The No. 18 Iowa State Cyclones launch their season on Monday, November 2, 2026, taking on the Memphis Tigers at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. CST with national television coverage broadcast on FS1 featuring Connor Onion on play-by-play and Miles Simon providing commentary. Radio listeners can tune in to John Walters and Eric Heft across the Cyclone Radio Network, Varsity Network, or TuneIn, while live statistics will be updated on [suspicious link
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This neutral-site matchup represents the earliest season opener in Iowa State program history and is the Cyclones’ first season opener away from Hilton Coliseum since the 2017-18 season. Iowa State enters the matchup ranked No. 18 in the AP Poll, No. 14 in the Coaches Poll, and No. 6 on KenPom under sixth-year head coach T.J. Otzelberger (124-53 at ISU). Memphis enters unranked and holds a No. 86 KenPom ranking under eighth-year head coach Penny Hardaway.
Iowa State’s projected starting five features sophomore Jamarion Batemon, senior point guard Tamin Lipsey, Bradley transfer Jaquan Johnson, Northwestern transfer Tre Singleton, and senior forward Blake Buchanan. Senior point guard Tamin Lipsey returns for a fifth season of eligibility as the program’s all-time steals leader with 314 career steals. Lipsey is the only active player in college basketball with over 1,500 points, 600 assists, 500 rebounds and 300 steals. Iowa State is 19-2 all-time when he records at least seven assists.
This is the second all-time meeting between the two teams, following Iowa State’s 78-59 victory over No. 9 Memphis at the 2021 Preseason NIT. Iowa State owns a 2-0 record at the Sanford Pentagon, having previously defeated Colorado in 2015 and Mississippi State in 2025. As the Cyclones work to replace last season’s top two scorers, guard Killyan Toure is expected to remain out until January following shoulder surgery, while freshman Christian Wiggins will miss the season with an Achilles injury
