Iowa State Cyclones
- 2025-26 record: 39-8 (12-6)
Roster departures
● Joshua Jefferson (16.4 ppg, 7.4 rpg, and 4.8 apg)
● Tamin Lipsey (13.5 ppg and 5.1 apg)
● Nate Heise (5.7 ppg and 4.0 rpg)
● Dominick Nelson (3.7 ppg and 0.9 rpg)
● Milan Momcilovic (16.9 ppg and 3.1 rpg)
● Mason Williams (13.9 ppg and 2.4 apg in 2024-25 at EWU)
Roster returnees
● Killyan Toure (8.6 ppg and 2.3 apg)
● Blake Buchanan (8.5 ppg and 5.7 rpg)
● Jamarion Batemon (6.6 ppg and 1.2 rpg)
● Dominykas Pleta (4.4 ppg and 2.3 rpg)
Roster additions
● Jaquan Johnson (16.9 ppg and 3.6 apg at Bradley)
● Ryan Prather Jr. (15.7 ppg and 3.6 apg at Robert Morris)
● Leon Bond (11.9 ppg and 4.7 rpg at Northern Iowa)
● Tre Singleton (7.6 ppg and 4.8 rpg at Northwestern)
● Taj Manning (4.2 ppg and 5.1 rpg at Kansas State)
Losing Momcilovic to the Kentucky Wildcats via the transfer portal instead of the NBA Draft does sting a big more for the Cyclones. But the program had already moved on, able to retool its roster successfully.
Prather is set up to be the next sharpshooter for the Cyclones on the wing, while Bond and Singleton are quality wings and forwards who should boost the defense. Speaking of defense, Johnson was the Missouri Valley Defensive Player of the Year at Bradley, as well as a quality scorer.
Most importantly, Iowa State brought back both Batemon and Toure, two legit sophomore breakout candidates to watch in the backcourt. Combined with Buchanan’s return at center, it’s been as good an offseason as possible, outside of Momcilovic opting to return.
Grade: A
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