CBB Rank 2025: No. 11, Iowa State Basketball

Returning most of their core, Iowa State basketball hopes to win the Big 12 and make a deep run in the NCAA Tournament.

The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Iowa State basketball.

Since Otzelberger took over five seasons ago, Iowa State basketball has been a model of consistency. They’ve gone 95-45, and have two Sweet 16 runs in those four seasons. They’ve done a good job of keeping their core, while adding a few key transfers year after year. We saw that last year with Tamin Lipsey, Keshon Gilbert, and Milan Momcilovic returning, while adding Curtis Jones and Joshua Jefferson.

This year, they return Lipsey, Momcilovic, and Jefferson from last year’s team, who started 19 games together last year. They also add Dominick Nelson, the WAC Conference POY last year, who is looking to make that impact that Curtis Jones had last year.

Besides that, there’s a lot of trust in the freshmen. Jamarion Batemon is the main one to watch. The #42 recruit by 247Sports has shown a lot of promise and may find himself in the starting lineup this season. Lipsey suffered a Grade 2 MCL sprain to his right knee during a practice on Sept. 23, and while he’ll be good to go for the regular season, that’s definitely something to monitor this season.

Per usual, this team has an insanely high floor. The question is the ceiling, which Iowa State basketball fans are hoping is a national championship.

Head coach: TJ Otzelberger (5th season at Iowa State, 9th season overall)

2024-25 record: 25-10 (13-7)

2025 postseason finish: Lost to Ole Miss (91-78) in Round of 32 of NCAA Tournament

Notable departures: 

• Curtis Jones (17.4 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.3 APG)
• Keshon Gilbert (13.4 PPG, 4.1 APG, 3.5 RPG)
• Dishon Jackson (8.5 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 0,6 APG)

Notable non-conference games: 

• vs. Mississippi State (Nov. 10) – Sioux Falls, S.D.
• vs. St John’s (Nov. 24) – Players Era Championship
• vs. Creighton (Nov. 25) – Players Era Championship
• Players Era Championship (Nov. 26-27)
• at Purdue (Dec. 6)
• vs. Iowa (Dec. 11)

Projected Rotation

PG: Tamin Lipsey (6-1, 200, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 10.6 PPG, 3.1 APG, 2.6 RPG, 2.0 SPG, 48.4 FG%, 33.1 3P%, 75.8 FT%

SG: Nate Heise (6-5, 212, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 5.1 PPG, 3.2 RPG, 1.0 APG, 1.3 SPG, 53.1 FG%, 40.9 3P%, 60.9 FT%

SF: Milan Momcilovic (6-8, 225, Jr.)

2024-25 stats: 11.5 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 0.9 APG, 0.4 SPG, 42.9 FG%, 39.6 3P%, 83.7 FT%

PF: Joshua Jefferson (6-9, 240, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 13.0 PPG, 7.4 RPG, 3.1 APG, 2.1 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 52.0 FG%, 31.0 3P%, 75.6 FT%

C: Blake Buchanan (6-10, 235, Jr.)

2024-25 stats: 5.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.1 BPG, 0.5 SPG, 53.4 FG%, 54.1 FT% (Virginia)

6: Jamarion Batemon (6-3, 195, Fr.)

247Sports Composite #55-ranked recruit

7: Dominick Nelson (6-5, 190, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 14.4 PGP, 5.2 RPG, 1.7 APG, 0.9 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 43.6 FG%, 68.8 FT% (Utah Valley)

8: Xzavion Mitchell (6-6, 215, Fr.)

247Sports Composite #92-ranked recruit

9: Killyan Toure (6-3, 205, Fr.)

247Sports Composite #208-ranked recruit

10: Eric Mulder (6-9, 230, Sr.)

2024-25 stats: 8.4 PPG, 6.7 RPG, 0.2 APG, 1.2 SPG, 0.7 BPG, 76.3 FG%, 59.6 FT% (Purdue Fort-Wayne)

Iowa State Basketball team MVP: Joshua Jefferson

It’s pretty close between him and Lipsey, but Jefferson’s ability to do it all gives him the nod. At 6-9, he has a great scoring touch, driving the ball well and hitting mid-range shots. He also gets to the line at an extremely high rate, averaging 4.5 attempts a game, 7th most in the Big 12 last year.

Defensively, he’s great as well. Jefferson averaged over 2 steals a game, including a seven-steal game against Houston. What really elevates his game is his passing ability. He averaged 3.1 assists a game, which is impressive for a big man, and really stepped up late in the season. In the Big 12 tournament, he averaged 5.5 APG, and in the Round of 64 game, he had eight assists. He opens up the offense and creates opportunities.

Iowa State Basketball make-or-break player: Milan Momcilovic

Momcilovic has become a fan favorite in Ames after two great seasons so far at Iowa State. In his freshman year, he averaged just under 11 points a game on good shooting splits and showed up big in big games, like 18 points in the Big 12 championship and 19 in the Round of 64 game. This year, it was more of the same, with his numbers being nearly identical, with the only exception being his three-point percentage rising by 3.5%.

Putting up these stats for a third season wouldn’t be bad at all; in fact, a lot of teams would be more than thrilled with the third option putting up this statline. However, if Iowa State wants to reach the same level as those top 5 teams, it’ll need Momcilovic to reach that level as well. He’s capable of doing so, and perhaps with Gilbert gone, he gets inserted into a bigger role.

Key analytic: Home steals per game

They call it Hilton magic for a reason, and the crowd definitely helps the team create turnovers. Iowa State averaged 10.4 steals a game at home, 5th best in the country last year, and best by any Power Five conference team in the country. When you have Gilbert, Jefferson, and Lipsey, it’s not going to be a fun night for the opponent, as they showed quite often.

If they can keep this up coming into this season, that home court advantage they’ve had that has made it nearly impossible to win at Hilton Coliseum will continue.

Iowa State Basketball 2025-26 projections

Projected conference finish: 4th in the Big 12

Projected postseason ceiling: NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 Exit