Iowa State Cyclones Defense Continues to Shine During Undefeated Season

The Iowa State Cyclones continued to impressive defensively on Sunday.

Iowa State men’s basketball head coach T.J. Otzelberger talks to media at the university Sukup Basketball Complex on June 24, 2025, in Ames, Iowa. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones were able to move to 11-0 on the season following a win against the Eastern Illinois Panthers. 

On Sunday, the Cyclones were able to keep their perfect record alive with another convincing win for the program. After a couple of big games against the Purdue Boilermakers and the Iowa Hawkeyes, it was good to see Iowa State perform well once again and come away with a comfortable victory at home. 

Following two straight games against good Big 10 opponents, this was a step down in competition for the Cyclones. However, they continue to prove that they are one of the best teams in the country. Even though this might not have been their best performance, one area for the team continued to shine. 

Defense Reigns Supreme

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Coming into the season, Iowa State was a team that prided itself on being one of the best defensive teams in the country. The Cyclones' defense has been their calling card in recent years, and this group figured to be one of their best. 

In their recent win against Iowa, it was the defense that helped spark the comeback for the program. Going against one of the top guards in the country, Iowa State was able to shut down Bennett Stirtz, and that same effort continued against the Panthers. 

Against Eastern Illinois, the Cyclones held them to just 53 points in what was a suffocating game by the defense. The Panthers shot just 36 percent from the field and 32 percent from the three-point line. They were never able to get anything going on that end of the court, and it is easy to see why Iowa State had an easy win. 

While the defense was a significant reason why the program was able to come away with a victory, the offense also had some solid contributors. Iowa State nearly had its entire starting five score in double figures, with Tamin Lipsey missing the mark by just one point. 

To the surprise of many, Blake Buchanan, who came off a big game against the Hawkeyes, was aggressive looking to score and finished with 14 points on 7-for-8 shooting from the field. 

What was a bit disappointing to see was the team’s ineffectiveness from the three-point line. Overall, the Cyclones shot just 17 percent from deep, which won’t get it done against most opponents. Fortunately, their elite defense helped get the job done in the win.