Iowa State center Tsalmpouris is the big man on campus

AMES, Ia – One of the most popular players on the 12th-ranked Iowa State men's basketball team usually sits on the bench and rarely makes the box score.

But when big man Georgios Tsalmpouris gets a rare chance to take off his warm-ups, he draws thunderous cheers from the Hilton Coliseum crowd.

It doesn't make sense to him.

"I'm on the bench sitting there for 40 minutes," he said.

Tsalmpouris has played in just eight games this season, averaging 4.4 minutes and 1.4 points. But the freshman has become a rock star of sorts to Iowa State fans.

The 7-foot-1 center from Veria, Greece, is the seventh 7-footer in Iowa State history, and his fans clamor to see him play.

"Guys root for the underdog, I guess," Iowa State coach Fred Hoiberg said.

Excitement has surrounded Tsalmpouris even before he arrived in Ames last summer. He came with a strong resume, including a spot on the Greek national team.

Tsalmpouris, 18, has been busy just getting used to his new life on and off the court. He is absorbing a new style of basketball, replacing the finesse style to which he was accustomed in Greece with a physical, fast-paced theme.

His body has undergone a makeover. Tsalmpouris, who weighed 218 pounds when he arrived to Iowa State, is up to 235.

"I already told him I could see cuts in his arm," Iowa State's Georges Niang said. "Before, I could see like his little bone."

Gaining weight wasn't a slam dunk. Getting used to American food was a challenge for Tsalmpouris, who said he loved dining in Greece.

"In Greece ... food is so fresh," Tsalmpouris said. "We use olive oil."

Tsalmpouris doesn't have a driver's license, so he usually hitches rides on the bus, from teammates or from managers.

He had began learning English when he was younger, but is still getting a grasp on the language and stumbles through conversations.

One of the toughest adjustments has been getting used to life so far away from his mother, father and brother. He typically talks to family on the phone every day and through Skype on the weekend.

Tsalmpouris admitted to being homesick in the past, but said he's too busy now to think about it.

"I'm not bad right now because I went back home for four days during the Christmas break," he said. "That helped a lot."

Tsalmpouris lives with teammate Daniel Stensland. He likes to watch movies and hang out with teammates, and he has picked up a reputation for his dry sense of humor.

"He's as funny as we've got on our team, and the guys love him," Hoiberg said.

Not all the humor is intentional.

"They usually laugh at my accent or the Greek stuff I say," Tsalmpouris said. "They say I'm a character."

He's gotten used to his new life on the court, too. Hoiberg has seen improvement in Tsalmpouris' shot and is seeing his big man adapt to the style of play.

"Georgios is going to be a great basketball player," Hoiberg said. "I have all the confidence in the world just because of the progress that he's made this year."

The big man has become big on campus and around town. Students often toss out words of encouragement.

The biggest cheers come at Hilton. His mother can hear them when she watches games back home.

"My mother is real excited about that," Tsalmpouris said. "She says, like, 'The people love you, you have to stay there.' "

Tsalmpouris said he doesn't know how long he'll stay in college, with the prospect of playing overseas in his future. It's hard to look too far ahead, especially when the cheers keep coming.

"I'm really surprised that the crowd loves me so much," he said. "That helps me. I try really hard and it helps me to put more and more work into it."