No. 3 Iowa State handles WVU, equals school's best start
- - No. 3 Iowa State handles WVU, equals school's best start
Field Level MediaJanuary 2, 2026 at 10:58 PM
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Jan 2, 2026; Ames, Iowa, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Joshua Jefferson (5) and Iowa State Cyclones guard Killyan Toure (27) celebrate during the game with the West Virginia Mountaineers during the first half at James H. Hilton Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Reese Strickland-Imagn Images (Reese Strickland-Imagn Images)
Joshua Jefferson notched a triple-double and Milan Momcilovic scored a game-high 26 points as No. 3 Iowa State rolled to an 80-59 win over West Virginia in the teams' Big 12 Conference opener Friday in Ames, Iowa.
Jefferson finished with 10 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists while Momcilovic made 8 of 10 3-point attempts as the Cyclones (14-0, 1-0) matched the best start in school history.
Blake Buchanan added 14 points and Tamin Lipsey chipped in 12 as Iowa State shot 52.7% (29 of 55) from the field and 52% from 3-point range (13 of 25).
Chance Moore led West Virginia (9-5, 0-1) with 17 points. DJ Thomas added 10 off the bench for the Mountaineers, who have lost two of their last three games. The Mountaineers shot just 29% (7 of 24) from beyond the arc.
Iowa State used a 16-4 second-half run to open up a 59-38 lead with 11:40 to play. The Cyclones pulled away as a Momcilovic three and one-handed runner in the lane punctuated the rally.
The Cyclones took their first lead at 10-9 on a Momcilovic three. Moments later, Treysen Eaglestaff's contested three put West Virginia up 14-10.
Harlan Obioha slipped a pass to a cutting Moore for a dunk to cap a 5-0 run as West Virginia took a 19-15 lead with 9:22 left in the half.
Jefferon's behind-the-back pass hit Buchanan in stride for a two-hand slam that kicked off a 8-0 rally as the Cyclones led 28-21 with 5:12 remaining. The Cyclones finished the game with 26 assists on 29 field goals.
After a Moore layup, the Cyclones ripped off five straight points on a Lipsey jumper and Jefferson's putback that turned into a three-point play for a 33-23 lead. Iowa State outrebounded West Virginia 35-23.
The Cyclones took a 41-28 halftime lead when Lipsey's alley-oop pass connected with Buchanan for a powerful two-hand dunk.
West Virginia cut its deficit to 43-34 when Moore made a pair of free throws with 16:52 remaining. That was the closest the Mountaineers got the rest of the way.
--Field Level Media
Source: “AOL Sports”
