4 Takeaways From Iowa State Basketball’s Loss to Arizona

The Iowa State Cyclones and Arizona Wildcats had one of the best games of the season in their semifinal matchup of the 2026 Phillips 66 Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament.

A back-and-forth affair between two elite teams ended on a fadeaway jump shot from Big 12 Player of the Year Jaden Bradley over Killyan Toure to give the Wildcats an 82-80 victory, securing a spot in the championship game.

While moral victories don’t do much for a team at this point in the season, the Cyclones should not hold their heads. They went toe-to-toe with one of the best teams in the country, falling just short of victory.

There was a lot of good and some bad from the outcome. Here are four of the biggest takeaways from the loss for Iowa State.

Free Throw Shooting Catches Up To Iowa State

Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson shooting free throw. — Jan 7, 2026; Waco, Texas, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) shoots a free throw during the second half against the Baylor Bears at Paul and Alejandra Foster Pavilion. | Chris Jones-Imagn Images

There hasn’t been much that the Cyclones have done wrong on the court this season. But their Achilles heel has been free-throw shooting, which played a major role in Iowa State falling short against Arizona.

They attempted only eight free throws, which is an issue in itself. Compounding the problem is not taking advantage of the limited opportunities, making only four of those attempts.

It was the biggest difference in the game. The Wildcats didn’t shoot much better percentage-wise, but had double the number of attempts with 16 and made more than double, connecting on 10.

Against upper-echelon teams and in close contests, their issues at the charity stripe are troublesome.

Supporting Cast Falls Short

Arizona Wildcats guard Anthony Dell'orso reacts after play. — Mar 13, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Anthony Dell'orso (3) reacts after a play during the second half against the Iowa State Cyclones at T-Mobile Center. | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Thus far in the Big 12 tournament, Iowa State has received strong performances from the supporting cast. Blake Buchanan has been excellent. Jamarion Batemon, Nate Heise and Dominykas Pleta have all made an impact off the bench.

Against Arizona, their supporting cast was outplayed. The Cyclones had only three points off the bench; the Wildcats received 26 points from Anthony Dell’Orso and 10 points from Tobe Awaka, who had a double-double.

Those two, along with Ivan Kharchenkov, more than made up for Brayden Burries being held without a basket. Kharchankov and Dell’Orso combined for 8-of-12 from 3-point range.

Not enough help was given to Joshua Jefferson and Milan Momcilovic, who both had big games.

Killyan Toure Confidence Returning

Iowa State Cyclones guard Killyan Toure going for layup. — Mar 7, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Killyan Toure (27) goes to the basket against the Arizona State Sun Devils during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

One of the reasons that Iowa State saw its offensive efficiency drop over the last few weeks of the season was the ineffectiveness of Killyan Toure. The talented freshman was not having an impact on that end, and opponents were taking full advantage.

They were daring him to shoot, and he was not making the most of the shot attempts. His confidence was wavering, but things are heading in the right direction from his play in the Big 12 tournament.

Against the Wildcats, he shot 5-of-9 from the field, including 2-of-3 from 3-point range. He was knocking down mid-range pull-up jump shots, showing a level of confidence he has not had in a while on offense, to go along with his patented defensive pressure.

NCAA Tournament Seeding

Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger calling out a play. — Feb 14, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger watchers his team play the Kansas Jayhawks during the second half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

If there is such a thing as a good loss in college basketball, this was one for the Cyclones. Arizona is locked in as a No. 1 seed in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, and Iowa State just went down to the wire with them.

While a win would have been better, two victories in the Big 12 tournament should be enough to push them ahead of the Illinois Fighting Illini, who lost in their first game of the Big Ten tournament to the Wisconsin Badgers in overtime.

The Michigan State Spartans, another team in the mix for a two or three seed, were also trailing at the time of writing to the UCLA Bruins in their first Big Ten tournament game.

Landing as the No. 2 seed in the region with the Duke Blue Devils may not be as daunting as it looked a few days ago, before it was announced that Caleb Foster and Patrick Ngongba II were both dealing with injuries.