No. 3 Iowa State vs. Kansas State Primer

Who: No. 3 Iowa State (17-3, 7-2 Big 12) vs. Kansas State (9-11, 3-6 Big 12)

Where: Hilton Coliseum (14,267) – Ames, Iowa

When: Saturday, Feb. 1, 2025 – 1 p.m. CT

Watch/Listen: ESPN2 / Cyclone Radio Network

Tipping Off: Iowa State will return home this Saturday, following just its second loss in conference play at Arizona on Big Monday. The Cyclones will look to increase the nation's second longest home winning streak to 30 in a row, as they meet Kansas State in the first of two regular season matchups.

ISU dropped just its second game since Thanksgiving last time out, falling to Arizona in overtime on the road. The Cyclones saw Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert combine to score 35 points, but it wasn't enough as an end-of-regulation buzzer-beater sent the game into OT, where the Wildcats would catch fire and pull away.

After starting 1-6 in conference play, Kansas State has rattled off two wins in a row – both at home. The winning streak started with an upset of No. 23 West Virginia last Saturday, before the team dispensed of Oklahoma State on Wednesday. The Wildcats got off to hot starts in both games and seem to have found a groove as of late.

Game Note: We ask those attending Saturday afternoon's game to please wear white, as the game is a WHITE OUT.

Storylines:

Iowa State's "sixth starter," Curtis Jones, has become an actual starter the last couple of times out, filling in for an injury. Since being inserted into the starting lineup, the one-time Big 12 Player of the Week has averaged 20.6 points, 6.8 rebounds and is shooting over 35 percent from deep.
Keshon Gilbert, the team's "engine," has taken a leap in his second season as a Cyclone, leading the team in minutes and assists. He has been named the Big 12 Player of the Week twice this season and was added to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List on Jan. 7.
A Preseason All-Big 12 First Team selection, Tamin Lipsey has been the glue of Iowa State's team. A known defensive menace, Lipsey leads the team in steals and is close to becoming the school's all-time steals leader.
Saint Mary's transfer Joshua Jefferson has been a revelation for the Cyclones this season. Jefferson leads the team in rebounding, has eight double-doubles and has earned five Big 12 Newcomer of the Week awards.
Sophomore wing Milan Momcilovic averages just over 10 points per game and shoots the 3-ball at the highest clip on the team at 44 percent. It was announced on Jan. 15 that he would miss some time with a hand injury.
A transfer from Charlotte, big man Dishon Jackson has been a force in the paint. He leads the team in blocks and averages 9.2 points with 5.0 rebounds.
A Swiss army knife off the bench, Nate Heise has really come into his own. His defensive ability to lock opposing players down and ability to cut to space has been huge.
Seattle transfer Brandton Chatfield has been a glass-eater off the bench. The senior leads the team in offensive rebounds percentage, as 43.5 percent of his boards come on offense.

From the Notes:

As a head coach, Otz is 186-101 overall and has guided the Cyclones to an 87-38 record over the last four years.
- ISU is 56-8 in games at Hilton Coliseum under Otz. His 56 home wins during that time are tied for the eighth-most nationally.
Iowa State has won 29 straight home games at Hilton Coliseum, which is the second-longest active home winning streak in the country and the second-longest in school history.
Coach Otzelberger is the only Iowa State men's basketball coach to take multiple teams to the Sweet 16.
- He was the 51st coach in NCAA Division I history to take a team to the Sweet 16 twice in his first three years on the job.
- 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.
Iowa State has been ranked in the AP Top 10 for 20 straight weeks, the longest streak in the country.
- Iowa State has been ranked in the Top 5 for 21 weeks in the poll history, with 11 of those weeks coming this season.
Iowa State currently boasts the top-scoring offense in the Big 12, averaging 84.2 points per contest.
The Cyclones are ranked No. 7 in the NET. Iowa State slots in at No. 5 in the KenPom rankings and is No. 4 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

Switching Sides:

Iowa State and K-State are meeting for the 241st time this weekend in the first of two meetings this season.
- Under Coach Otz, ISU is 5-3 against the Wildcats.
- Kansas State is the second-most played opponent in program history (behind Kansas, who ISU has played 259 times). ISU's 94 wins over K-State are the school's most over any current Big 12 institution.
Kansas State was picked to finish eighth out of 16 in the Big 12 Preseason Poll with Coleman Hawkins earning Preseason All-Big 12 Second Team honors.
- Speaking of Hawkins, the fifth-year senior transfer from Illinois was the Preseason Big 12 Co-Newcomer of the Year.
K-State welcomed 10 newcomers to the team this offseason, with seven of them being Division I transfers.
- Wildcat newcomers have combined to score 1,146 (83 percent) of the team's 1,380 points this season, with six of the top seven scorers being new to the team.
Kansas State head coach Jerome Tang is in his third season at the helm of the Wildcat basketball program. Tang is 54-36 with K-State and is 56-36 in his head coaching career that includes two wins from his time as an interim at Baylor.
- Tang was selected as the 2023 Werner Ladder Naismith Men's College Coach of the Year after guiding the Wildcats to a 26-win season and their 13th trip to the Elite Eight in his inaugural season.
K-State is ranked No. 94 in the NET. The Wildcats are No. 85 in KenPom and No. 76 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

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Players Mentioned

Brandton Chatfield

Keshon Gilbert

Nate Heise

Dishon Jackson

Joshua Jefferson

Curtis Jones

Tamin Lipsey

Milan Momcilovic

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Iowa State University Athletics