Iowa State vs. Idaho State Primer

Who: Iowa State (2-0, 0-0 Big 12) vs. Idaho State (1-1, 0-0 Big Sky)

Where: Hilton Coliseum (14,267) – Ames, Iowa

When: Sunday, Nov. 11, 2023 – 12 p.m

Tipping Off: Coming off of the largest margin of victory in the TJ Otzelberger era – a 55-point win over Lindenwood – Iowa State returns to Hilton Coliseum to welcome Idaho State for its third game of the week.

Storylines:

• The Cyclones have outscored their first two opponents by 96 points, holding opposing teams to an average of 45.5 points per game.
  • Opposing teams are shooting just 28.3% from the field against ISU.
• Iowa State freshman Milan Momcilovic has had a hot start to his collegiate career, posting 18- and 17-point games to start the season.
  • Momcilovic leads the team in scoring with 17.5 points per game.
  • Momcilovic is just the second Cyclone to score 17 points in his first two collegiate contests.
  • He had six 3-pointers in the season-opener – the most by any ISU player starting their collegiate career.
• A pair of newcomers lead the Cyclones in minutes through two games, as Momcilovic and UNLV transfer Keshon Gilbert each have 50+ minutes.
• Tamin Lipseya unanimous Big 12 All-Freshman Team selection last season, kicked off his 2023-24 campaign flirting with a triple-double and followed it up with a new career-high – 21 points – against Lindenwood.
• Three Cyclones have scored in double-figures in both games this season – Milan Momcilovic, Tamin Lipsey and Keshon Gilbert.
• As a head coach, TJ is 142-90 overall and has led the Cyclones to a 43-27 record during his tenure in Ames.

From the Notes:

• Under Otzelberger, Iowa State is 26-5 against non-conference opponents. The 25 wins is tied for the 10th most in the country and the .834 winning percentage is tied for the ninth best in the nation.
• Against Lindenwood, Iowa State recorded 19 steals. It’s the most steals by a Cyclone team in a game since 1996.
• Iowa State secured its largest margin of victory (+55) in the Otzelberger era against Lindenwood – the 12th-largest in school history.
• The Cyclones have now won 13 straight games when scoring at least 100 points after finishing with 102 against Lindenwood.
• Tre King is the only Cyclone with over 1,000 career points. Last season, he was one of four Cyclones to hit that milestone.

Switching Sides:

• Idaho State opened the season with a 56-point win over Warner Pacific (NAIA) before falling to the St. Thomas Tommies on Friday night by one in Minneapolis.
• Four Bengals average at least 10 points a game as the team is led by senior Brayden Parker (14.5).
• Kiree Huie leads the team in rebounds (7.5 per game) while Maleek Arrington leads the team in assists (3 per game).
• Idaho State has played Iowa State three times before, with the Cyclones owning a 3-0 record over the Bengals.
  • In fact, Iowa State is 9-1 against other ISUs (Idaho State, Illinois State, Indiana State).
• Ryan Looney is in his fifth season as the head coach of the Bengals. Looney has led Idaho State to a 40-78 record across that span.
  • Looney has been a college coach for 20 years and overall holds a 368-212 record.
• Idaho State was picked to finish sixth out of 10 in the Big Sky Conference preseason poll after the league’s head coaches and media voted back in October.
• Idaho State is 0-7 against Power 5 teams over the past five seasons of play.