March 2, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Iowa State Cyclones guard Tamin Lipsey (3) dribbles the ball during the first half of the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images No. 6 Iowa State will have its hands full with enigmatic Arizona State Saturday afternoon in Ames, Iowa, when the two teams face off in a key Big 12 Conference game that doubles as the regular season finale.
The Cyclones (24-6, 11-6 Big 12) need a win over Arizona State on Saturday and a home loss to Kansas State by No. 14 Kansas to advance to the No. 4 seed and receive a double-bye in the league tournament. Iowa State will more than likely settle for a top-five spot in the tournament and wait for the winner of the first-round game between the 12th and 13th seeds.
Iowa State heads home after losing 73-57 to No. 2 Arizona on Monday. The Cyclones lost their second straight loss and third in their last four games, all against ranked teams, as Iowa State fell out of the Big 12 rankings.
Tamin Lipsey led Iowa State with 17 points, Jamarion Batemon had 14 points and Joshua Jefferson had 12 points and eight rebounds. Milan Momcilovic, the Cyclones’ leading scorer at 17.0 points per game, had just five points on 2-of-8 shooting from the field, including 1-of-5 from beyond the arc.
“This wasn’t a loss we could hang our heads over because of how hard we fought,” Iowa State coach TJ Otzelberger said. “It’s, ‘Let’s get back to work and solve this problem aggressively so we can feel a lot better about what we’re doing.’
“From our perspective, the effort, fight, competition and stamina of our guys for 40 minutes was tremendous. We really fought and brought it.”
Iowa State shot a season-low 29.2 percent from the field and 23.3 percent (7 of 30) from 3-point range, and its 57 points were its second-lowest of the season.
“We didn’t run out of bullets tonight,” said redshirt senior guard Nate Heise. “We didn’t finish strong.”
Arizona State (16-14, 7-10) will likely be one of the teams fighting to play Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament. The Sun Devils are ranked 12th after a 70-60 home win over Kansas on Tuesday.
Maurice Odum hit five 3-pointers and scored 23 points to give the Sun Devils their fourth win in their last six games. Massamba Diop added 19 points, nine rebounds and three blocks for Arizona State in a game in which it never trailed.
The Sun Devils outlasted Kansas despite shooting 32.2% from the field, making 8 of 25 shots from beyond the arc and being outrebounded 55-43. The difference was a plus-13 margin on free throws.
“I thought we played as good a defense as we’ve played all season,” Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley said after the win. “You never know what’s going to happen. We have another big opponent on Saturday and in the Big 12 Tournament. Anytime you match up with someone, it’s a huge opportunity. So that’s how I’ve been approaching it.”
–Field level media
