IOWA CITY — Here is a jarring fact reflective of the modern era of college athletics: No one on the current Iowa basketball roster has ever played in the Cy-Hawk rivalry.
Not a single player. Not a single second.
Only two have even been on the bench for the game before — Cooper Koch and Jacob Koch. They are Iowa’s only two returners from last season’s squad. But neither got any playing time in the 2024 meeting with Iowa State.
It’s not like there is no familiarity at all.
The late brother of assistant coach Josh Sash, Tyler, played football at Iowa. Cooper Koch is a legacy Hawkeye. Freshman Trevin Jirak is from West Des Moines. Director of basketball operations Kyle Denning is a holdover from the previous staff. Head coach Ben McCollum, who was born in Iowa City and later raised in Storm Lake, grew up watching the Cy-Hawk rivalry.
“My brother, when he was real young, was an Iowa State fan,” McCollum said. “He’s the only one of the family. He would cheer for them. And now he’s like a die-hard Hawkeye. He actually went to the University of Iowa. That’s really about it. Obviously, I watched them. I’ve paid attention to them. Watched all the variety of sports, as well.”
Brendan Hausen has never played in the Cy-Hawk rivalry before, but he was on a Kansas State team that won by 19 points at Iowa State last season. Bennett Stirtz said Hausen told the team this about playing at Hilton Coliseum: “It’s loud.”
But while there is some familiarity with the venue and the rivalry from afar, Iowa’s current roster lacks any actual game experience in the Cy-Hawk matchup.
This illustrates how rivalries have evolved from when roster movement was not as prevalent. It also serves as a reminder of how fresh and new things are still in the Iowa program, which is in its first season under McCollum.
“Obviously, I’m a Missouri kid but…I’ve watched games because I’m a ball junkie,” Stirtz said. “I’ve watched Iowa-Iowa State basketball games my whole life, so I know a little bit about it. The fans care a lot. So we’ve got to be ready to go.”
Scouting Iowa State basketball
The Cyclones have opened the season looking the part of a legitimate national title contender.
Iowa State enters Thursday’s game with a pristine resume. The Cyclones are 9-0 overall, which becomes even more impressive when you dive deeper into those victories.
The Cyclones have beaten five power conference opponents, four of them by double-digits. That includes beating Creighton and Syracuse by a combined 49 points without star Tamin Lipsey. But most notably, Iowa State just went on the road to then-No. 1 ranked Purdue and clobbered the Boilermakers by 23 points.
T.J. Otzelberger’s team checks so many boxes, especially given it’s only December. Its offense, which is putting up 94.6 points per game, is really good. Their defense, which is allowing just 64.6 points per game, is also really good. The Cyclones have four players averaging at least 1.4 steals per game, led by Lipsey with 2.7, making Iowa’s ball security all the more important.
Iowa State has two players averaging at least 16.8 points per game and at least 5.4 assists per game: Lipsey and 6-foot-9 forward Joshua Jefferson, who ranks second on the team in points and assists per game while leading the Cyclones in rebounds per game.
Milan Momcilovic is Iowa State’s leading scorer, netting over 18 points per game. The 6-foot-8 Momcilovic is shooting an incredibly efficient 53.6% from deep this season on a high volume of 7.7 3-point attempts per game. Meanwhile, freshman Killyan Toure has established himself as a key contributor, starting all nine games this season for the Cyclones and averaging 12 points per contest.
“They’ve got shooting, they’ve got two guards that can really get downhill, they’ve got a good bench, they’ve got a good passing big,” McCollum said. “It’s really all of it combined more so than it is one person with them. That’s what makes them really, really tricky to be able to defend. Because they’ve got so many different weapons that they’re able to use.”
Iowa State has few flaws, but free-throw shooting is one of them. The Cyclones do not get to the line at a high rate, nor are they efficient when they do. Iowa State is shooting under 70% from the free-throw line, which is quite the contrast for a team that makes 43.8% from 3-point range.
There are so many things that Iowa will have to do right to pull off an upset. It will take a borderline heroic performance from the Hawkeyes, an epic collapse by the Cyclones, or a combination of both.
Iowa vs Iowa State basketball prediction
This is an extremely tall task for Iowa, not just because of the caliber of the opponent, but also because of the venue. This is the second time in the last three games that the Hawkeyes are playing a top-seven team on the road.
KenPom gives Iowa a 12% chance of victory, which, in all honesty, seems generous.
Some people might not be in the business of moral victories. But this is the type of game where it seems fair to accept one. It would be good to see Iowa show some growth from the Michigan State game, where it was beaten comfortably in another daunting atmosphere. The Hawkeyes never truly threatened in the second half against the Spartans.
If Iowa can keep it competitive into the second half — and maybe even in crunch time — it would be difficult to be too discouraged. Much like the Michigan State game, this is the type of experience that can be valuable in the long run, even if the Hawkeyes don’t come away with a win.
It feels like Iowa doesn’t have a whole lot to lose in this matchup. The Cyclones are the definitive favorites and one of the nation’s best teams. Meanwhile, Iowa is still building a foundation in McCollum’s first season at the helm. The Hawkeyes might as well swing away and see what happens.
Iowa State 76, Iowa 64
Follow Tyler Tachman on X @Tyler_T15, contact via email at ttachman@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa basketball vs Iowa State prediction, preview for Cy-Hawk game
Reporting by Tyler Tachman, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
