Iowa State Cyclones Moving in Right Direction of Latest Bracketology Predictions

What seed did the Iowa State Cyclones land in the latest Men's Basketball NCAA Tournament predictions?

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The Iowa State Cyclones should have had a little bit of a chip on their shoulder heading into the 2025-26 men’s college basketball season.

They were ranked in the Preseason AP Poll Top 25 for the second straight year, which is only the second time in program history they have done so consecutively. This is the fifth campaign in a row they have been ranked at least once, which is a new program record.

But there were some questions about how good this team really was. How would they replace the scoring production of Curtis Jones and Keshon Gilbert? What would the frontcourt rotation look like with an entirely new cast at the center position?

Despite those concerns, the team was ranked No. 16 coming into the year. They were viewed as either the fifth or sixth best team in the Big 12 and are looking to prove those people wrong.

Where is Iowa State ranked in recent Bracketology prediction?

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So far, so good in that regard. Because in the first regular season updated Men’s Bracketology for the 2026 NCAA Tournament shared by Joe Lunardi of ESPN, the Cyclones are heading in the right direction.

About a month ago, when the last prediction was shared, Iowa State received a five-seed. It was a surprising drop, considering they were on the 3-seed line prior to that.

They are now heading back toward the 3-line, with Lunardi placing them as the No. 4 seed in the East Region. However, the improved seed line doesn’t help the Cyclones at all in these projections; in fact, it makes their road even tougher.

Despite being in the East Region, hosted at Washington, D.C., Iowa State would have to travel to San Diego for their first set of games. Making matters worse, the No. 13 seed, UC Santa Barbara Gauchos, would have support from the local fans.

Yes, the Cyclones deserve to be moving up the seeding lines with how they have looked thus far. They are 3-0, acing their first challenge of the season against the Mississippi State Bulldogs earlier this week.

Facing off against their SEC foes in a neutral-site game at the Sanford Pentagon, Iowa State came away with a convincing 96-80 victory.

Iowa State still has work to do to climb NCAA Tournament seed lines

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Alas, having to travel across the country and face off against a lower-seeded team that will have the clear homecourt advantage would be far from ideal.

Of course, things aren’t close to being over. There will be plenty of shuffling done with the bracketology projections in the coming weeks and months.

The Cyclones are going to have ample opportunities to push further up the seed line as well. Next week, they will be playing the St. John’s Red Storm and Creighton Bluejays in Las Vegas.

Highlights from Last Night's Victory ⤵️#Cyclones | #C5C | @sanfordsports_ pic.twitter.com/yhIZ9n41Jm

— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) November 12, 2025

Both of those teams, along with Mississippi State, are projected to be in the field. As are the Iowa Hawkeyes and Purdue Boilermakers, two more of their non-conference opponents.

That is before even getting into Big 12 play, a conference that is projected to have seven more teams, along with Iowa State, in the Field of 68. Opportunities will be plentiful for the Cyclones to stamp their status as legitimate Big 12 and national championship contenders.