On Saturday afternoon in Ames, Iowa, two Big 12 teams clashed in an exciting back-and-forth matchup.
TJ Otzelberger and the Iowa State Cyclones welcomed Wes Miller and the Cincinnati Bearcats to Hilton Coliseum for the 14th game of the Big 12 regular season. The Bearcats entered the matchup on a three-game win streak in hopes of recording a signature win against one of the Big 12’s best. Iowa State had other plans, however, as they cruised to earn another comfortable win at home.
With that, here are the top three takeaways from Iowa State’s 81-70 win over the Bearcats.
Different Team
It’s safe to say that Iowa State has one of the best basketball rosters in the country, built by a coach who has an incredible eye for talent. However, when players often miss games, teams can falter a bit. That was the case for Iowa State, with sophomore forward Milan Momcilovic sidelined due to a hand injury.
Against Cincinnati, Momcilovic didn’t have a massive day, with 12 points and two rebounds, but each of his shots felt like nails in the coffin when they dropped to the bottom of the net. The Wisconsin native connected on two three-point attempts in the second half, which brought Hilton Coliseum back to life.
Simply put, with Momcilovic back on the court, Iowa State is a National Championship contender.
Jizzle Needs Help
While Cincinnati’s roster makeup looked great on paper heading into the 2024-25 season, it’s safe to say that the group missed the mark. Originally, stars like Dan Skillings Jr., Dillon Mitchell, Simas Lukosius, and Jizzle James flew off the stat sheet, but unfortunately, it looks more like Jizzle James surrounded by a group of complementary pieces.
James was incredible yet again on Saturday, going 9-16 from the field for 25 points. He was joined in double figures by Day Day Thomas with 13 and Aziz Bandaogo with 10.
If Cincinnati is going to win some tough games, they absolutely have to get better production than five points combined between Dillon Mitchell and Dan Skillings.
Related: Dan Skillings Plans to Leave Cincinnati Following Junior Year
A Tough Hiccup
With the three-game win streak, Cincinnati rocketed back into contention for a spot on the bubble in Joe Lunardi’s latest bracketology update. They were listed in the next, next four out as the field’s 79th-ranked team.
While they weren’t expected to beat Iowa State, they now have to tussle with the task of starting another win streak, which is significantly tougher than maintaining one. They clash with the West Virginia Mountaineers next on the road in Morgantown on Wednesday, February 19th, at 6:00 p.m. central.
