No. 5 Iowa State vs. Colorado Primer

Who: No. 5 Iowa State (4-1, 0-0 Big 12) vs. Colorado (5-1, 0-0 Big 12)

Where: Lahaina Civic Center (2,400) – Lahaina, Hawai'i

When: Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2024 – 1:30 p.m. CT

Watch/Listen: ESPN2 / Cyclone Radio Network

Tipping Off: In a bit of a scheduling quirk, Iowa State will meet Big 12 returner Colorado for the first time in at least three meetings this season on Wednesday in Maui. The Cyclones and Buffaloes will meet in a non-conference matchup to battle for fifth place after each side fell in the opening game of the tournament.

The Cyclones started tournament play with a heartbreaking loss to the No. 4 Auburn Tigers. ISU then rebounded on Tuesday, taking down the Dayton Flyers to move to 1-1 in Hawai'i and play for a chance to "win" the consolation bracket. Keshon Gilbert has been outstanding for ISU in the tournament, as he is averaging 23.5 points per game.

Colorado finds itself in the fifth-place game after dropping the opening competition to Michigan State, falling by 16. The Colorado/Michigan State matchup was the only quarterfinal game to be decided by more than two points. The Buffaloes bounced back in the consolation bracket, earning a marquee non-conference win over No. 2 UConn, 73-72.

Storylines:

Iowa State bounced back from its first loss of the 2024-25 campaign, defeating Dayton 89-84.
Keshon Gilbert leads the team in minutes played, points, free throws, and assists.
- Gilbert was the team's leading scorer in 2023-24 and he looks to lead the team in points per game again.
- Gilbert was named the Big 12 Championship Most Outstanding Player last season and also earned recognition on both the All-Big 12 Second Team and All-Newcomer team.
Through five contests, sixth-man Curtis Jones is second on the team in scoring, averaging 15.6 points per contest.
- In his last 23 contests where he has come off the bench, Jones has finished with double figure points 21 times.
Tamin Lipsey has continued to build off of his breakout sophomore campaign, as the junior from Ames is one of three Cyclones averaging 10.6 points.
- Lipsey leads the team in steals with 12.
- Lipsey was an AP Honorable Mention All-American last season, as well as a First Team All-Big 12 member and a member of the league's All-Defensive Team.
- He led the team in rebounds, assists and steals last season while being the team's second-highest scorer in 2023-24.
Dishon Jackson has been a steady force in the paint for the Cyclones this season. He is tied for the team-lead in rebounds and has two 13-point performances on the year.
Joshua Jefferson made his first two threes of the season against Auburn.
- He is one of six ISU players to average double-figure scoring.
- He's tied with Jackson for most rebounds on the team.
Sophomore wing Milan Momcilovic averages 10.6 points per game and shoots the 3-ball at the second-highest clip on the team at 40 percent.
- Momcilovic earned All-Championship team accolades last year as well as All-Freshman Team recognition.

From the Notes:

As a head coach, T.J. Otzelberger is 173-99 overall and has led the Cyclones to a 74-36 record over the last three seasons.
Under Otz, ISU is 41-9 against non-conference opponents. The 41 wins are tied for the eighth-most in the nation and the .820 winning percentage is the fifth best.
Coach Otzelberger is the only Iowa State men's basketball coach to take multiple teams to the Sweet 16.
- Otz will attempt to become the first coach in program history to take a team to the NCAA Tournament in his first four years as coach.
Four Cyclones have scored in double figures in four of ISU's five contests this season.
- The Cyclones are 34-2 under T.J. Otzelberger when four or more players score in double figures.
Iowa State has appeared in 11 events since 2011-12 on Feast Week, advancing to the championship game in seven of those and winning the title in four. Overall, ISU has an 19-11 record on Feast Week.
Iowa State is 4-4 all-time in the Maui Invitational, participating in 1990 and 2018. The Cyclones own wins over Chaminade (1990), Illinois (2018), San Diego State (2018), and Dayton (2024) in the tournament.
Under T.J. Otzelberger, ISU won the 2021 NIT Season Tip-Off. In 2022, ISU advanced to the PKI Championship game before falling to eventual National Champion UConn.
- This is the second time in the last three years that Iowa State will appear in a Thanksgiving week tournament that features North Carolina, Michigan State and UConn (the other being the PKI in 2022).
As of Nov. 26, ISU is ranked No. 5 by the Associated Press.
- ISU is also ranked No. 13 by ESPN's College Basketball BPI and No. 9 by KenPom.

Switching Sides:

Iowa State and Colorado will get a head start on a renewed rivalry in Maui, as the two teams will meet for the 149th time.
- ISU leads the all-time series 78-70.
- The last two times the teams met were on neutral courts, with each side picking up a win.
The Buffaloes were picked to finish 15th out of 16 in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, voted on by the league's 16 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players.
Colorado coach Tad Boyle is in his 15th year at the helm of the Buffalo program, where he is 303-184.
- Overall, Boyle is 359-250 in his 19-year head coaching career, which began at Northern Colorado before moving to Boulder.
- Boyle picked up his 300th win at Colorado earlier this season.
The win over the back-to-back defending champion and second-ranked UConn is Colorado's third ever against a No. 2 team (Oklahoma State in 1992 and Arizona in 2022) and the highest-ranked team CU has ever beaten away from home. It was also the first CU win over a defending national champion since the 1953, when the Buffs beat 1952 champ Kansas in Boulder.
As of Tuesday, the Buffs are No. 69 in KenPom and No. 85 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

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Players Mentioned

Keshon Gilbert

Dishon Jackson

Joshua Jefferson

Curtis Jones

Tamin Lipsey

Milan Momcilovic

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics