Upcoming Event: Men's Basketball versus Creighton (Exhibition) on October 18, 2026 at 12:00 PM
12:00 PM
Men's Basketball
Creighton (Exhibition)
Iowa State University Athletics
Sunday, October 18
Ames, Iowa
12:00 PM
Iowa State
vs
Creighton (Exhibition)
Photo by: Iowa State Athletics
PRIMER: Iowa State vs. Creighton (exh.)
10.16.2026 | Men's Basketball
Who: Iowa State (0-0, 0-0 Big 12) vs. Creighton (0-0, 0-0 BIG EAST)
Where: Hilton Coliseum (14,267) – Ames, Iowa
When: Sunday, October 18, 2026 – 12 p.m. CT
Watch: ESPN+ // Evan Wessling (PxP), Derrin Hansen (Analyst)
Listen: Cyclone Radio Network // John Walters (PxP) & Eric Heft (Analyst)
Tipping Off:
Iowa State will play its first public exhibition game of the season against Creighton Sunday afternoon at Hilton Coliseum. The contest will be the first of two exhibition outings for the Cyclones, who will travel to Evanston to face Northwestern next Sunday.
The Cyclones will be integrating eight newcomers consisting of five transfers and three freshmen. Two transfers, Jaquan Johnson and Leon Bond III, were All-Defensive Team members in the MVC and will help bolster the squad's already strong defense.
Like ISU, Creighton is replacing a lot of production and is welcoming in nine newcomers. Not only did the roster turn over for the Jays, but so did the man in charge. Alan Huss was appointed the new head coach of the program, taking over for Greg McDermott.
Storylines:
- At No. 8 in the final AP Top 25 Poll of 2025-26, Iowa State has been ranked in the AP Top 25 for 52 straight weeks, the fourth-longest streak in the nation. It is the second-longest streak in the Big 12 behind Houston's 126, which is the longest streak in the country.
- The Cyclones and Cougars are the only two Big 12 schools to have streaks of at least 30 weeks. It is the second-longest streak in school history behind the 61 weeks from 2014-17.
- In six seasons under Coach Otzelberger, the Cyclones have been known for their defense, as they have ranked as a top-15 unit in the country each year, finishing ranked fifth in 2025-26.
- Iowa State's offense will look to reinvent itself with consensus All-American Joshua Jefferson being drafted by Brooklyn in the first round of the NBA Draft this past summer and Milan Momcilovic transferring to Kentucky.
- One constant remains, though, in Tamin Lipsey. The Ames native is back for a fifth season and will once again run the show for Coach Otzelberger.
- Lipsey was named to the All-Big 12 Preseason Team.
- The Cyclones were picked to finish fourth in the Big 12 Preseason Poll, which is voted on by the league's coaches.
From the Notes:
- As a head coach, Otz is 223-116 overall and has guided the Cyclones to a 124-53 record over the last five years.
- Otz earned both his 100th win at Iowa State and his 200th as a head coach last season.
- His 118 wins are the most in the first five years in ISU history.
- Otz became the quickest coach in school history to 100 career wins, doing so in 145 games.
- Otz has led Iowa State to four 20-plus win seasons, joining Orr (5) and Hoiberg (4) as the only ISU coaches to do so four-plus times.
- ISU is 76-11 in games at Hilton Coliseum under Otz. ISU's 76 home wins during that time are tied for the fourth-most nationally
- 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.
- In five postseason appearances, Otzelberger has seven NCAA Tournament wins – the most by any coach in program history.
- Otz currently holds the school's highest winning percentage by a head coach.
- He has led ISU to 30 wins over AP Top 25 teams, the most by an ISU coach in school history.
- The Cyclones finished last year ranked No. 7 in the NET. Iowa State slotted in at No. 7 in the KenPom rankings and was No. 7 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.
Switching Sides:
- This will be the second straight season that Iowa State and Creighton have faced off in a preseason game. The Jays took last year's contest in Omaha, 71-58.
- ISU also played Creighton in the regular season last year as part of the Players Era Championship. ISU won that meeting 78-60.
- In regular season play, ISU holds the series advantage, 18-15.
- ISU also played Creighton in the regular season last year as part of the Players Era Championship. ISU won that meeting 78-60.
- The Bluejays were picked to finish 7th out of 11 in the preseason BIG EAST poll, a year after finishing fifth. Creighton has matched or exceeded its preseason projection in all but two seasons since joining the league in 2013-14.
- CU forwards Jackson McAndrew and Oswin Erhunmwunse were both named Preseason Third Team All-BIG EAST selections.
- The Bluejays return starters Jasen Green, Isaac Traudt and Austin Swartz from last year's squad.
- Creighton Head Coach Alan Huss is in his first year at the helm of the Bluejay program. Huss holds a 56-15 all-time head coaching record, which began at High Point, where he led from 2023-25.
- Huss was a Creighton assistant coach from 2017-23 before heading to HPU to take over the program. He was then named the coach in waiting as he returned to CU last season as the Associate Head Coach
- Creighton finished last season ranked No. 83 in the NET. The Bluejays were No. 76 in KenPom and No. 65 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.
Players Mentioned
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