Mar 2, 2026; Tucson, Arizona, USA; Arizona Wildcats forward Koa Peat (10) blocks a shot by Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) during the second half of the game at McKale Memorial Center. Mandatory Credit: Aryanna Frank-Imagn Images
AMES — Grit showed up. Little else did for No. 6 Iowa State.
So the ubiquitous chants of “U of A, U of A, U of A,” bellowed through the McKale Center frequently on Monday night, and No. 2 Arizona fully deserved the vocal adulation as they cruised past the Cyclones, 73-57, in Tucson.
ISU (24-6, 11-6 Big 12) grabbed an astounding 15 offensive rebounds against the Wildcats (28-2, 15-2) but shot just 29.2 percent from the field while losing their second game in a row.
“The effort, the fight to compete, the physicality from our guys for 40 minutes was tremendous,” Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger said on the Cyclone Radio Network after the game. “We really better fought and brought it. (But) their length and physicality is as real as anybody we’ve played in the five years I’ve been here. They are a tremendous team.”
But?
“We need to be better finishing around the rim, we get 15 O-boards, that leads to five points, and then we get good looks from 3, and guys that we believe will knock them down (don’t), and we’ve got to continue to trust the work,” Otzelberger said. “So, really, it’s not a hang your head type of loss, because of how hard we fought. Let’s get back to work and let’s solve this offensively so we can feel a lot better about what we’re doing.”
The Cyclones used a 7-0 run capped by a Tamin Lipsey layup to make the score, 44-37, with 13:19 remaining, but the Wildcats bit back with a 7-0 run of their own to restore a 14-point advantage. ISU would not pull within striking distance after that and fell to 4-5 on the road in Big 12 play.
“I think them playing at home and getting a lot of whistles early — I think that played a big factor, but I think we played a lot harder than we did Saturday (in a home loss to Texas Tech), which is good,” ISU senior Nate Heise said.
Arizona made 14 of its 16 free throw attempts in the first half while building a 37-25 halftime lead. The Cyclones were 3-for-3 from the line in the same span, but often settled for iffy 3-point looks, and ended up 7-for-30 (23.3 percent) from long distance.
“For us, we’re gonna score off our defense, and if we’re able to generate turnovers and get out in transition — I mean, we turned them over 15 times tonight, but you felt like we didn’t; have enough of those stretches where we really could build momentum,” Otzelberger said. “Everything starts with the ball pressure and us dictating.”
Lipsey led the Cyclones with 17 points, Jamarion Batemon added 14 points off the bench, and Joshua Jefferson chipped in 12. But Jefferson shot just 2-for-17 from the field for the Cyclones, and Milan Momcilovic went just 2-for-8 from the field.
“We’re just gonna keep on fighting,” Jefferson said.
That’s not a problem for ISU, which made plenty of toughness-based plays on Monday night. A failure to make shots has become the Cyclones’ Achilles heel as of late, however, and that must change as the Big 12 Tournament and NCAA Tournament beckon later this month.
But first things first: ISU will play on senior day on Saturday against Arizona State and say goodbye to Lipsey, Jefferson and Heise, among others.
“We’re looking forward to a great crowd,” Otzelberger said. “We’re looking forward to getting back at Hilton.”
