Throughout history, the Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball program has been very respected. They have produced some fine talent that has made the transition to the NBA, like Monte Morris and Georges Niang.
While Iowa State’s lone Final Four appearance came in 1944, which was immediately followed by a 41-year NCAA March Madness Tournament drought, the vast majority of the program’s success has come since the year 2000. If you bet on college basketball, you must know all these records from Iowa State Cyclones.
1999-2000
The 1999-2000 season was Iowa State’s best season since their Final Four appearance in 1944. With a 32-5 record, the Cyclones set a school record for wins, which included a 14-2 conference record, winning the Big 12 regular season championship. Iowa State would go on to defeat Oklahoma to win the Big 12 championship. Entering the tournament, the Cyclones would earn a #2 seed.
Iowa State, one of the best basketball teams in Iowa, would advance to the Elite Eight for the first time since 1944, the school’s second-ever Elite Eight appearance, where they would fall to Michigan State, who would go on to win the National Championship.
2000-2001
In the 2000-2001 season, the Cyclones followed their stellar season the year before with another one. The team finished with a record of 25-6, going 13-3 in Big 12 play.
This would earn them back-to-back regular season conference champions. Again, the Cyclones would make a #2 seed, however, they would be stunned in the opening round of the tournament by #15 seed, Hampton. This would mark the fourth time a #2 seed would lose to a #15 seed since the NCAA Tournament was expanded to 64 teams in 1985.
2001-2002
Following back-to-back regular season conference championships, Iowa State had its worst record since the 1990-1991 season. The team went 12-19, going 4-12 in the conference. Iowa State failed to make the NCAA Tournament following the 2001-2002 season.
2002-2003
Looking to rebound from their disappointing 2001-2002 season, the Cyclones produced a winning record in 2002-2003.
Iowa State finished with a record of 17-14, which included a subpar 5-11 conference record.
Again, the Cyclones would fail to reach the NCAA Tournament, instead appearing in the NIT, where they would defeat Wichita State in the play-in round, before being defeated by Iowa in the first round.
2003-2004
Under new leadership in the 2003-2004 season, due to misconduct by the previous head coach, Larry Eustachy, Iowa State finished with a 20-win season, going 20-13. Again, missing the NCAA Tournament, the Cyclones would reappear in the NIT.
Iowa State would eventually fall in the semifinal game to Rutgers, after defeating Georgia, Florida State, and Marquette.
2004-2005
After producing another solid season, finishing with a 19-12, Iowa State would return to the NCAA March Madness Tournament in 2005. #9 seed Iowa State would defeat #8 seed Minnesota in the opening round, before being defeated in the Round of 32 by #1 seed North Carolina.
2005-2006
Iowa State would decline from their last season, finishing the 2005-2006 season with a 16-14 record.
This would be Wayne Morgan’s last season as the Cyclone’s head basketball coach, finishing with a respectable record of 55-39 over his three seasons with the team.
2006-2007
Again finding themselves under new leadership, Greg McDermott took over as Iowa State’s head coach for the 2006-2007 season.
Continuing their decline, the Cyclones fell below .500 on the season, finishing with a 15-16 record.
2007-2008
Looking to turn things around in McDermott’s second season, the Cyclones failed to do so. Continuing their steady decline, Iowa State finished the 2007-2008 season with another losing record, going 14-18.
2008-2009
Following two straight losing seasons, as well as five straight seasons producing fewer wins than the last, Iowa State posted yet another losing record. They finished the season 15-17, which did end their streak of five straight win declines.
2009-2010
Unfortunately, things would not improve for the Cyclones just yet. They would finish with a losing 15-17 record yet again, marking four straight losing seasons.
The 2009-2010 season would be the last for Greg McDermott. He would finish with a record of 59-68, not only failing to reach the NCAA Tournament but also failing to lead the Cyclones to a winning season.
2010-2011
Former Iowa State basketball star, Fred Hoiberg would take over before the 2010-2011 season. Despite joining a team that returned only four players from the previous season, the Cyclones finally showed signs of improvement. Iowa State finished the season with a .500 16-16 record.
2011-2012
Coach Hoiberg officially turned the program around in 2011-2012, winning Big 12 Co-Coach of the Year honors. Not only did the team finish with a winning record, but they also won over 20 games for the first time since the 2003-2004 season.
After finishing with a record of 23-11, they made their return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005.
The #8 seed Cyclones would defeat the #9 seed UConn Huskies in round one, a team that won the National Championship the year before. Iowa State would then be defeated by #1 seed Kentucky in the Round of 32.
2012-2013
Iowa State would continue its success, finishing with 23 wins in back-to-back seasons, this time going 23-12. This would mark the Cyclones’ first time appearing in the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons since 2001.
This time coming in as a #10 seed, Iowa State would defeat #7 seed, Notre Dame, in round one, before falling to #2 seed Ohio State in the Round of 32. This was another fantastic season for the Cyclones, as it was their first time winning games in the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back seasons since 1997.
2013-2014
It was safe to say that Iowa State was going to continue its success after starting the 2013-2014 season 14-0, going undefeated in non-conference play. The season would end for the Cyclones with a 28-8 record. Iowa State would defeat Baylor to win the Big 12 Conference championship, for the first time since 2000.
The Cyclones would earn a #3 seed in the NCAA Tournament, where they would defeat #14 North Carolina Central and #6 North Carolina. This would be Iowa State’s first Sweet Sixteen appearance since 2000.
Unfortunately, this is where their season would end, falling to #7 Connecticut, who would go on to win the National Championship.
The Hoiberg clan with the hardware. @ISUMayor32 #Cyclones pic.twitter.com/PmhqJFYHlB
— Iowa State Men’s Basketball (@CycloneMBB) March 16, 2014
2014-2015
Fred Hoiberg’s era of success would continue, as Iowa State would finish the 2014-2015 season with a 25-9 record. The Cyclones would finish the season second in the Big 12, before winning the Big 12 Conference tournament in back-to-back seasons, after defeating Kansas.
Iowa State would appear in the NCAA Tournament as a #3 seed for the second straight year before being stunned in the first round by #14 seed UAB by a score of 60-59. After their tragic upset in the tournament, bad news would continue for the Cyclones, as Fred Hoiberg would be hired as the head coach of the NBA’s Chicago Bulls.
2015-2016
Steve Prohm would take over as Iowa State’s head coach, with some big shoes to fill. After back-to-back Big 12 Conference tournament championships, as well as back-to-back #3 seeds in the NCAA Tournament, the Cyclones were in a prime position to keep their success going.
Finishing with a 10-8 conference record, going 23-12 overall, Iowa State would enter the tournament as a #4 seed. They would go on to defeat #13 Iona and #12 Arkansas-Little Rock, before falling to #1 Virginia in the Sweet 16.
Iowa State coach Steve Prohm celebrates with his family. #Big12Championship #Big12MBB #Cyclones pic.twitter.com/9MvKeKVfzl
— Andrew Carter (@AC_TwoCircles) March 12, 2017
2016-2017
The 2016-2017 season would be another strong one for the Cyclones, finishing with a record of 24-11, marking their sixth straight season with over 20 wins. Iowa State would go on to win the Big 12 Conference tournament championship for the third time in their last four seasons.
The Cyclones would earn a #5 seed in the NCAA Tournament, which would mark four straight seasons reaching the tournament as a top-five seed. Iowa State would defeat #12 Nevada before falling to #4 Purdue in the Round of 32.
2017-2018
Iowa State’s recent streaks of success would come to an end in 2018. The Cyclones would finish the season with a record of 13-18, their worst record since the 2001-2002 season.
2018-2019
Looking to bounce back after the down season, Iowa State finished the 2018-2019 season with a 23-12 record. Despite a very mediocre 9-9 conference record, Iowa State would make a run, defeating Kansas to win the Big 12 Championship, for the fourth time since 2014.
The Cyclones would return to the NCAA Tournament, this time as a #6 seed, where they would be upset in the first round by #11 Ohio State.
2019-2020
A trend would establish itself for the Cyclones over the last four seasons, alternating between good and bad, as Iowa State would finish with a record of 12-20.
2020-2021
If the last four seasons were any indication, it seemed that Iowa State was ready to rebound from the poor 2019-2020 season, making a return to the NCAA Tournament.
Unfortunately, this could not have been further from the case. After winning their first game of the season against Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Iowa State would go on to win just one more game, finishing with a record of 2-22.
The Cyclones would not win a single game in Big 12 play, going 0-18. Iowa State and Steve Prohm would mutually agree to part ways after the 2020-2021 season, despite recently extending Prohm’s contract through 2025.
2021-2022
T.J. Otzelberger, who did serve as an assistant coach for the Cyclones before spending time as the head coach at UNLV, was hired as the Iowa State head coach before the 2021-2022 season. Fortunately, the Cyclones could only improve after winning two games the previous season.
Iowa State finished the 2021-2022 season with a 22-12 record, which would earn them a return to the NCAA Tournament as a #11 seed. There, they would upset both #6 LSU and #3 Wisconsin, advancing to the Sweet 16. Iowa State’s season would end there, as they would be defeated by #10 Miami.
T.J. Otzelberger is returning “home” as the 21st head men’s basketball coach in Iowa State history. Watch A.D. Jamie Pollard's welcome video here: https://t.co/ckrWgQnWFp pic.twitter.com/dA9GvNiArI
— Iowa State Athletics (@CycloneATH) March 18, 2021
2022-2023
Through eight games of the current season, the Cyclones have a record of 7-1 and are the #20 ranked team in the nation. Iowa State will go on the road to face in-state rival Iowa, on December 8, 2022, where they are the three-and-a-half point underdogs.
The majority of the Iowa State basketball program’s success has come since the year 2000. During that span, the Cyclones have put together a number of exceptional seasons, while mixing in some that were well below average.
It seemed as though they had found consistency before losing coach Fred Hoiberg to the Chicago Bulls in 2015, which is what they have been in search of ever since. Iowa State has shown signs of greatness winning the Big 12 Conference four times from 2014-2019, before seemingly falling off the rails from 2019-2021.
Final Thoughts
Iowa State’s program is one that has shown it can compete with the best, but they need to find a way to do that consistently from year to year if they want to make the leap to an elite college basketball program.
Hopefully, current coach T.J. Otzelberger will be the leader the Cyclones need to make that jump.
Featured Image: Ed Hendrickson, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
