Incoming Iowa State Freshman Making Impact Despite Injury

A senior year injury has not kept an Iowa State Cyclones freshman from making an impact on the program.

West Allis Central's Yusef Gray Jr. (3) rejects a shot by Brookfield East's Eric Dusick (14) during the game at Brookfield East High School, in Brookfield, Wisconsin, Jan. 22, 2026. West Allis Central won the game, 91-56. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball team benefited greatly from the freshmen who were on the team during the 2025-26 season.

Killyan Toure started every game in the backcourt alongside Tamin Lipsey. Jamarion Batemon was a key member of the backcourt off the bench. Big man Dominykas Pleta saw his role increase as the season moved along.

All three of them are going to play expanded roles as sophomores, with a new crop of freshmen coming in. Unfortunately, the injury bug has hit the group hard, limiting their potential impact in the first year in Ames.

One of the players dealing with an injury is Yusef Gray Jr., who hurt his shoulder during his senior year in high school. Despite dealing with a labrum tear, he has been making a positive impact with Iowa State this summer.

Yusef Gray Jr. making immmediate impact for Iowa State

West Allis Central's Yusef Gray Jr. (3) breaks past Wayzata's Nolen Anderson (3) during the Rick Majerus WBY Shootout on Monday, Dec. 29, 2025, at Concordia University in Mequon, Wisconsin. Wayzata won the game, 67-64. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

“He was able to return last week so it’s been a lot coming at him in a short period of time. Yusef’s a competitor, he’s a guy that defensively takes tremendous pride, guarding the basketball and making plays for his teammates. Somebody that we have a lot of confidence in. Now it’s just about getting the reps and him building the confidence in the program through the reps every day,” head coach T.J. Otzelberger said via Bill Seals of Cyclone Report (subscription required).

It will certainly be interesting to see how much ground that Gray can make up during the offseason and into the summer. Rehabbing his shoulder was of the utmost importance, but it sounds like he has been able to get some work in with teammates on the court.

He is someone that the coaching staff is high on, with his defensive intensity being a calling card right now. For any player to succeed under Otzelberger, they need to be willing to get after it on that end of the court, and Gray fits the bill.

Hopefully, his rehab is behind him, and he can focus solely on the reps and learning the system on the court, as Otzelberger noted. The Cyclones look to have a full rotation right now, but no one saw Toure coming as a starter at this point last year, so things can certainly change over the next few weeks and months.

It would certainly benefit him to be healthy throughout the remainder of the summer heading into training camp. He cannot showcase his abilities if he isn’t on the court.

In the backcourt, Iowa State has Toure and Batemon as holdovers from last year, with Jaquan Johnson and Ryan Prather Jr. being added in the transfer portal. Gray could certainly carve out a role, but that foursome has a leg up based on their collegiate experience alone.

Right now, the only fully healthy incoming freshman in the Class of 2026 for the Cyclones is center Dorian Rinaldo-Komlan. Christian Wiggins suffered an Achilles injury during practice and will miss his entire first year in Ames.