PRIMER: No. 3 Iowa State at Baylor

Who: Iowa State (14-0, 1-0 Big 12) at Baylor (10-3, 0-1 Big 12)

Where: Foster Pavilion (7,500) – Waco, Texas

When: Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026 – 7 p.m. CT

Watch: Peacock // James Westling (PxP) & King McClure (Analyst)

Listen: Cyclone Radio Network // John Walters (PxP) & Eric Heft (Analyst)

Tipping Off: Tied for its best start in school history, Iowa State will look to move to 15-0 for the first time ever as it heads south to face Baylor in just its second road trip of the season and first in Big 12 play. The 14-game winning streak is also tied with the 2013-14 team's 14-0 start for the longest winning streak in school history.

Iowa State opened Big 12 play last Friday against West Virginia, besting the Mountaineers by 21 points. Joshua Jefferson notched the ninth triple-double (his first) in school history, while Milan Momcilovic matched his personal best with eight made 3-pointers.

Baylor, meanwhile, opened Big 12 play on the road at TCU last Saturday, falling to the Horned Frogs by six. The loss was Baylor's first at TCU since February of 2020. The Bears have won their home conference opener in each of the last two seasons, and will look to make it three straight on Wednesday.

Storylines:

At No. 3 in the AP Top 25 Poll, Iowa State has been ranked in the AP Top 25 for 41 straight weeks, the fifth-longest streak in the nation. It is the second-longest streak in the Big 12 behind Houston's 115, which is the longest streak in the country.
- The Cyclones and Cougars are the only two Big 12 schools to have streaks of at least 20 weeks.
The Cyclones had three players named to the Naismith Starting Five Preseason Watch lists. Iowa State was one of nine schools in the country to have at least three players named. Along with three selections on the women's side, ISU was one of just five schools in the country to have at least six combined selections.
- Tamin Lipsey was named to the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Watch List.
  - Lipsey is also on both the Wooden Award and Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch Lists.
  - Lipsey has picked up a pair of weekly conference awards, as he was named to the Big 12 Starting Five on both 11/17 and 11/24.
- Milan Momcilovic was named to the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Watch List.
  - Momcilovic earned his first Big 12 weekly honor on Dec. 8, as he was named Big 12 Player of the Week after scoring a team-high 20 points in ISU's road win at No. 1 Purdue.
  - He earned his second Big 12 weekly honor, being named to the Starting Five on Jan. 5 after pouring in eight triples against WVU.
- Joshua Jefferson was named to the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Watch List. Former Cyclone Georges Niang won the award in 2016.
  - Jefferson, like Lipsey, is also on the Oscar Robertson Trophy Watch List.
  - Jefferson was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on Dec. 1 for his performance in his home city of Las Vegas, where he averaged 16 points, eight rebounds and six assists across three games.
  - Jefferson became just the third player in the last 30 years to record consecutive 10-plus assist, zero turnover games (Syracuse & Alcorn State).
  - Jefferson was named to the Big 12 Starting Five on 12/30, picking up his second conference weekly award. He was named to the Starting Five again on Jan. 5 after recording the ninth triple-double in school history against WVU.

From the Notes:

As a head coach, Otz is 208-108 overall and has guided the Cyclones to a 109-45 record over the last four years.
- He earned his 100th win at Iowa State against HOF coach Rick Pitino and No. 14 St. John's in the Players Era Championship opener on Nov. 24.
- He then earned his 200th win over his mentor and former head coach Greg McDermott on Nov. 25.
- His 95 wins in his first four years at Iowa State were the most by any coach in program history in their first four years as head coach.
With its road win over No. 1 Purdue, Iowa State now has 27 wins over top 25 teams since Otzelberger took over (2021-22). That is tied for the fourth-most in the nation during that stretch.
Otz has led Iowa State to three 20-plus win seasons, joining Orr (5), Hoiberg (4), Floyd (3) and Prohm (3) as only ISU coaches to do so multiple times.
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.
- In four postseason appearances, Otzelberger has five NCAA Tournament wins – the most by any coach in program history.
Otz currently holds the school's highest winning percentage by a head coach.
The Cyclones are ranked No. 3 in the NET. Iowa State slots in at No. 3 in the KenPom rankings and is No. 5 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

Switching Sides:

The Cyclones and Bears will meet for the 51st time this Wednesday evening. Through 50 games, the series is evenly split at 25 wins apiece. ISU has won five of the last six outings against Baylor.
- ISU's lone loss in the last six outings came in its last trip to Waco in 2024. A potential ISU buzzer-beating shot was waved off, and the Cyclones fell by two.
Last month, Baylor announced the addition of center James Nnaji. The 7'0 center comes to Waco after spending the last four seasons playing in the EuroLeague.
- Nnaji was selected as the 31st overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons before his rights were traded to the Charlotte Hornets and later the New York Knicks.
Baylor leads all Big 12 teams in fastbreak points and scoring offense.
- The Bears ended December on a three-game stretch where they scored 110-plus points in all three games.
The Bears were picked to finish 7th out of 16 in the Big 12 men's basketball preseason poll after finishing tied for seventh last season.
Baylor Head Coach Scott Drew is in his 23rd season coaching the Bears and owns a 494-273 record during his time in Waco, Texas.
- In his 24^th season as a Division I head coach, Drew has helped Baylor achieve unprecedented success as he led the Bears to a national title in 2021.
Baylor is ranked No. 42 in the NET. The Bears are No. 33 in KenPom and No. 33 in ESPN's Basketball Power Index.

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Players Mentioned

Joshua Jefferson

Tamin Lipsey

Milan Momcilovic

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics