No. 17 BYU Will Open Big 12 Tournament Against No. 12 Iowa State
Mar 12, 2025, 2:10 PM | Updated: Mar 13, 2025, 1:50 am
BYU basketball will open the 2025 Big 12 Tournament against Iowa State. (Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo)
(Jaren Wilkey/BYU Photo)
BYU basketball will face Iowa State to begin their Big 12 Tournament run.
Iowa State defeated Cincinnati on Wednesday to advance in a rematch against BYU. The 4-seed Cougars had a double-bye in this year’s Big 12 Tournament largely because they defeated Iowa State in double-overtime on March 4 in Ames.
BYU’s 88-85 double-overtime win over ISU was one of the best games in the Big 12 this season.
Rematch
Kevin Young’s squad won the game despite committing 29 turnovers.
In the postgame press conference after the win in Ames a week ago, he was asked for his thoughts on the idea of a rematch against the Cyclones in Kansas City. Young immediately said, “Don’t turn the ball over.”
He later added, “As a competitor, that’s what you look forward to. Being able to hopefully right some of the wrongs from this (March 4) game … that’ll be a big-time game.”
“BYU’s a good program. They came in, they smacked us in the mouth at the beginning of the game,” said Iowa State’s Joshua Jefferson on Wednesday. “So we just need to come out with a good sense of urgency against them tomorrow. It will help us get it done.”
The victory at Iowa State was a signature win in an eight-game streak with the Cougars playing some of its best basketball entering the postseason.
BYU is comfortably in the NCAA Tournament as an at-large selection. The same goes for Iowa State.
Stacking days
So, it raises questions about how much this event means for red-hot BYU. Young is looking to stack more days, which has become a rallying cry in his program this year.
“I always preface cliches by saying, ‘I know this is cliche, but…’ it really has been our mantra and taking things game by game and day by day. So that approach for me is not going to change,” Young said.
Since joining the Big 12 Conference last season, BYU is 2-1 against Iowa State. It will be the first time BYU takes on T.J. Otzelberger’s Cyclones program in Kansas City. Iowa State has won five of the last 10 Big 12 Tournaments, including last year.
BYU will face Iowa State in the Quarterfinals of the Big 12 Tournament on Thursday.
Tip-off: 10:30 a.m. (MDT)
TV: ESPN2
Radio: @kslnewsradio (Extended pregame begins at 9 a.m. with me and @baiamontematt) pic.twitter.com/nnDohpC9aR— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) March 12, 2025
“We think very highly of their program. They’re playing at an extremely high level,” Otzelberger said of BYU on Wednesday. “They came into our building and did a great job and earned a victory. We will prepare just like we prepare for every game and every opponent and every opportunity we’ll aim to control what we can control and be at our absolute best coming out tomorrow.”
There will be some key personnel on the injury front to monitor for Iowa State entering Thursday’s Quarterfinal clash.
Injury Watch entering the BYU/Iowa State game
Iowa State’s Keshon Gilbert, who is dealing with a muscle strain, played 11 minutes in the win over Cincinnati on Wednesday. None of those minutes were in the second half.
Then Cyclones veteran guard Tamin Lipsey suffered a tweaked groin. Lipsey told CycloneFanatic.com on Wednesday that he “should be able to go” against BYU.
As for Gilbert, Otzelberger said, “It’ll evaluate him tonight and in the morning and see what he’s able to do.”
BYU has been without freshman forward Kanon Catchings for the past two games due to a knee injury. He remains day-to-day.
No. 17 BYU vs. No. 12 Iowa State
Quarterfinals – 2025 Big 12 Tournament
Date: Thursday, March 13, 2025
Tip-off: 10:30 a.m. (MDT)/11:30 a.m. (CDT)
TV: ESPN2
Radio: KSL NewsRadio (102.7 FM, 1160 AM – Extended pregame begins at 9 a.m.)
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
