Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger says after spending three years as the coach at South Dakota State he knows how dangerous the Jackrabbits can be. The Cyclones are seeded second in the East Region of the NCAA Tournament heading into Thursday night’s game in Omaha.

Defense has been a staple, and the Cyclones are one of the nation’s best at turning defense into offense.

The Cyclones enter on a hot streak after rolling to the Big 12 Tournament title in Kansas City.

A large contingent of Cyclone fans is expected inside The CHI Health Center Arena.

Iowa State sophomore guard Tamin Lipsey says defense will remain the key in the tournament.

After being picked to finish seventh in the Big 12 preseason poll the Cyclones looked poised for a deep tournament run. Senior forward Rob Jones.

Two Iowa natives will help lead South Dakota State against second seeded Iowa State in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament Thursday night in Omaha. Former Cedar Rapids Xavier standout Matt Mims is the only player remaining on the South Dakota State team who was recruited by current Cyclone coach T.J. Otzelberger. He coached the Jackrabbits from 2016 to 2019.

Mims on the opportunity to knock his former coach out of the tournament.

With three local teams playing in the evening session on Thursday night the atmosphere is expected to be electric.

Mims is a senior guard who averages just over 17 points per game. Six-eight senior forward Luke Appel is averaging nearly 12 points per game. The Marshalltown native says ISU’s relentless defense will be a challenge.

Appel says limiting mistakes against the Cyclones will be crucial.

For Appel it is a chance to play against the team he grew up cheering for.

South Dakota State is 22-12.

Holy Cross plays UT Martin in the First Four of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament in Iowa City Thursday. Holy Cross is 20-12 and is making its second straight appearance in the tournament after winning the Patriot League Tournament.

That’s Holy Cross coach Maureen Magarity. The Crusaders win with defense. They give up a little over 56 points per game.

Thursday night’s winner advances to play top-seed Iowa Saturday afternoon.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Fifty-nine University of Iowa student-athletes have been named to the 2023-24 Big Ten Winter Academic All-Conference team. The list includes student-athletes from men’s basketball (5), women’s basketball (10), women’s gymnastics (13), women’s swimming and diving (12) and men’s wrestling (19).

The 19 honorees for men’s wrestling are a school record, while the five men’s basketball and 13 women’s gymnastics accolades are the second most in program history.  The women’s swimming and diving team’s 12 honorees are the most since 2021.

The Big Ten Conference recognized 1,032 winter sports student-athletes, including 81 men’s and 94 women’s basketball players, 58 men’s and 133 women’s gymnasts, 90 men’s hockey players, 147 men’s and 232 women’s swimmers and divers and 197 men’s wrestlers.

Thirty-five of these student-athletes have maintained unblemished cumulative GPAs, including Iowa’s Sharon Goodman (women’s basketball) and Kaia Vanney (women’s gymnastics).

To be eligible for Academic All-Big Ten selection, students must be on a varsity team, as verified by being on the official squad list as of March 1 for winter sports, who have been enrolled fulltime at the institution for a minimum of 12 months and carry a cumulative grade-point average of 3.0 or higher.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa senior guard, Caitlin Clark was named a First Team All-American by the Associated Press on Wednesday. Clark is the first player in program history to be named an AP First Team All-American in three consecutive seasons. Clark made the Second Team in her freshman year.

Clark owns a career 3,700+ points and she recently became the first Division-I player to record 1,000+ points in back-to-back seasons. A native of West Des Moines, Iowa, Clark is once again a finalist for every major national player of the year award. Clark leads the nation in assists (8.9 assists per game) and in scoring (31.9 points per game) after becoming the first player to finish No. 1 in both categories in back-to-back seasons. She is also the only player in NCAA DI men’s or women’s basketball history to lead her conference in scoring and assists in four consecutive seasons.

Clark was recently tabbed as the Big Ten Player of the Year and is the first player in program history to be named First Team All-Big Ten four times in four years of competition. She has also led the Hawkeyes to three straight Big Ten Championships for the first time in program history.

UP NEXT

No. 1 seed Iowa will take on the winner of 16-seeds Holy Cross and UT-Martin, which will take place in Iowa City on Thursday. The Hawkeyes (29-4; 15-3) will face the winner of the play-in game on Saturday.

The 16 teams remaining in the 2024 NAIA women’s basketball tournament have gathered in Sioux City to compete for the national championship. Tournament co-director Corey Westra says it’s Sioux City’s 27th year to host the event.

Five of the final 16 teams are well known to local basketball fans:

Play begins Thursday starting at 1pm with an earlier start Friday at 11 a.m. when a thousand local school children are expected to attend. Friday night Dordt plays at 6pm followed by Briar Cliff at 8pm, so a large crowd is expected. The final eight teams play Saturday, the final four on Monday, and the national championship takes place Tuesday on the Fleet Farm Arena floor in the downtown events center.