Iowa State Basketball Making Key Change To Recruiting Targets

The Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball team has turned into a perennial contender in the Big 12 under head coach T.J. Otzelberger.

In five years with him at the helm, the Cyclones have advanced to the NCAA Tournament each year. An incredibly impressive feat when considering the state of the program when he was hired, as they had won two games the season before he started.

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With three Sweet Sixteen appearances on its resume already, Iowa State is in the midst of arguably the best run in program history. Otzelberger deserves a lot of credit for what he has achieved thus far, but the job is not yet done.

Getting over the hump and advancing beyond the Sweet Sixteen, contending for a national title, is something the Cyclones are looking to achieve. To help attain that goal, Otzelberger has made a slight adjustment in one key area of recruiting.

Iowa State putting emphasis on height in recruiting

Mar 26, 2026; Chicago, IL, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach T.J. Otzelberger speaks ahead of the Midwest regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at United Center. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

There are a lot of things that Iowa State has been elite at under Otzelberger. One area they have been below average in, but have started making strides in improving, is height. In his first year with the team, the Cyclones averaged 76.5 inches tall, which was ranked 242nd.

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Steadily over the years, that rank has improved. Iowa State was 147th the following season, then 110th, 65th and 83rd this past year, as shared by Alec Busse of Cyclone Alert, part of the 247Sports Network (subscription required). That is a number that should keep going in the right direction with the additions made this offseason.

Five players committed to the Cyclones in the transfer portal. Only one of them, Jaquan Johnson, is listed under 6-foot-5. In the Class of 2026, Yusef Gray Jr. is listed between 6-foot-4 and 6-foot-5, Christian Wiggins is 6-foot-5 and Dorian Rinaldo-Komlan is 6-foot-10.

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/iowa-state-basketball-making-key-160006315.html

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Publish date : 2026-06-17 16:00:00

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