Iowa State basketball vs. Southern prediction, game preview

SWAC school Southern continues its road trip through the Midwest on Nov. 10 in Ames.

After taking a loss to nearby Drake in its most recent outing, the Jaguars are headed north for a stop at Hilton Coliseum.

Iowa State is hosting Southern on Tuesday at 7 p.m. CT.

The Cyclones (1-1) will look to add one more loss to Southern's 0-3 start to the season.

Here are three things to watch for:

Iowa State continuing to build defensive cohesion

Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger will likely shuffle his starting lineup and overall rotation once again.

The Cyclones' head coach has clearly outlined which factors will be rewarded with more playing time. And in a defense-first program, it's unsurprising to hear that there will be a greater premium placed on defensive intensity, hustle on that end of the court and on the glass, and being able to make a positive impact when given opportunities on the court.

Iowa State took steps in the right direction in its home opener against Southern Miss, but it will continue to make progress when it comes to defensive cohesion and disruptiveness.

Southern has a turnover rate of 27%, which is close to the bottom of the Division I landscape. It'll be the platform the Cyclones need to develop familiarity and chemistry defensively, so expect to see Iowa State return to high turnover generation.

The Jaguars were chosen to pick second in the SWAC but didn't have a preseason all-conference player. They've had balanced contributions in each of their games so far. Their best showing was in the first half of their season-opening loss to SMU, where they trailed by only two points going into halftime before the Mustangs pulled away for an 85-72 win on Nov. 2.

Iowa State likely will win in the paint, on the glass

The Cyclones have a size advantage, so expect them to take advantage of that on the glass but also in the paint. Southern has only one starter taller than 6-foot-6 and that's 6-10 center Lionel Bell. Off the bench, there's only one rotational player taller than 6-foot-7.

Perhaps it's a repeat performance for Tre Singleton, who had a career-high 28 points and nine rebounds in the win over Southern Miss, another quality start for Dominykas Pleta or a big day defensively or on the glass for Taj Manning and Blake Buchanan, but look for the Cyclones to assert themselves inside. Iowa State also had success with an interior-focused attack against Southern Miss, so expect to see more aggressive drives, trips to the free-throw line and cuts to the basket.

Tamin Lipsey on the brink of tying his childhood idol, Monte Morris, for an Iowa State record

After the win over Southern Miss, Tamin Lipsey notched career win No. 99, surpassing the three-way tie of Naz Mitrou-Long, Matt Thomas and Georges Niang to take sole possession of the No. 2 spot for most career wins in program history.

The record belongs to Lipsey's idol, Monte Morris, who piled up 100 career wins from 2014-17.

During Lipsey's junior year, he broke Morris' record for career steals (225) on Feb. 22, 2025. Lipsey currently has 315 steals.

Iowa State will be heavy favorites in its upcoming games against Southern and Niagara, so Lipsey may very well have the career wins record by next week.

Iowa State basketball vs. Southern game prediction

Iowa State is still working out some kinks, but Southern's turnover-prone style plays right into the hands of the Cyclones. Iowa State shouldn't have a problem in this one. Iowa State 89, Southern 56

Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at erapay@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State basketball vs. Southern prediction, game preview