Mar 18, 2022; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Jaden Walker (21) and guard Tre Jackson (3) watch as guard Tyrese Hunter (11) celebrates with guard Caleb Grill (2) after defeating the LSU Tigers during the second round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
MILWAUKEE — Darius Days slapped Tyrese Hunter on the butt and backpedaled towards LSU’s offensive end.
That was the only thing the Tigers’ senior guard could do after Hunter had elevated from essentially the March Madness logo at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. It marked his sixth 3-pointer of the game with 1:43 to play on Friday night in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
Hunter connected on his seventh triple of the evening a little more than a minute later. That shot — which made it 59-54 with 19 seconds to play — is the one that cemented the final score and sealed the deal on Iowa State’s first NCAA Tournament victory since 2017.
Welcome back to Milwaukee, young man. Nobody will ever forget this homecoming that turned into a coronation.
Those of us who follow this team closely have known something about this kid for quite some time. The rest of the country found out on this night in this city on this stage.
Tyrese Hunter is a budding college basketball superstar.
“Just started with the confidence I had throughout the game,” Hunter said of his late-game heroics. “I made a few, so just knowing that the guys around me trusted me too. Clock running down to get into the shot that I’d normally take, so the rest is history.”
The former four-star recruit from Racine, Wis. has seen his profile rise at a steady pace. He was named the Big 12’s Freshman of the Year after the regular season and has been regarded as one of the game’s best young players.
It was easy to wonder how he’d handle this stage entering the game. This was a true freshman playing in his first NCAA Tournament, after all.
We should have known better.
Hunter merely poured in 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting from the floor and 7-of-11 from deep. He also swiped five steals, dished three assists and grabbed three rebounds.
Notably, Hunter is only the second player in NCAA Tournament history to record seven 3-pointers and five steals in a single game. You may have heard of the other guy who starred at Davidson roughly a decade and a half ago.
His name is Stephen Curry.
“It’s March Madness,” Hunter said. “Everybody got one goal and you’ve got to go out there and play hard. That’s just me playing myself. Like people say, freshman this, freshman that, but at the end of the day I’m a basketball player that’s out there with other basketball players that’s going out there to compete and win. So I just go out there and do my thing.”
This game was already going to be important for Hunter. His grandmother was in the stands to watch her grandson play for the first time since he was in the third grade.
He was coming back to his home state, a place that celebrates their native sons, as proven by the raucous ovation Hunter received when his name was announced during starting lineups.
There’s also the element of this being the NCAA Tournament. It is “win or go home” time. This is when legends are made and hearts are broken.
As his 3-pointers continued to rip through the nets, he’d turn towards the crowd and look for his grandmother. Imagine the pride she is feeling tonight.
“He was one of the most excited guys in there before the game started,” Iowa State senior Izaiah Brockington said about his freshman point guard. “He’s been like that all year. Like no matter the implications of the game, no matter how big the game is, he is just ready to go out there, ready to be aggressive and just going out there and having fun. He really doesn’t let the moment get too big for him. He’s always poised, he’s always on to the next play, always ready to make a big play when we need it.”
This game felt like the culmination of Hunter’s progression throughout his entire freshman season. He struggled as a shooter early in the year but has spent hours upon hours in the gym working with Iowa State assistant JR Blount on growing his game.
Steadily, the improvement started to shine through.
Hunter shot 28 percent from behind the arc throughout the entire regular season and last week’s Big 12 Tournament loss to Texas Tech, but that doesn’t reflect the growth as he connected on 33 percent (12-of-36) of his shots from Feb. 1 through last Thursday night in Kansas City.
That is a testament to the amount of work he’s put into expanding his game in the gym. He’s become much better in catch-and-shoot situations throughout the year, even if the off-the-dribble shots still need some work.
In Milwaukee, we saw what this kid can be if he continues to grow during his time in Ames — and that should be the most terrifying part for every team in college basketball.
Tyrese Hunter is still just scratching the surface.
“You see his court demeanor, his body language. He carries himself like a veteran,” Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger said. “That’s why it surprises everybody that he’s only 18. So he earns that every single day by his hard work, his effort, his energy. They see him coming early, they see him staying late, they see him playing through adversity. We put the ball in his hands to start the season and we trusted him because of his character and his work habits and his teammates saw those and they followed. They’re easy to follow when you work like he works.”
Now, Hunter will get two days to prepare for the winner of Friday’s nightcap between Wisconsin and Colgate. Wouldn’t it be something else if Hunter got to play against his home state’s biggest school on the sport’s biggest stage?
Before you ask, Hunter didn’t grow up a Badgers fan and the Badgers never recruited him despite his standout career at St. Catherine’s High School.
“I wasn’t a Wisconsin fan growing up,” Hunter said. “I always just looked at the big games really. It don’t matter who we play, just going out there to try to get the W.”
The last thing teams in this tournament need is this young man playing with a chip on his shoulder the size of the state of Wisconsin. He just showed us all why that is a bonafide fact.
We’ve all known Tyrese Hunter is a star. Everyone else found out on a Friday night in Milwaukee.
Welcome home, young man.
