Colorado Buffaloes will travel to face No. 8 Iowa State in Ames, Iowa, on Thursday, January 29, for their 21st game of the season at Hilton Coliseum. The matchup is set for a 5:01 p.m. MT tip-off and will be broadcast on FS1 with radio coverage available on KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM as well as Sirius XM.
The Buffaloes currently hold a 12-8 overall record and are tied for tenth in the Big 12 with a 2-5 conference record. Colorado is coming off a five-game losing streak, its longest this season, and has lost seven of its last nine games. Despite recent results, the team has already matched its win total from last year’s regular season by mid-campaign and needs one more victory to equal last year’s conference wins.
Colorado stands out nationally in several statistical categories, ranking among the top 50 teams in free throw percentage (77.2%), turnovers allowed per game (9.9), assist-to-turnover ratio (1.6), and free throws made per game (18). Their turnover rate ranks second in the Big 12 behind Houston.
The team has achieved single-digit turnovers nine times this season—including three consecutive games—and has kept turnovers at or below their goal of eleven in fourteen out of twenty games. Against Kansas, Colorado committed just three turnovers, setting a program record for fewest turnovers in a conference game.
On offense, Colorado features balanced scoring with at least four players reaching double figures in fifteen games this season; they have also had four contests with five double-digit scorers—something not seen since their NCAA Tournament win over Florida on March 22, 2024.
Freshman Isaiah Johnson leads Colorado with an average of 16.2 points per game and recently moved into the starting lineup after beginning the season as a reserve. Johnson’s performance off the bench is among the best nationally for freshmen in major conferences and he leads the team in multiple categories including free throws made and attempted, three-pointers made, and steals.
Junior Barrington Hargress is leading Colorado in assists (92) and three-point percentage (.536), while also contributing significantly to scoring and field goal efficiency. He ranks highly within both conference and national statistics for assist-to-turnover ratio.
Sophomore Sebastian Rancik provides strength on rebounds and free throws while being third on the team in scoring; junior Bangot Dak leads rebounding efforts at 7.4 boards per game alongside solid contributions defensively.
Bench production has been strong for Colorado as well; reserves account for an average of over thirty-one points per contest—leading all Big 12 teams—and shoot over forty-six percent from the field.
Heading into Thursday’s contest, Colorado holds an NCAA NET ranking of 82 through January 27.
Iowa State enters with an impressive record of eighteen wins against two losses overall and remains undefeated at home (11-0). The Cyclones have won their past two games by double digits against Oklahoma State and UCF while averaging nearly eighty-six points per outing on fifty percent shooting from the field—one of only twenty-one teams nationwide above that mark. Defensively they force over sixteen turnovers per game—a statistic that leads the Big 12—and maintain one of the highest average scoring margins nationally at +20.7 points per game.
Key players for Iowa State include Milan Momcilovic who averages nearly nineteen points per game while leading Division I men’s basketball with his three-point shooting accuracy; Joshua Jefferson adds versatility across scoring, rebounding, assists, and steals—also recording two triple-doubles this year; Tamin Lipsey contributes both offensively (13+ ppg) and defensively by leading conference steal numbers while maintaining one of college basketball’s top assist-to-turnover ratios.
This meeting marks the programs’ 152nd matchup—making it Colorado’s second-most played series—with Iowa State holding an all-time advantage including dominance at home where they lead fifty-nine to eighteen. The Buffaloes’ last road win over Iowa State was an overtime decision more than twenty years ago.
Junior Bangot Dak recently advanced to sixteenth place on Colorado’s career blocks list after matching his own season-high during their most recent contest against West Virginia; he is approaching entry into both top-fifteen all-time school rankings as well as potentially becoming just eleventh Buffs player to reach one hundred career blocks.
