No. 3 Iowa State at Arizona State Primer

Who: No. 3 Iowa State (16-2, 6-1 Big 12) at Arizona State (11-7, 2-5 Big 12)

Where: Desert Financial Arena (14,198) – Tempe, Ariz.

When: Saturday, Jan. 25, 2025 – 1 p.m. CT

Watch/Listen: ESPN+ / Cyclone Radio Network

Tipping Off: The third-ranked Cyclones will look to end January on a high note, as the team is set to embark on a two-game road trip in Arizona to end the month. ISU will meet Arizona State on Saturday in the programs' first meetings since 1987 before wrapping the westward trip in Tucson against Arizona on Big Monday.

Last time out, Iowa State had little trouble with UCF, downing the Knights by 25 by a score of 108-83. The 108 points were the most ever scored by a Cyclone team under T.J. Otzelberger and the first 100-plus point outing against a conference foe since 2001 when the team did so twice. It is the 14th time that ISU had scored 100-plus points against a league opponent.

The Sun Devils enter Saturday's contest coming off a monster road win at No. 23 West Virginia. Arizona State earned their second Big 12 win on Tuesday, beating the Mountaineers on their home court. ASU held No. 23 West Virginia to just 30.8% (18-of-58) shooting from the field, the lowest by an opponent in a conference road game since it played Washington State in 2022.

Storylines:

Iowa State's "sixth starter," Curtis Jones, has become an actual starter the last couple of times out, filling in for an injury. The Big 12's second-highest leading scorer has dropped seven 20-plus point outings this season. He has been named the Big 12 Player of the Week once this season.
Keshon Gilbert has taken a leap in his second season as a Cyclone, leading the team in minutes and assists. He has been named the Big 12 Player of the Week twice this season and was added to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List on Jan. 7.
A Preseason All-Big 12 First Team selection, Tamin Lipsey has been the glue of Iowa State's team. A known defensive menace, Lipsey leads the team in steals and is second on the team in assists.
Saint Mary's transfer Joshua Jefferson has been a key, versatile player this season. Jefferson leads the team in rebounding and has earned four Big 12 Newcomer of the Week awards.
Sophomore wing Milan Momcilovic averages just over 10 points per game and shoots the 3-ball at the highest clip on the team at 44 percent. It was announced on Jan. 15 that he would miss some time with a hand injury.
A transfer from Charlotte, big man Dishon Jackson has been a force in the paint. He leads the team in blocks and averages 9.3 points with 4.9 rebounds.
A Swiss army knife off the bench, Nate Heise has really come into his own. His defensive ability to lock opposing players down and ability to cut to space has been huge.
Seattle transfer Brandton Chatfield has been a glass-eater off the bench. The senior leads the team in offensive rebounds and constantly earns ISU more possessions.

From the Notes:

As a head coach, Otz is 185-100 overall and has led the Cyclones to an 86-37 record over the last four years.
- ISU is 56-8 in games at Hilton Coliseum under Otzelberger.
Iowa State has won 29 straight home games at Hilton Coliseum, which is the second-longest active home winning streak in the country and the second-longest in school history.
Coach Otzelberger is the only Iowa State men's basketball coach to take multiple teams to the Sweet 16.
- He was the 51st coach in NCAA Division I history to take a team to the Sweet 16 twice in his first three years on the job.
- Otz will attempt to become the first coach in program history to take a team to the NCAA Tournament in his first four years as coach.
Iowa State has been ranked in the AP Top 10 for 19 straight weeks, the longest streak in the country.
- At No. 3 in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll, Iowa State has been ranked in the Top 5 for 20 weeks in the polls history, with 10 of those weeks coming this season.
Iowa State currently boasts the top-scoring offense in the Big 12, averaging 85.1 points per contest.
The Cyclones are ranked No. 5 in the NET. Iowa State slots in at No. 4 in the KenPom rankings and is No. 5 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

Switching Sides:

Iowa State and Arizona State are meeting for the fourth time this weekend and the first time since 1987.
- The two teams have played in Ames twice, with ISU winning both, and in Tempe once, with Arizona State winning.
The Sun Devils were picked to finish 12th out of 16 in the Big 12 Preseason Poll.
ASU freshman big man Jayden Quaintance is currently he only player in the nation averaging at least 9.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.0 blocks.
- He earned Big 12 Newcomer of the Week honors on 12/23.
- Quaintance has 57 blocks this season, the most in the country, and owns the ASU freshman record for blocks in a season just 18 games in.
Arizona State has the second-most turnovers of any Big 12 program, averaging 13.4 per contest.
- Iowa State has forced the most turnovers of any Big 12 team, averaging 15.6 per game.
Arizona State's Mason Alson and Quaintance are two of the top seven minute-getters in the conference, each averaging over 32 minutes of action.
ASU head coach Bobby Hurley is in his 10th season at the helm of the Sun Devil basketball program. Hurley is 166-138 with Arizona State and is 208-158 in his 12-year coaching career which began with a two-year stint at Buffalo.
- He is the second winningest coach in ASU history.
Arizona State is ranked No. 56 in the NET. The Sun Devils are No. 57 in KenPom and No. 62 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

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Players Mentioned

Brandton Chatfield

Keshon Gilbert

Nate Heise

Dishon Jackson

Joshua Jefferson

Curtis Jones

Tamin Lipsey

Milan Momcilovic

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics