After a red-hot 16-0 start to the season, No. 9 Iowa State suddenly finds itself at a crossroads. The Cyclones have dropped two straight and will look to get back on track Tuesday night when they return home to face UCF in Ames.
The recent road trip wasn’t kind to Iowa State. First came an 84-63 blowout at Kansas, and then a 79-70 loss at Cincinnati that exposed some troubling trends.
The Cyclones were outmuscled on the glass, turned the ball over too often, and fell behind early - trailing by as many as 17 at one point. To cap it off, they had to navigate through a court-storming Bearcats crowd after the final buzzer.
The back-to-back losses caused Iowa State to tumble seven spots in the AP Top 25, dropping from No. 2 to No. 9. For a team that had been building momentum and confidence, it’s a reality check - and a reminder that Big 12 play doesn’t offer any breathers.
One of the most glaring issues? Rebounding.
Head coach T.J. Otzelberger didn’t sugarcoat it after his team lost the battle on the boards 39-32 in Cincinnati.
“We take pride in the rebounding margin most definitely,” Otzelberger said. “And to come up short in that department is something that we can't do.
If we're going to be successful, that's one of the things we pride ourselves in doing. And we have to commit to doing it.
We have to make it go our way.”
The Cyclones did get a silver lining out of the loss: a breakout performance from Milan Momcilovic. The 6-foot-8 forward torched the Bearcats for a career-high 34 points, shooting 8-of-14 from beyond the arc and 8-of-10 from the line. He scored nearly half of Iowa State’s total points and showed exactly why he leads the team with 18.1 points per game.
Senior forward Joshua Jefferson continues to be a steady presence as well, averaging 17.3 points per game. He chipped in 12 against Kansas and 16 more at Cincinnati, but the Cyclones will need more consistent contributions across the board if they want to halt this skid.
Enter UCF, a program still looking for its first win against Iowa State after three previous tries - all coming since March 2024. The Knights, however, are no pushover.
UCF (14-3, 3-2 Big 12) is coming off a hard-fought home loss to top-ranked and undefeated Arizona. The Knights trailed by 15 but clawed back to make it a six-point game in the final minute before the Wildcats sealed it at the line.
Despite the loss, there was a lot to like from Johnny Dawkins’ squad. UCF shot just 40% from the field (28-of-79), but stayed competitive thanks to near-perfect free-throw shooting (13-of-14) and a gritty effort on the boards. Arizona has been dominating teams on the glass all season, but the Knights held their own, getting outrebounded by just one (37-36).
The standout for UCF was point guard Themus Fulks, who delivered a career-high 30 points along with eight assists. The fifth-year senior stepped up when the offense was sputtering, showing poise, leadership, and an instinct for when to take over.
“He always facilitates, but just his leadership and his understanding of the game,” Dawkins said. “He makes really good plays out there on the floor throughout the game… He gives you whatever you need. And to me, that's a mark of a really good point guard.”
Riley Kugel leads the Knights in scoring at 14.6 points per game, followed by Fulks (14.0), Jordan Burks (12.5), and Jamichael Stillwell (12.3), who also leads the team with 7.9 rebounds per contest. That balance across the lineup makes UCF a tough out - especially if Fulks continues to play at this level.
Tuesday’s matchup sets up as a gut-check game for Iowa State. After two tough road losses, the Cyclones are back in Hilton Coliseum, where they’ve been dominant. But with UCF bringing momentum, toughness, and a confident floor general in Fulks, this won’t be a walk in the park.
For Iowa State, it’s about rediscovering the identity that got them to 16-0 - starting fast, winning the rebounding battle, and playing with the kind of edge that made them one of the most feared teams in the country just two weeks ago. The Big 12 grind doesn’t wait for anyone, and the Cyclones know it’s time to respond.