{"id":5162,"date":"2017-03-19T01:10:23","date_gmt":"2017-03-19T05:10:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonprobasketball.com\/?p=5162"},"modified":"2017-04-05T11:28:23","modified_gmt":"2017-04-05T15:28:23","slug":"ncaa-tournament-midwest-purdue-iowa-state","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2017\/03\/19\/ncaa-tournament-midwest-purdue-iowa-state\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA Tournament: Midwest Region Round Two Recap"},"content":{"rendered":"

NCAA Tournament: Midwest Region Round Two Recap<\/strong><\/h2>\n

It was the only game in the Midwest on Saturday, but Purdue vs. Iowa State was certainly an exciting one.<\/p>\n

The (4) Purdue Boilermakers faced (5) Iowa State Cyclones on Saturday in a blowout-turned-thriller in the Midwest Region. In the first five minutes, the game looked like what would be expected of a typical 4-5 seed matchup: close, with near equal efforts by both teams. This energy stayed consistent for a good portion of the first half. Deonte Burton<\/a><\/strong> and Matt Thomas<\/a><\/strong> made a lot of great plays for the Cyclones, keeping them in a good position.<\/p>\n

On the other side, Big Ten Player of the Year Caleb Swanigan<\/a><\/strong> did what he does best – be aggressive and score. Swanigan had two 3-pointers in the first seven minutes, and he went on the way to his 28th double-double of the season. With five minutes left in the first half, Iowa State led by just one point. Then, Isaac Haas<\/a><\/strong> and Swanigan got on the floor together. This turned Purdue into an even more efficent and aggressive team, as they ended the first half on a 15-4 run. Purdue led by double-digits after the first 20 minutes, 44-31.<\/p>\n

Purdue used their energy from the end of the first half to come out strong at the beginning of the second. Swanigan continued to thrive and flirted with a triple-double, along with an excellent effort by Vince Edwards<\/a><\/strong>. However, the Cyclones refused to go out easily. Iowa State went on a 12-0 run, which included a few 3-pointers by Donovan Jackson<\/a><\/strong> and Nazareth Mitrou-Long<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This forced Purdue into a timout as they were barely hanging on, 65-62. With just over three minutes left, the game was tied at 71-71. It then became a game of free throws\u00a0in the final few minutes, and Purdue was able to overcome a fighing Iowa State. Burton and Thomas combined for 45 for the Cyclones. Leading for the Boilermakers was Vince Edwards (21 PTS, 10 REB) and Caleb Swanigan (20 PTS, 12 REB, 7 AST).<\/p>\n

FINAL: Purdue 80, Iowa State 76<\/strong><\/p>\n

Main Photo<\/p>\n

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Embed from Getty Images<\/a><\/div>\n