Iowa State Star Nate Heise Shares His Focus for Upcoming Season

In his first season with the Iowa State Cyclones, swingman Nate Heise admitted he was overwhelmed. For nearly a month, shots Heise would routinely hit for Northern Iowa, wouldn't fall, causing his confidence to wane. However, instead of letting it break him, Heise leaned into the fundamentals, the thing that brought him to Ames in the first place, to pull him out of his rut.

“Defense, rebounding, communicating,” said Heise to The Gazette. “I think that’s what brought me out of it. And once I did, I think it was just kind of a snowball effect from there.”

That spark Heise found revitalized him and his game, turning him into a potent, and reliable, weapon. In five of Iowa State’s first 14 conference games, Heise failed to score a single point. However, in a strong 77–65 road victory over Central Florida, Heise re-found himself, kickstarting a turnaround on his season.

A week after the win over UCF, Heise stitched together four consecutive games in which he scored in double figures and he remained a consistent offensive threat as the season wound down. In the Cyclones’ two NCAA tournament games, Heise didn’t miss a single shot, going 9-for-9 from the field overall and 4-for-4 from 3-point range.

Unfortunately, Heise's heroics weren't enough for the Cyclones to get past Ole Miss in the second round. However, much like pulling himself out of his funk before, Heise wasn't allowing how last season ended to keep him down.

Instead, it's fueling Heise and the Cyclones heading into this upcoming season, even if it might be different compared to last year.

What will Nate Heise's role be with Iowa State next season?