Joshua Jefferson Injury ‘Sucked the Life Out Of’ Iowa State

The Iowa State Cyclones made history during their Round of 64 game against the Tennessee State Tigers when they scored a program record 108 points in a 34-point victory.

However, that win came at a major cost. Not even three minutes into the contest, Joshua Jefferson went down with an injury. He suffered a nasty ankle sprain, which ended up being the last time that he suited up for the Cyclones.

The senior forward did everything he could to get his body ready to play against the Tennessee Volunteers, but it didn’t happen. After the game, he revealed that he wasn’t very close to suiting up, and even if Iowa State had advanced and played in the Elite Eight, the odds of him suiting up would have been slim.

The Cyclones gave it everything they had without Jefferson in the lineup, but lost 76-62. After the game, Milan Momcilovic admitted knowing how bad the injury was and that it took some wind out of their sails.

Milan Momcilovic gets honest about Iowa State losing Joshua Jefferson

Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic clapping. — Mar 27, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic (22) reacts in the first half against the Tennessee Volunteers during a Sweet Sixteen game of the Midwest Regional of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

“It sucks because we had Final Four aspirations and to see them go down in the first couple minutes of the first game of the tournament kind of sucked the life out of us a little bit,” he said, via Ben Hutchens of the Quad-City Times.

Iowa State stuck to the game plan that head coach T.J. Otzelberger and the staff put together. They were relentless on the defensive end, pressuring opponents relentlessly and forcing turnovers at a high rate.

It worked against Tennessee State and in the Round of 32 against the Kentucky Wildcats. Turnovers were forced at a high rate against Tennessee as well, but it wasn’t enough to make up for the disparities everywhere else.

Without Jefferson, the Cyclones were destroyed on the interior, being outrebounded by 21. Tennessee recorded nearly as many offensive boards, 16, as Iowa State had total, with 22.

“It sucks because we had Final Four aspirations and to see them go down in the first couple minutes of the first game of the tournament kind of sucked the life out of us a little bit.

But we still battled and competed and that’s what TJ’s teams are going to do.” pic.twitter.com/U7W4CXHggM
— Ben Hutchens (@Ben_Hutchens_) March 28, 2026

Despite the disadvantages they faced, the Cyclones gave it their all, just as Otzelberger and the fan base would hope.

“But we still battled and competed and that’s what TJ’s teams are going to do,” Momcilovic added.

The sharpshooting forward was stepping up without Jefferson in the lineup, scoring 37 points in the first two games of the NCAA tournament. But the Volunteers did a great job of taking him out of the game, holding him to 2-of-9 shooting and six points.

His lack of scoring punch is one of the reasons Iowa State struggled against a stout Tennessee defense.