Iowa State Cyclones Had Zero Answers Slowing Down BYU Cougars Star

The Iowa State Cyclones face a clear Big 12 challenge: winning on the road.

All four of their losses this season have come away from Hilton Coliseum. Losing at Allen Fieldhouse to the Kansas Jayhawks isn’t too surprising, but being defeated by the Cincinnati Bearcats and TCU Horned Frogs did raise some eyebrows.

In their most recent game, they lost again on the road, this time to the BYU Cougars, who were without third-leading scorer Richie Saunders after he suffered a season-ending injury. However, the presence of freshman phenom AJ Dybantsa became the decisive factor as he led BYU with a standout performance.

The future NBA star dominated against the Cyclones, stuffing the stat sheet. He scored a game-high 29 points on 10 of 17 shooting from the field, going two of four from 3-point range and constantly getting to the foul line, where he converted seven of nine attempts.

Iowa State had no answers for AJ Dybantsa

BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa dunking basketball — Feb 21, 2026; Provo, Utah, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) dunks during the first half against the Iowa State Cyclones at Marriott Center. | Aaron Baker-Imagn Images

Iowa State had no real answer for him, with Dybantsa grabbing 10 rebounds and handing out nine assists as well. The cherry on top was that he didn’t come out of the game once, playing all 40 minutes and sustaining his high level of impact throughout.

“He’s such a great player and we needed to be great at being aggressive and going after him. I think when we had success, the limited success we did have defending him, it was when we were ultra-physical, into the basketball, really pressured him, early in mid-second half. And he’s a dynamite player, and to play 40 minutes, and to make all the plays that he makes is truly impressive,” Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger said, via Bill Seals of Cyclone Report (subscription required).

Iowa State did a great job of limiting Robert Wright III, the team’s second leading scorer. He and Dybantsa are the offensive hubs with Saunders out, but other players stepped up, with Wright scoring only six points.

Mihailo Boskovic scored 13 and Kennard Davis had 17 to help pick up the slack. The Cyclones are as good as anyone slowing down players on the perimeter in the backcourt, but on the wing, where Dybantsa plays, there could be some issues.

AJ Dybantsa was two-way terror against Cyclones

BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa grabbing rebound against Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey. — Feb 21, 2026; Provo, Utah, USA; BYU Cougars forward AJ Dybantsa (3) rebounds the ball during the second half against the Iowa State Cyclones at Marriott Center. | Aaron Baker-Imagn Images

Iowa State doesn’t have the kind of lockdown defender against forwards that they have against guards. Nate Heise did what he could against Dybantsa, with physicality being the only thing to throw the freshman star off in any capacity.

While his offensive numbers will be what people focus on, Dybantsa has shown that he is capable of being a two-way player. His defense also drew praise from Otzelberger.

“Absolutely. I think, on that side of the floor, I mean, obviously, he got a piece of one of Milan’s shots early, and his length to be able to contest, and just a tremendous two-way player. Gotta give him credit,” the Cyclones head coach added.

Measured at 6-foot-9, he can defend virtually every position on the court. He was a major reason Milan Momcilovic had zero impact, scoring only five points and shooting one of five from the field.

AJ Dybantsa on scout & how he shut down Milan Momcilovic:

“Yeah, I was watching his film. He was knocking down one-legged fades. Quick trigger, he’s about my height, so Tim [Fanning] wanted me to take the challenge. It’s a tough guard. I’m not used to running around a lot of… pic.twitter.com/X1sfJ8lBFI
— Ben Criddle (@CriddleBenjamin) February 23, 2026

Players as talented as Dybantsa are going to have games like the one from Feb. 21. The rest of Iowa State’s game plan was executed rather well; they just had no answer for slowing down the best player on the court.