Iowa State Cyclones

Massive Tamin Lipsey Update Provided for Iowa State Cyclones Ahead of Opener

What is the status of Iowa State Cyclones point guard Tamin Lipsey for opening night against the Fairleigh Dickinson Knights?
Kenneth Teape|
Sophia Scheller-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones open their 2025-26 men’s college basketball season on Monday night against the Fairleigh Dickson Knights. All attention in the hours leading up to the game is on point guard Tamin Lipsey.

Injured a few weeks ago at practice, he suffered a sprained MCL when going up for a rebound. A timetable of 4 to 6 weeks was given for his recovery, which put him tentatively on track to return for the first game of the season.

He has been progressing nicely through his rehab with no setbacks. Lipsey didn’t get on the court for either exhibition game against the Creighton Bluejays or the Northwestern Wildcats, but Nov. 3 was always the target date in mind.

And, it sounds as if he has successfully achieved the goal of being ready for the season opener at Hilton Coliseum.

Tamin Lipsey reportedly playing against Fairleigh Dickson

Tamin Lipse
Zach Boyden-Holmes/The Register / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

According to college basketball insider Jon Rothstein on X, sources have revealed that Lipsey is expected to be available for head coach T.J. Otzelberger tonight against Fairleigh Dickson.

This is huge news for the Cyclones. Lipsey averaged 10.6 points and 3.1 assists per game last year, but is a major piece of the puzzle for the team’s success. He sets the tone on both ends of the floor and will have the ball in his hands even more this season.

With Curtis Jones and Keshon Gilbert, the team’s two leading scorers from last season, no longer with the team, Lipsey’s usage rate is in line to soar. He is a highly regarded player, landing on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team and being selected by Jay Bilas as a preseason All-Defensive Team member nationally.

A member of the All-Big 12 team and All-Big 12 Defensive Team two years running, he is one of the best players in the conference. Nationally, he is also thought of highly, coming in at No. 35 in the top 100 player rankings.

Getting a player of that caliber back into the lineup will provide Iowa State with a massive boost. It will be interesting to see how much he plays in his first time out there, given the amount of time he was sidelined for.

This is the perfect time to ease Lipsey back into a prominent role and see what freshman Killyan Toure can do in games that count. He drew a ton of praise for his performance during the exhibition games, taking over as the starting point guard with the senior sidelined.

There are some major non-conference matchups on the horizon that Otzelberger will want Lipsey up to speed for.

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Kenneth Teape
KENNETH TEAPE

Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.

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