Iowa State Cyclones Depth Presents Unique Challenge for T.J. Otzelberger

Team depth is good for Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger, but presents unique challenges to work through.

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The Iowa State Cyclones had a unique edge coming into the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season with the talent they had returning to their roster.

There wasn’t a team in the Big 12 that had more minutes and points coming back from the 2024-25 campaign. That built-in continuity would be helpful in the early going, but it turns out the players brought in to replace that lost depth are also very talented.

Tamin Lipsey, Killyan Toure, Milan Momcilovic, Joshua Jefferson and Black Buchanan have started all three games thus far. Nate Heise is the first player off the bench, receiving consistent minutes and is viewed as a sixth starter.

Also in the rotation and receiving minutes in all three games are Jamarion Batemon, Dominick Nelson, Eric Mulder and Dominykas Pleta.

That kind of depth is great for a coach because he can navigate foul trouble in a game. Having 10 players he can turn to is a luxury not every head coach is afforded.

Depth is blessing and curse for Iowa State

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However, it also creates some unique challenges for T.J. Otzelberger to work through and figure out on a nightly basis.

“Yeah I think most coaches would probably say [it's] much easier job on the head coach during the game when it's 'You're going to play eight guys and you just you play the eight guys.' Right?” the head coach said, via Alec Busse of Cyclone Alert, part of the 247Sports Network.

Of course, that isn’t the case currently with Iowa State. The situation is fluid, as was displayed against the Mississippi State Bulldogs in their most recent game, when Mulder played only two minutes.

Pleta is on the fringe of the rotation, playing single-digit minutes in all three games thus far. So, that raised the question whether or not Otzelberger has considered shrinking his rotation to only eight players.

Cyclones have no plans to drop rotation to eight players right now

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Right now, there are no plans for that, as he will continue leaning into his excellent depth.

“We'll factor that in if that situation presents itself, but right now, it's been a really big positive for us. We've loved how we're doing it, I think it has elevated everybody's level of play in a positive way, so we'll just take it one day at a time and see how it goes,” Otzelberger added.

Based on how minutes have been distributed thus far, if the rotation is ever cut down, Heise, Nelson and Batemon look like they would be the three bench players to receive minutes along with the starting five.

That would be a risk given how undersized the Cyclones would be. Buchanan and Jefferson would be their only options at center with that mix if Pleta and Mulder aren’t in the mix.

It will certainly be something to keep an eye on as Iowa State moves along in its schedule. Major changes may not be on the horizon, but the rotation against Mississippi State could hint at what is to come down the road.