Tuesday, January 21st, 2025

 Tonight I took Maxwell over to Hilton Coliseum, where we watched the #3 Iowa State Cyclones dominate the UCF Knights 108-83.  The 108 points are the most points that have been scored by a Cyclone team under coach T.J. Otzelberger.

What I will remember most about this game is the outstanding play of Joshua Jefferson.  He tallied a career-high 30 points to go along with 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals.  He was joined in double-figure scoring for the Cyclones by Keshon Gilbert (21), Curtis Jones (19), and Demarion Watson (11).  It was nice to see Watson provide a spark off of the bench, especially now that Milan Momcilovic is sidelined with a fractured hand.  

Today's game is the 35th ISU men's basketball game that I have taken Maxwell to, and it was his 10th conference win.  UCF is the first "new Big 12" team that Maxwell has seen in basketball.  To collect wins against every Big 12 team, Maxwell still needs to see ISU defeat Oklahoma State, Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, Colorado, Houston, and Utah.  

Another thing to note about today is how dang cold it was.  This morning when I got to work it was 11 degrees BELOW ZERO!  It was so cold that Maxwell did not even want a ice cream at the game... so he settled for popcorn instead.

Iowa State 108, UCF 83.

Tuesday, January 14th, 2025

My family just had a fun time down in Orlando, where we spent 5 days (from January 9th through the 13th) at the Universal Studios resort.  We stayed at the Portofino Bay hotel, which means that we were able to have express passes while we were there which helped cut down on the time that we spent in line. Another fun thing about this trip is that Nolan's friend Nico and his family were able to come down, so he got to spend time at the parks with his buddy. 

On Thursday when we got down there we were able to spend the whole afternoon going on rides and enjoying the parks.  This was also Elizabeth's birthday!  I imagine that was about the best way that she could have spent her birthday.  That night for dinner our family ate at Toothsomes Chocolate Emporium, where we enjoyed giant milkshakes.  I ordered the strawberry cheesecake shake, Maxwell had the confetti birthday cake shake, and Nolan had the "thrilla in vanilla".  

Friday was a full day at the park.  That morning we rope-dropped Hagrid's magical creatures motorbike adventure, which is my favorite ride in all of Universal.  Then our group split up.  I stayed with Nolan and Nico, and I let them ride everything that they wanted.  If you name it, they probably rode on it.  Velocicoaster, the forbidden journey, escape from Gringotts, the Hulk ride, Hollywood rip ride rockit, Spiderman, Dr. Doom's Fearfall... just a bunch of rides.  Unfortunately, Nolan did get nauseous from all the rides and ended up throwing up quite a bit at the end of the night.  I felt really bad for him :(

Overall, it was a fun trip and a nice time to enjoy the warmer weather down in Florida and escape the Iowa winter for a bit.  This was actually the second time that our family has gone on vacation down to Universal Studios.  The previous time was back in February of 2022.  

Maxwell and myself at the Leaky Cauldron.

Nico and Nolan pose at the Universal globe.

Our fancy milkshakes from Toothsome's.

Elizabeth and myself outside of the Velocicoaster.  

Maxwell meeting SpongeBob and Patrick!

 

Tuesday, January 7th, 2025

 Tonight I took Nolan to the Iowa State men's basketball game, where the #3 Cyclones defeated the Utah Utes, 82-59.  Utah joined the Big 12 this year, along with Colorado, Arizona, and Arizona State. 

Today's game seemed a little sloppy at times, but the Cyclones still cruised to an easy 23-point victory.  The player of the game for Iowa State was Curtis Jones, who led the team with 23 points and had 6 assists.  He was joined in double figures scoring by Tamin Lipsey (20), Joshua Jefferson (17), and Keshon Gilbert (15).  

With the victory, it crosses another conference opponent off the list for Nolan. This was the first time he has seen ISU defeat one of the "new Big 12" teams.  He still has Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, Colorado, Houston, and UCF left.  Overall, this was the 40th men's basketball game that Nolan has attended. 

GO CYCLONES!!

Saturday, January 4th, 2025

 Happy New Year!  Today I took Maxwell over to Hilton, where we enjoyed watching a top-25 matchup between #3 Iowa State and #25 Baylor.  The Cyclones never trailed in the game, and they cruised to an easy 74-55 victory.  

Keshon Gilbert was the player of the game for Iowa State, as he had a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds.  He was joined in double figures scoring by Milan Momcilovic (15) and Curtis Jones (14).  The Cyclones really played well on the defensive end, holding the usually high-scoring Baylor team to only 55 points.  During halftime of the game, there was a tribute to the 99-2000 and 2000-01 ISU basketball teams.  Most of the players from those teams returned, and even coach Larry Eustachy was there.  

This was the 8th time that I have attended a basketball game between Iowa State and Baylor.  The Cyclones came out on top five of those games (today, 2023, 2018, 2017, and 2013).  The stupid bears won in 2022, 2019, and 2015.  If it was up to me, I would have kicked Baylor out of the Big 12 Conference after their sexual assault scandal.  Anyways...

Today's game was the second time that Maxwell has seen the Cyclones play Baylor. The first time was back in 2017.  Overall, this was the 34th basketball game that Maxwell has been to, and it was his 9th conference win.  He still needs to see wins against Oklahoma State and all of the new Big 12 teams.  This was the fifth time that Maxwell has attended a game where ISU played against a top-25 team, and the Cyclones are actually 5-0 in those games.  The previous top-25 wins he has witnessed were: #7 Kansas in 2024, #7 Texas in 2023, #15 West Virginia in 2018, and #9 Baylor in 2017.  

Cy!

Iowa State 74, Baylor 55.