Tamin Lipsey's Absence Has Major Impact on Iowa State Cyclones Against Creighton

The Iowa State Cyclones had their first exhibition against the Creighton Bluejays. Tamin Lipsey didn't play and his absence was felt.

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The Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball team played its first game of the 2025-26 season in an exhibition against the Creighton Bluejays. They are two of the best teams in the country, both ranked in the AP Poll Preseason Top 25.

Iowa State is No. 16, Creighton is No. 23. Both teams likely held things close to the vest. They will be facing off for real on Nov. 25 in Las Vegas. In this exhibition, it was the Bluejays who got the best of the Cyclones, winning 71-58.

Making any major declarations from this matchup would be fool’s gold. Especially since Iowa State should have arguably the most important piece of their rotation back in the mix when the teams face off again next month.

Star point guard Tamin Lipsey was not in the lineup for the exhibition game. He is still recovering from a knee injury suffered during practice a few weeks ago. While not yet cleared to participate in games, he has been slowly but surely ramping up his activity.

The Cyclones certainly hope he will be ready to go because they need him on the court to perform up to their capability. Against Creighton, it was evident that things will be a struggle on both ends of the court if he is not out there.

Tamin Lipsey's absence having major impact on Iowa State

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Offensively, the team looked disjointed at times. Outside of Joshua Jefferson, who scored 18 points to go along with 12 rebounds, both to lead the team, putting the ball in the basket was a challenge.

Without their point guard, getting into their sets was difficult. Things were not crisp, including a stretch in which they missed 11 straight shots. A 23-0 run was allowed as part of the Bluejays' outscoring the Cyclones 27-2.

Nothing was coming easily to Iowa State. With about 14 minutes remaining in the game, the only assist the Cyclones had was Dominick Nelson setting up Milan Momcilovic in the first four minutes of the contest.

Not to mention, the team didn’t make a single 3-point attempt. Four turnovers were committed in the first half as well, as their leader was missed dearly.

"Killyan Toure did a lot of great things."#Cyclones | #C5C | @killyan_toure pic.twitter.com/urS3XDuH23

— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) October 18, 2025

Lipsey’s absence not only hurt the offense but also the defense. He is regarded as the best point of attack defender in college football and replacing that is virtually impossible.

Head coach T.J. Otzelberger is high on the two-way potential of freshman guards Killyan Toure, who started in place of Lipsey, and Jamarion Batemon. But, they have a long way to go to make an impact at the same level as the school’s all-time steals leader and multi-time All-Big 12 Defensive Team member.

The pressure Lipsey provides as the first line of defense for Otzelberger’s scheme is difficult to replicate. Eventually, Toure and Batemon could be capable of it.

But, for now, Lipsey is a player the team cannot afford to lose. The team’s underwhelming performance against Creighton is evidence that he is the most important piece of the puzzle for Iowa State.