Royce White: The Definition of Versatility

       Iowa State is not known for its basketball program. The 2011-2012 season marked the fourteenth time that the Cyclones were selected for the NCAA Tournament. Iowa State made the Final Four once in 1944 but their most famous appearance in the tourney was when they were upset by 15 seeded Hampton, only the fourth time such an upset had occurred.

       After the Cyclones’ 23-11 season and fourth place finish in the Big 12, behind three top 10 teams in Missouri, Kansas, and Baylor, the selection committee chose Iowa State as the 8 seed in the South region. Much of their success can be credited to redshirt sophomore Royce White. The 6’8″, 270 lb. power forward spent the first eighteen years of his life in Minnesota, first as a two-time state champion in high school and then he committed to the University of Minnesota to play for Tubby Smith. After multiple run-ins with the law in his freshman year as a Golden Gopher, including charges for theft, disorderly conduct, and trespassing, White transferred to Iowa State. John Calipari had contacted the talented forward to play for Kentucky but he decided on Iowa State instead. Since his transfer was before the end of his freshman year, Royce White could not play for a scholarship in the following season and was forced to redshirt in the 2010-2011 season.

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       In his first full season of playing college basketball, White hit the ground running and quickly became the Cyclones’ go-to player. In the opening game of the year, Royce White scored 25 points and pulled in 11 rebounds as Iowa State defeated Lehigh 86-77. The Minnesota-native recorded a double-double in the next game with 21 and 14 as he was began a season-long routine of putting up big numbers on a nightly basis. Iowa State reached the national spotlight when the Cyclones defeated #5 Kansas, giving the Jayhawks their first conference loss of the season. White and Iowa State tallied their second victory over a top 25 team in their last regular season game of the season against #10 Baylor. Despite heading into the Big 12 tournament on a high note, Iowa State lost to Texas in its opening game.

       Iowa State was matched up against the Connecticut Huskies in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament and defeated the reigning national champions 77-64 after a hot-shooting performance. The Cyclones were 6-16 from behind the three-point line and were nearly perfect from the charity stripe, missing only one of their twenty free throw attempts. White played very well against Jim Calhoun’s squad, scoring fifteen points, securing fourteen rebounds, and racking up two assists.
As the Iowa State Cyclones advanced to the Round of 32, the media took a closer look at the Big 12 team and found that it was the Minnesota transfer, who was named to the All-Big 12 First Team and Big 12 Rookie of the Year that was making the Cyclones go. Royce White boasts himself on being the only player in the country who leads his team in every major statistical category. Despite playing power forward, a position which is traditionally known for scoring points in the paint and grabbing rebounds, White shines in every aspect of his game. Royce White has the ability to put up 25 points every game but focuses on the team’s success over his personal glory. He averaged 13.1 points, 9.2 rebounds, 5.1 assists, 1.2 steals, and 0.94 blocks per game in the 2011-2012 season.

       White faced a difficult test Saturday night when he was matched up against the front-runner for Player of the Year Anthony Davis of Kentucky. Even though Iowa State was defeated 87-71, White was one of the few bright spots for the Cyclones, finishing with 23 points, 9 rebounds, and 4 assists. For the Cyclones’ opening possessions, it was Royce White who took the ball down the court and played point guard. Although, for most of the game, White was playing well in the paint, getting open for easy baskets and scoring crucial points whenever Kentucky started to pull away. His best play of the game was when he stripped Davis on defense and went coast to coast for the dunk. Despite his large stature, Royce White has exceptional ball control and court vision.

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        If White declares for the NBA draft, he will likely be a first round draft pick. Although, if he stays for his remaining two years of eligibility, Iowa State could be a very formidable team. They are only graduating two seniors, Chris Allen and Scott Christopherson. The guard duo combine for twenty-four points per game and will surely be missed, but with many young players with post-season experience, Iowa State can rebuild to challenge the powerhouses of the Big 12.

Historic Rivalry Sees the Number One Team Fall: A Breakdown of the Final Two Minutes

            Today was already a big day in college basketball with the #2 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes fall to #14 Kansas by a score of 78-67. Later today, number one ranked Kentucky came to Bloomington, Indiana to battle the 8-0 Hoosiers. Indiana and Kentucky are two of the most successful college basketball programs with a combined twenty-two Final Four appearances, a 167-77 NCAA Tournament record, twelve NCAA Championships, and eighty-seven tournament appearances. Indiana forward Cody Zeller has been in the spotlight recently for having an excellent freshman season up to this point, but the Wildcats had no idea what else would be in store for them at Assembly Hall.

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            Coming out of the official television timeout, there was 2:15 left on the clock with Indiana up 6-67. John Calipari was quesntionably sitting Terrence Jones on the bench for the rest of the game. Kentucky guard Darius Miller might have been very lucky with a no-call on a potential charging foul against him as he spun and then dunked to give his team a one-pont lead. Indiana took the ball down the court and point guard Jordan Hulls drew a foul on Miller, but it was only Kentucky's fourth team foul, so they weren't yet in the bonus. Victor Oladipo drove to the basket only to get blocked by Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, but he traveled at the end of the playing, turning the ball over to Indiana.  IU coach Tom Crean called a time out and drew up a great play for the Hoosiers. Junior forward Christian Watford received a pass at the elbow, drove to the inside of the lane, made a spin move with his right hand, and laid the ball in acrobatically to put Indiana up by one. On the other end of the court, Marquis Teague blew past Jordan Hulls and made an easy layup to make it 71-70. While there was still forty-five seconds left in the game, it did not look good for Indiana. Kentucky was driving to the basket way too easily and Indiana would have to start fouling soon, putting the Wildcats at the free throw line. Christian Watford missed a jump shot and Anthony Davis rebounded the ball. Davis was heavily pressured and made it across the half court line before he was fouled by Cody Zeller. Luckily for the Hoosiers, Davis is just slightly above a 50% free throw shooter and he missed his one-and-one free throw. Victor Oladipo rebounded the ball, dribbled to the other side of the court, and Crean called a timeout. On the play that Crean drew up, Hulls dribbled to his right, passed it to Zeller on the wing, who handed it off to Oladipo. Oladipo then drove to the basket and made a spin move, but lost control of the ball and Doron Lamb stole the ball. Oladipo had no choice but to foul Lamb and send him to the line to shoot two. Indiana's bench was visibly frustrated and upset because their chance to knock off the number one team in the country seemed to slip through their hands, literally. There were eight seconds left, they were down by one, and Kentucky was shooting two free throws because they were now in the double bonus. Lamb missed his first shot, giving Indiana hope because even if he made the second shot, a three-pointer would win the game. Crean used his final timeout to draw up a play for their final shot. Doron Lamb made his second free throw, giving Kentucky a 72-70 lead. Verdell Jones III received the inbounds pass and dribbled down the court and appeared to drive to the basket, but he picked up his dribble, turned around, and found Christian Watford unguarded beyond the three point arc. Watford shot the ball with two defenders in his face as time expired. The shot was absolutely beautiful as it soared through the air. Swish. Assembly Hall started screaming and all of the Indiana fans threw up their hands. Watford held up his shooting arm as he remained motionless. The IU players celebrated by running to Watford and piling up on the court. ESPN commentator Dan Schulman described Tom Crean's reaction perfectly, "It looks like Tom Crean aged ten years today." Crean was filled with disbelief, joy, and was on the verge of an anxiety attack all at the same time, it appeared. The fans stormed the court and Indiana's players stood up on the scorer's table cheering with the fans.

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            Having the top two teams in the nation happened for the second time in the past two years and it will make the rankings very interesting when they are next released. The Syracuse Orange sit at 8-0 at the number three spot and will likely take over the title of the #1 team in the country. However, Ohio State and Kentucky are almost guaranteed to stay within the top ten since the Buckeyes were without their best player Sullinger and lost on the road to an excellent Kansas team. In terms of Kentucky, they lost on a buzzer-beater to a very talented Indiana team who will probably break into the top 25 in the next polls. College basketball fans can't ask for anything more. Great teams have emerged and the top ranked teams have already lost, showing that there is no clear favorite. And the best part? It is only early December, just wait until March and the drama that happens then.