Iowa State Cyclones See Significant Drop in Recent Bracketology Projections

Where did the Iowa State Cyclones land in the latest bracketology projections?

Jan 2, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger watches his team play the West Virginia Mountaineers during the second half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. | Reese Strickland-Imagn Images

It has been a great start to the season for the Iowa State Cyclones with a 16-1 record, but a recent loss has knocked them down a bit. 

Coming into the week, the Cyclones were a perfect 16-0 but knew that they had a looming test coming up against the Kansas Jayhawks. Despite it not being the best start to the season for the Jayhawks, they were a team desperate for a win, and they performed like it. 

Iowa State has played in some tough environments this year, like against the Purdue Boilermakers on the road. However, they have struggled in recent years against Kansas on the road, and their most recent game was no different. 

While it was just their first loss of the campaign, they were recently knocked down in some college basketball power rankings and will undoubtedly drop in the AP Poll. To no fault of the Cyclones, there are a couple of other really elite teams around the country with just one loss. Furthermore, the Arizona Wildcats have now started to separate themselves as the best team in the country, remaining undefeated to this point. 

Recently, On3 released their latest bracket projections and Iowa State saw themselves drop from a one seed.

Surprise Drop for Iowa State

Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images

While a loss certainly has knocked the Cyclones down a bit, this is a Kansas team that will likely be much better than their record is currently. Darryn Peterson has missed a lot of time this year, and if they get him healthy with some consistency, it can be a very strong team. 

With Iowa State dropping off the one line, it is now projected that the Wildcats, Michigan Wolverines, UConn Huskies, and Duke Blue Devils will be the one seeds. The Cyclones were projected to be the number two seed in the South Region, with the Huskies being the one seed. 

Considering the Cyclones were just the number two-ranked team in the country, one loss on the road to Kansas has knocked them down perhaps a bit too far. Iowa State has an extremely strong resume, but losing a game at Allen Fieldhouse has knocked them down quite a bit. 

Following their first loss of the year, it will be interesting to see how the Cyclones bounce back in a second straight road game against the Cincinnati Bearcats. They will have to avoid some of the slow starts that have plagued them, but this will be a good opportunity to start up a new winning streak and move back up in the rankings.