Georges Niang had already drawn the ire of his rivals last season when he boldly declared Iowa a "Cyclone State" after Iowa State edged the Hawkeyes in Ames.

The All-American candidate salted that wound a bit more Friday night with his actions in the final minute of the Cyclones' 90-75 victory in Iowa City.

Upon scoring a transition layup with 54 seconds to play, Niang theatrically blew a kiss in the direction of the Iowa student section behind the basket. Niang also wasn't shy about taking trash to Iowa players and fans alike in the second half as the 14th-ranked Cyclones seized control of a once-close game with a 24-4 surge after halftime.

Boos from the Carver-Hawkeye crowd and backlash on social media suggest that Niang's gloating wasn't well received among Iowa fans, but those who are angry should relax a bit. Was blowing the kiss classy? No. Was it brash? Yes. But in an era when rivalries typically mean far more to the fans in the stands than the athletes on the floor, it was also refreshing to see that Niang obviously cares deeply about beating Iowa.

There was plenty for Niang to crow about too Friday night as Iowa State improved to 7-1 this season.

Held in check during a first half in which he shot just 1-for-8 from the field, Niang bounced back with an impactful second half, scoring 14 of his 16 points after halftime to spearhead Iowa State's barrage. That performance helped the Cyclones avenge a loss in Iowa City in their previous visit Niang's freshman year and enabled the program to end a tumultuous week on a positive note.

Iowa State played Friday's game without second-leading scorer and leading rebounder Bryce Dejean-Jones, who was arrested early Thursday morning when police responded to a noise complaint at his apartment and found a small amount of marijuana. The drug-related charges against the UNLV transfer were dropped later that day and he is expected to be back in uniform for the Cyclones when they face Drake next Thursday.

With Niang dormant for a half and Dejean-Jones sidelined, other Iowa State players stepped up to propel the Cyclones to a narrow halftime lead.

Abdel Nader hit a trio of first-half 3-pointers after starting the season 0-for-9 from behind the arc. Naz Long sank three from behind the arc as well. Throw in eight first-half points and three first-half assists from Monte Morris and Iowa State still had sufficient offensive punch.

The reemergence of Niang and a flurry of early Iowa turnovers tipped the game in Iowa State's favor to start the second half. Iowa State shot 63.3 percent after halftime, even scoring one late basket on an unusual big man-to-point guard alley oop when Niang spotted Morris streaking to the rim in transition and lobbed him the ball for an easy layup.

In a lot of ways Niang is a symbol of the ever-underrated Iowa State program. The forward has forced everyone to pay attention to him by evolving from an under-the-radar recruit to an All-American candidate with a good chance to be selected in next June's NBA draft should he decide to leave school.

Along the way, Niang has evolved into one of the faces of the Iowa State program and an antihero among Hawkeyes fans. A kid from New England has woven himself into the fabric of the state of Iowa's fiercest rivalry.

(Thanks for the video, Bar Stool Sports)

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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!

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