Kansas Basketball vs Iowa State: Get to Know the Cyclones

The Kansas Jayhawks (11-5, 1-2) tip off against the undefeated No. 2 Iowa State Cyclones (16-0, 3-0) inside Allen Fieldhouse at 8 p.m. CT Tuesday night for KU’s second Big 12 home game of the season.

KU is coming off an ugly 86-75 loss on the road to West Virginia on Saturday which moved the Jayhawks outside of the Associated Press Top 25 for the first time this season. Meanwhile, the Cyclones are coming off a 12-point home victory over the Oklahoma State Cowboys.

Here are some things to know about the Cyclones heading into Tuesday night’s matchup.

History

KU owns a dominate 143-55 all-time record versus Iowa State dating back to their first matchup in 1908. The Jayhawks currently own a 7-1 record versus the Cyclones in Lawrence with the last loss coming on Feb. 4, 2017. The loss ended a 51-game winning streak for the Jayhawks which was one of the longest in school history.

Record

The Cyclones are undefeated so far this season with a 16-0 record (3-0 in Big 12 play). However, their non-conference schedule was underwhelming compared to KU’s with only one of the Cyclone’s opponents currently ranked in the top 25 (No. 5 Purdue).

Iowa State dominated the Boilermakers 81-58 on Purdue’s home floor in early December. Their Big 12 wins have come against West Virginia (89-50), at Baylor (70-60), and Oklahoma State (83-71).

Key players

The Cyclones are led in scoring by a pair of upperclassmen in 6-foot-9 senior forward Joshua Jefferson (17.7 points per game) and 6-foot-8 junior forward Milan Momcilovic (17.6 points per game). Jefferson also leads the team in rebounding and assists with an average of 7.8 and 5.2 per game respectively. Momcilovic is Iowa State’s best 3-point shooter, making an average of 3.8 per game while shooting over 50% from behind the arc.

Senior Tamin Lipsey averages double-digit scoring with 14.5 points per game, as does freshman Killyan Toure who averages 10.4 points per game.

Coaching

Head coach of the Cyclones is T.J. Otzelberger, who is currently in his fifth season at the helm in Ames. Since joining Iowa State as head coach in March 2021, he’s led the Cyclones to a record of 111-45 (.712). He’s also guided the Cyclones to two Sweet 16 appearances (2022, 2024) and a Big 12 Tournament championship in 2024.

Otzelberger is 3-4 versus KU since becoming head coach of the Cyclones, but he has never won inside Allen Fieldhouse.