Step into my office: Nate Heise

Full disclosure before we begin. This article is biased. Completely and unapologetically, biased. Nate Heise was my favorite player on last year’s Iowa State team and I will not pretend otherwise. If you came here for objectivity I suggest you read literally anything else on this website.

Now. Let us talk about Nate Heise.

Advertisement

The Journey

Northern Iowa Panthers guard Nate Heise (0) reacts with the bench during the first half against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Imperial Arena. | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

He arrived at Iowa State as a proven commodity and then proceeded to spend the first 25 games of his debut 2024-25 Cyclone season averaging 3.5 points per game while shooting 26.3 percent from three. 

He battled confidence issues openly. Cyclone fans wondered what happened to the guy who was supposed to provide veteran presence and shooting. 

Then February happened. Once he hit his stride he finished the year averaging 5.1 points per game and shooting 40.9 percent from three on the season. Nate brought momentum and confidence to his senior year. Side note, the preseason media day eyebrow cut was inspiring. He did have a stretch similar to the 2024-2025 season where it felt as though his confidence was waning. But that was about to change again.

Advertisement

The Houston Game

February 16th. Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State versus Houston. A massive game in a packed building.

I was in Savannah, Georgia, visiting my niece who was two months old at the time. I had to keep it down in the living room so naturally I was absolutely losing my mind internally over a college basketball game while a newborn slept nearby.

Iowa State guard Nate Heise (0) releases a 3-point basket against No. 2 Houston on Monday. | Jared Larson

Heise finished with 11 points on 4 of 6 shooting including three threes. Iowa State won 70 to 67. The moment I remember most is Joshua Jefferson finding him on the perimeter and Heise catching it in rhythm, no dip, no gather, no hesitation, straight into his…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/step-office-nate-heise-143605850.html

Author :

Publish date : 2026-07-07 14:36:00

Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source.