Iowa State Is National Title Contender for One Major Reason

One thing sets the Iowa State Cyclones apart as a contender in men's college basketball.

Mar 27, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Dominykas Pleta (21) drives the ball against Tennessee Volunteers forward Felix Okpara (34) in the second half during a Sweet Sixteen game of the Midwest Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

Over the last few years, college basketball has seen an interesting trend when it comes to their top teams. Coaches matter, star players matter, and fans matter, but there is one piece of a team that has mattered more than ever. And that’s the depth of a roster.

Depth is an interesting concept. It’s not flashy, it’s not fun to watch for casuals, and it’s not really taken into account enough. But the reality is: Depth actually matters a lot more than people may think.

Take the 2025-26 Michigan Wolverines, who just won a National Championship. Yes, Yaxel Lendeborg was a great player and a big reason that they took home the trophy. But Lendeborg didn’t win Michigan the championship; it was their depth.

They had great rotations, players that would come off the bench and make an impact, and no true point where they seemed slow. Oftentimes, they would take down opponents by 30 or 40 points, simply by keeping their foot on the pedal regardless of the score and regardless of who was in the game.

Recent national title winners have one thing in common: depth

Michigan coach Dusty May celebrates after winning the NCAA Tournament Midwest Regional final by defeating Tennessee 95-62 at United Center in Chicago on Sunday, March 29, 2026. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

What about the 2024-25 Florida Gators? Walter Clayton Jr. was definitely a star and, at times, did carry the team. But it was more so the big man depth that consistently propelled them through a deep SEC that got 14 bids in the NCAA tournament. Without their elite depth in the frontcourt, they wouldn’t have been nearly as successful as they were.

Even the 2023-24 UConn Huskies are probably the best example yet. They didn’t have a single star, just a plethora of consistent players that worked perfectly in Dan Hurley’s system. In the National Championship game, consistent pressure stopped Zach Edey from leading the Purdue Boilermakers, therefore leading the Huskies to a championship.

There’s a saying called “defense wins championships.” Sometimes people argue that offense wins championships. But in reality, depth wins championships.

Last season, the Iowa State Cyclones were a phenomenal team. They took down No. 1 Purdue by 23 points in Mackey Arena. They also beat the No. 2 Houston Cougars at Hilton Coliseum later in the season. But unfortunately, come tournament time, they had one big issue that kept them from going past the Sweet Sixteen.

And that was depth. They had Joshua Jefferson, Tamin Lipsey, and Milan Momcilovic, but not enough consistent pieces outside of them. In fact, they played just an eight-man rotation throughout the majority of the season.

But that’s all changing this offseason. Did they lose their three stars? Sure. Does that mean they can’t compete? Absolutely not.

Iowa State restocked depth in transfer portal

Mar 11, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Northwestern Wildcats forward Tre Singleton (8) grabs a rebound against the Indiana Hoosiers during the first half at United Center. | David Banks-Imagn Images

Iowa State brought in five transfers in the portal. That is Jaquan Johnson from the Bradley Braves, Ryan Prather Jr. from the Robert Morris Colonels, Leon Bond III from the Northern Iowa Panthers, Tre Singleton from the Northwestern Wildcats, and Taj Manning from the Kansas State Wildcats. All five are expected to be in the rotation, and that joins four others who were in the rotation last year.

The Cyclones are returning two starters, Killyan Toure and Blake Buchanan, as well as two of their three bench options, Jamarion Batemon and Dominykas Pleta. And yeah, three of the four were just freshmen last season.

Automatically, Iowa State has much better depth going into the 2026-27 season. Four return and five come in, creating a bit of a deeper squad. And that’s not even mentioning incoming freshmen.

The Cyclones are bringing in three freshmen, all with potential to crack the rotation this season. Xzavion Mitchell, who redshirted last year, also returns as a potential option.

Depth wins championships, and Iowa State wants to win a championship. The roster may look different and may not be as flashy, but it certainly will get the job done and do the dirty work.

Head coach T.J. Otzelberger isn’t thinking about building the best stars next year; he’s thinking about building the best unit that can operate like previous national championship teams, hoping that the Cyclones can follow in their footsteps and get one of their own.