Mar 12, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; Texas Tech Red Raiders guard Christian Anderson (4) brings the ball up court around Iowa State Cyclones guard Killyan Toure (27) during the first half at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images
ST. LOUIS — No team in college basketball delivers “kill shots” more adeptly than sixth-ranked Iowa State.
But what does that mean exactly?
PhD statistician Evan Miyakawa uses the term to describe scoring runs of 10 points or greater, and the Cyclones (27-7) lead the nation with 42 of those double-digit flourishes.
But what ignites the frequent offensive eruptions?
As usual with head coach T.J. Otzelberger’s team, it stems from its trademark uncompromising ball pressure on defense.
“I would just say it’s kind of like a snowball effect,” said ISU’s defensive captain Nate Heise, who hopes to help his second-seeded team beat 15th-seeded Tennessee State (23-9) in Friday’s 1:50 p.m. (CBS) NCAA Tournament game at the Enterprise Center. “It seems like when the other team turns it over or takes bad shots, they come in runs, and then if we can keep that happening, it seems like there’s no stopping that. There’s no coming back from some of those runs when it’s 10 points, 15 points. So the way we’re able to do that (starts) on defense and getting the rebound and then pushing it.”
The Ohio Valley Conference champion Tigers will try to avoid being staggered by those runs by using its quick and big backcourt to evade the Cyclones’ many traps. Two Tennessee State guards — Travis Harper II and Aaron Nkrumah — stand 6-6 and average a combined 35 points per game. So when they’re able to fend off pressure, they make teams pay by driving for layups or drilling 3-pointers.
“They’re a team that as well as anybody in the country, they score it fast,” said Otzelberger, whose Cyclones are a No. 2 seed for the fourth time in program history. “The first eight seconds of the shot clock, they score as many or more than any team out there, so they really push it.”
Case in point: The Tigers’ 93-67 win over Morehead State in their conference championship game. Tennessee State drained 16 3-pointers in just 26 attempts (62 percent) to reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1994. So these are heady times for the Tigers, who are nonetheless 24.5 underdogs against ISU, which has advanced to the Sweet 16 in two of Otzelberger’s first four seasons.
“Yeah, of course there is a pressure for everybody, but that’s a good pressure,” Cyclones freshman guard Killyan Toure said of playing in the tournament for the first time. “That’s not a bad pressure and we’re just excited.”
Few are more stoked to be a key part of one of the eight highest-seeded teams in the “Big Dance” than star ISU senior forward Joshua Jefferson, who became a consensus All-American on Wednesday after earning second team honors from the National Association of Basketball Coaches and United State Basketball Writers Association.
“Shoot, I think Joshua deserved to be a first team All-American,” Otzelberger said of the 6-9 Jefferson, who was previously tabbed as second team All-American by the Sporting News and the Associated Press. “So I think being a consensus All-American is great, but I think what he’s accomplished, and what our team has been able to accomplish as a result of his hard work and his labors and his efforts, as excited as we are, there’s still a little bit of a chip on the shoulder feeling like he earned a little bit more than what he was given, but that’s fine.”
It’s also great grist for growth as the season veers into win-or-go-home territory.
“It’s a great place to be, and I know with Joshua, he’s extremely mentally tough and he uses things like that to his benefit,” Otzelberger said. “So I feel confident that he will continue to use those things.”
As for the Cyclones as a whole, they’ll continue to use their stern and disruptive defense to produce those so-called “kill shots.” The formula’s simple, but the resulting surges can be overwhelming.
“I think it’s keeping our foot on the gas, knowing at some point (that) if we continue to do that, we believe those runs will go our way,” Otzelberger said.
