Tamin Lipsey Makes Iowa State Basketball History in NCAA Tournament

The Iowa State Cyclones knew they faced a major obstacle in the 2026 NCAA Tournament, as they would go up against the Kentucky Wildcats in the Round of 32 without their star forward, Joshua Jefferson.

He suffered an ankle injury early in their Round of 64 matchup against the Tennessee State Tigers and his availability is unknown moving forward. As a result, other players have had to step up in his absence.

One of the players who has done so is Tamin Lipsey. The senior point guard has been a leader for Iowa State basketball for the last four years and has taken his performance to another level with Jefferson’s absence.

Against Kentucky, Lipsey had arguably the best game of his stellar Cyclones career, making program history in the process.

Tamin Lipsey makes impressive Iowa State basketball history

Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey reacting after play. — Mar 22, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey (3) reacts after a play during the first half against the Kentucky Wildcats during a second round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

He recorded five steals in the game, pushing his career total to 17 in NCAA tournament games. By the time the game ended, he added one more, putting him at 18 for his career.

As shared by the team’s official account on X, that is the most NCAA tournament steals any player has recorded individually.

Along with the pressure defense, taking full advantage of a Kentucky team that doesn’t have a traditional point guard and forcing them into 20 total turnovers, Lipsey could not be stopped offensively.

Knowing his team needed a scoring punch with Jefferson sidelined, he upped the aggression on that end of the court. He took a team-high 15 shots and made eight of them, en route to scoring a career-high 26 points.

17 Career Steals in the NCAA Tournament.

The Most in School History.#Cyclones | #C5C | @TaminLipsey pic.twitter.com/yY3fv2x4my
— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) March 22, 2026

His jump shot, which has been inconsistent at times during his senior campaign, was locked in. Lipsey connected on 3-of-6 3-point attempts and made 7-of-8 attempts from the foul line.

Along with the stellar shooting performance, he also handed out 10 assists. It was the fourth double-double of his career, and it could not have come at a better time. His stat line was rounded out with three rebounds while playing a team-high 37 minutes.

Iowa State needed a memorable performance from its senior point guard, and he delivered. Kentucky got off to a fast start, but the confidence of Lipsey and his teammates never wavered, leading to a convincing 82-63 victory.

The Cyclones have advanced to the Sweet 16 for the third time in five years under T.J. Otzelberger. Lipsey will be looking to increase his number of steals when the team faces the Tennessee Volunteers in Chicago.