wait for an NIT invitation, but likely needed a win today in order to be a prospective squad. The CBI is a possibility, but only if Iowa State feels they can make money. If they can, the CBI would invite them, but that's a shaky proposition at best. We'll keep our ears open on Sunday, but don't expect much.