Iowa State Cyclones Move Up in AP Top 25 Poll Despite Loss This Week

The Iowa State Cyclones were able to move up in the AP Poll despite losing a game last week.

Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey (3) goes for a layup around Houston Cougars forward Joseph Tugler (11) during the first half in the3 Big-12 men’s basketball at Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 16, 2026, in Ames, Iowa | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It was a bit of an uneven week for the Iowa State Cyclones, who were able to earn a marquee win but also suffered their fourth loss on the road. As March draws near, the Cyclones are still trying to climb in the AP Poll. 

There was certainly a mix of both good and bad for the Cyclones this week. To start things off, the team was able to get one of their biggest wins of the season against the Houston Cougars at home. This win followed a great performance by the team against the Kansas Jayhawks last weekend, and it created a significant amount of momentum. 

Unfortunately, the struggles on the road continued for the team on Saturday night against the BYU Cougars. Iowa State suffered their fourth loss of the campaign, which was also their fourth road loss, all of which were during conference play. 

As March Madness gets closer, the Cyclones are trying to get a number one seed in the tournament, and all of the road struggles are going to be something the committee looks at. However, in the most recent AP Poll, they were able to move up to fourth, which is a two-spot jump from last week. 

Iowa State Survives Tough Week

Movin' Up#Cyclones | #C5C pic.twitter.com/lLkXZNtM4e

— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) February 23, 2026

This could end up being one of the more pivotal weeks in college basketball, with a few of the top teams facing off and some teams getting knocked back a bit. With the win for the Cyclones on Monday against the Cougars, Houston ended up losing two games this week, with a big loss to the Arizona Wildcats at home as well. 

Even though it was against strong opponents, the Cougars were one of the teams that the Cyclones were able to jump in the rankings. Furthermore, a really bad loss to the Creighton Bluejays bumped the UConn Huskies from fifth to sixth. 

Above Iowa State in the top three spots are the Michigan Wolverines, Arizona Wildcats, and the Duke Blue Devils. With their win over the Wolverines, Duke is now the No.1 team in the country. 

With the ACC not being the most challenging conference, the Blue Devils very well could be the top team heading into March Madness. For the Cyclones, they will have a matchup coming up soon against the Wildcats that could very well be for a spot on the one-line come March Madness. Even though it was a bit of an uneven week for the program, moving up a couple of spots is great to see with the season coming to a close.