SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — A valiant second-half effort fell just short for No. 18 Iowa State on Monday night as the Cyclones dropped their season opener 80-76 to Memphis at the Sanford Pentagon.
Despite a dominant performance from Iowa State’s bench and a decisive advantage inside the paint, Memphis leveraged strong perimeter shooting and key late-game execution to pull away in a tightly contested battle featuring 12 lead changes and 11 ties.
The Cyclones remained competitive throughout the contest largely due to a massive spark from their reserve unit, which outscored the Tigers’ bench 38-13. Ryan Prather Jr. spearheaded Iowa State’s offensive effort off the bench with a team-high 19 points while connecting on 3 of 6 attempts from beyond the arc.
Dominykas Pleta provided highly efficient frontcourt scoring off the pine, contributing 15 points on 7-of-8 shooting from the floor while helping Iowa State establish a 38-26 scoring advantage over Memphis in the paint. Starting forward Tre Singleton notched a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds – including six on the offensive glass – and starting guard Tamin Lipsey chipped in 12 points.
The primary separation between the two squads came along the perimeter, where Memphis converted 45.0% of its 3-point attempts (9 of 20) compared to just 20.0% (4 of 20) for Iowa State.
The Tigers were paced by Jayden Reid’s 26 points and Luke Almodovar’s 18 points, with Memphis also earning an edge at the free-throw line by shooting 25 of 33 (75.8%). Iowa State drew 29 fouls and reached the stripe frequently, knocking down 22 of 32 free throws (68.8%), while holding a narrow 38-36 trailing margin on the glass.
After trailing 40-39 at the break, Iowa State continued to exchange blows with Memphis across a tense second half. The Cyclones wiped out a late deficit to knot the score at 69-69 when Prather Jr. sank a pair of free throws with 3:15 remaining.
Reid answered with a driving layup to regain the lead for Memphis, but Iowa State stayed within strike distance as Jaquan Johnson sank two free throws to trim the margin to 75-73 with 1:00 left.
However, Reid delivered the game’s turning point by hitting a step-in 3-pointer with 38 seconds remaining to push the Tigers ahead by five. Pleta added a late layup with 11 seconds left to pull the Cyclones back within four points, but time expired on Iowa State’s comeback attempt.