Mar 7, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) reacts during the second half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
If Iowa State goes on to do as well as we think it can in the NCAA Tournament, its late-season push — the momentum — started roughly four minutes into Saturday’s second half against Arizona State. After playing just so-so (or maybe a smidge below) in the home finale at Hilton Coliseum. After trailing by four points at halftime and still down by four early following the break.
That’s when it started — with Milan Momcilovic’s 3-point swisher in transition, followed by a Joshua Jefferson 3-pointer, then a Dom Pleta layup on the end of a fast break, and Jefferson’s fast-break dunk, and another three by Momcilovic, a basket in the paint by Jamarion Batemon, another basket at the rim by Pleta, and a three by Batemon, a free throw by Jefferson — and a 3-point basket by Tamin Lipsey.
That’s 24 unanswered points in just more than seven minutes, but there’s more. That huge barrage of crowd-pleasing offense included five Iowa State rebounds, eight Arizona State missed shots, five Iowa State steals, six Arizona State turnovers and the Cyclones blocking a shot.
“The effort in the second half defensively — flying around, generating turnovers, scoring off our defense … it’s easy to say, (but) it’s hard to do,” coach TJ Otzelberger told reporters after the game. “Our guys had tremendous effort.”
Look back to that seven minutes of perfection, of basketball beauty, if that combination of offense and defense translates to what can be the best postseason in school history.
“We just have to do a very consistent job of maintaining that mindset for the full 40 minutes every single game,” Otzelberger said. “When we do that, we’re really tough to play against. When we generate those turnovers, and when we get out and go — that’s when we’re at our best.”
For the final 16 or so minutes of Saturday’s 86-65 victory, Otzelberger’s team played as well as it’s played throughout a very good 25-6 season — a regular season that included a 17-0 early record, a 23-point win at Purdue, an 18-point win against Kansas, and yes, the occasional hiccup that often happens during a long season of facing some of the best teams, players and coaches in college basketball.
It’s like the Cyclones took out frustration of losing the previous two games on a team that just might be searching for a new coach next season.
Five players, including two reserves, scored 11 or more points. Lipsey had six steals in his final home game. The Cyclones turned 23 ASU turnovers into 29 ISU points. Otzelberger’s team scored a whopping 25 fast-break points.
That high-end basketball has been known to translate to big-time winning rolls during the upcoming NCAA Tournament.
Yeah, for the last 16 or 17 minutes Saturday, Iowa State played as well as it could — and as you know, that bar has been pretty dang high all season.
“It proved to (the players), or reset their mindset, that when we do these things — this is how this will go,” Otzelberger said. “It’s foolproof. Win the turnover battle, score the points off the defense and win the rebounding battle.
“It’s the blue-collar mindset — mentality, toughness, physicality and work habits. When we’re fully dedicated to those, things go our way.”
(Columnist Randy Peterson, a past Iowa Sportswriter of the Year winner, can be reached at [email protected] or at any Okoboji-area beverage/food establishment between the hours of open and close.)
