Mar 23, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic (22) shoots against Mississippi Rebels guard Dre Davis (14) during the first half in the second round of the NCAA Tournament at Fiserv Forum. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
AMES — Iowa State head coach T.J. Otzelberger rattled off nearly 700 words to emphasize his one simple, but ongoing, plea to star forward Milan Momcilovic:
“Hunt your shot.”
“That’s the next step for him,” Otzelberger said during his team’s media day on Wednesday at Hilton Coliseum. “The step for him is knowing every single day you come out, like, the other team is gonna have a scouting report, and the scouting report is gonna say, ‘We don’t want (forward) Joshua Jefferson to get the ball in the lane, right? We want to make (guard) Tamin Lipsey pass early on a ball screen, and we do not give Milan a 3(-pointer) for any reason.’”
Hence, the “hunt.” And hence Otzelberger’s boisterous plea. Momcilovic is such a talented long-range shooter that his volume must go up even as opponents increasingly game plan to deny him looks.
“Hunting, hunting, hunting,” Otzelberger reiterated as he prepares to try to lead the Cyclones to the NCAA Tournament for the fifth consecutive season. “Always be hunting. When he’s playing well, we’ll all see him hunting.”
But the 6-9 junior from Pewaukee, Wis., is not a natural hunter. He does have one game from last season to springboard off of, however. Momcilovic said last season’s narrow loss at NCAA runner-up Houston showed what he can do when he’s “hunting, hunting, and hunting” even if early in the game he was missing, missing, and missing a lot.
“(Otzelberger) said he was most proud of me that game, because in the first half I was 0-for-8, and then I finished with — I still was four of 14, but I made four of six in the second half, and we almost won that game,” said Momcilovic, who averaged 11.5 points and shot 39.6 percent from 3-point range last season.
So why was Otzelberger proud? Momcilovic kept shooting after his frigid start and exhibited a “next one goes in” mentality that needs to remain in place all of the 2025-26 season.
That’s because he’ll be one of the Cyclones’ projected “Big Three” this season, along with Jefferson and Lipsey. So the hunter will become the hunted in wide-open ways as well as stealthy ones.
“I think in the past when we’ve had other guys, there (are) times where he can just kind of blend in,” said Otzelberger, who returns that core of three starters, along with Nate Heise and Cade Kelderman, from last season’s team that reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament before injuries helped derail that run. “This is the step-up year. This isn’t the blend in year. This is the, ‘I’m letting it all go, I came here for a reason, these people believed in me, I’ve developed, I’m confident, I’ve put the work in, it’s show up, you’ll see it every single possession when I’m out there this year.’ That’s his job.”
In other words, Momcilovic should have no conscience. Nearly every shot will be a good shot, and passing them up will draw Otzelberger’s ire. So is Momcilovic ready for his toughest “hunt” yet?
Short answer: Yes.
Longer answer (though not nearly as long as Otzelberger’s extended plea):
“It doesn’t come natural,” Momcilovic said. “Because let’s say I’m 0-for-6 in a game, it feels like, ‘Dang, it’s just not going in.’ But that’s where the mindset’s gotta shift this year, where you’re 0-for-6, you gotta shoot six more, and if you can make all six, bang, your six of 12 now. So just like he said, can’t really think too much out there anymore. You’ve just gotta let it fly, and whatever happens, happens.”
