Three Takeaways From First Two NCAA Tournament Games for Iowa State Basketball

Here are three takeaways from the first two games of the NCAA tournament for the Iowa Stat

Mar 20, 2026; St. Louis, MO, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) is helped off of the court after suffering an apparent injury to his left leg while shooting a layup against Tennessee State Tigers forward Jalen Pitre (not pictured) during the first half of a first round game of the men's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Enterprise Center. | Jeff Le-Imagn Images

The Iowa State Cyclones have wrapped up their first two NCAA Tournament games, and there have been many positives from a great showing in St. Louis. 

Coming into the NCAA tournament, the Cyclones were certainly feeling good about themselves. This was a team that performed well in the Big 12 tournament and earned a number two seed for March Madness. 

With a plethora of momentum and a strong seeding, Iowa State had a lot of things going for them. However, early in their first-round matchup against the Tennessee State Tigers, the Cyclones saw their star Joshua Jefferson roll his ankle really badly and leave the game. Iowa State didn’t have their star once again in their second-round matchup, but they were still able to secure an easy win. 

While there is rightfully some concern about things going forward, the Cyclones should be very happy about how things have gone so far. Here are three key takeaways from the first two games. 

Guards Stepping Up 

Iowa State Cyclones guard Nate Heise | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

With Jefferson being basically out for the entirety of both games, Iowa State needed players to step up and fill the star's role. Due to them not having a clear power forward to come off the bench, T.J. Otzelberger had to make adjustments on the fly. 

The most significant decision that he made was to really use Nate Heise more, and the senior guard entered the starting lineup against Kentucky. Heise has been considered to be the x-factor for the team for much of the year, and that proved to be true over the last two games. Heise is a strong rebounder from the guard position and can also space the floor nicely. Furthermore, Killyan Toure has also played some of his best basketball of the year in Jefferson’s absence. 

Defense is Final Four Caliber 

Iowa State Cyclones guard Killyan Toure | Jeff Le-Imagn Images

As one of the best defensive teams in the country throughout the year, the Cyclones were expected to bring that into March. That has certainly been the case with the team thriving on that end of the court. In the recent win against the Wildcats, the team was able to force 20 turnovers. Right from the start, they were extremely active, with some good pressure being put on Kentucky in that game, and it was the difference-maker. 

Team Can Win Without Jefferson 

Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson | William Purnell-Imagn Images

As soon as Jefferson went down, there was a noticeable silence, and the air felt like it was taken out of the building. However, the Cyclones were able to get hot from the field in that first game, and it helped create some quick optimism that maybe they could survive without him. 

That was further proven against a good Kentucky team on Sunday, and while it might be a different brand of basketball, it is still a very good one for Iowa State. While things are only going to get more challenging going forward, a trip to the Elite 8 is certainly possible.