No. 5 Iowa State earns highest preseason ranking with 3 starters and a key reserve returning

Iowa State (29-8, 13-5 Big 12)

The No. 5 Cyclones have their highest preseason ranking ever with most of the major contributors back from the team that posted the second-most wins in program history, finished second behind Houston in the Big 12 and reached the Sweet 16.

Players to watch

Tamin Lipsey (junior, G, 6-1). The preseason All-Big 12 pick is one of the most versatile point guards in the country. He averaged 12.4 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game, shot 39% on 3-pointers and his 2.67 steals per game led the Big 12 and ranked fourth in the nation.

Keshon Gilbert (senior, G, 6-4). He led the team with 13.7 points per game and averaged 4.4 rebounds and 4.2 assists. He has a knack for getting to the free-throw line, where he was a 73% shooter. His 74 steals were second to Lipsey's 94.

Milan Momcilovic (sophomore, F, 6-8). He averaged 10.9 points and 3.1 rebounds per game and was named to the Big 12 all-freshman team. The Cyclones were 20-5 in games in which he scored in double figures.

Curtis Jones (senior, G, 6-4). The sixth man averaged 11 points and 27 minutes per game. He scored a season-high 26 in the Sweet 16 loss to Illinois, making him the third player to score at least 26 off the bench in a regional semifinal since 1989.

Departures and arrivals

The biggest losses are in the frontcourt, where starters Tre King and Robert Jones and reserve Hason Ward gave the Cyclones quality minutes over multiple seasons. Also gone is Omaha Biliew, the consensus five-star recruit who transferred to Wake Forest.

Coach TJ Otzelberger signed four players out of the transfer portal, including F Joshua Jefferson (Saint Mary's, 10.2 points and 6.5 rebounds per game); F Dishon Jackson (Charlotte, 11.4 ppg, 6.1 rpg); F Brandton Chatfield (Seattle, 9.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg); and G Nate Heise, who started 32 games for Northern Iowa (career-high 13.4 ppg). Freshman guard Nojus Indrusaitis is a top-100 recruit.

Top games

The Cyclones open at home Nov. 4 against Mississippi Valley State. They play No. 11 Auburn and possibly No. 9 North Carolina in the Maui Invitational the week of Thanksgiving. No. 18 Marquette visits Dec. 4. The Big 12 opener is at Colorado on Dec. 30. They play top-ranked Kansas at home Jan. 15 and on the road Feb. 3.

Facts and figures

Iowa State was picked third behind Kansas and Missouri in the Big 12 preseason coaches’ poll. ... Momcilovic has added 15 pounds in the offseason to get to 225, and Otzelberger is encouraging him to shoot more 3s. He hit 36% from distance last season. ... Otzelberger is 70-35 in three seasons at Iowa State and 169-98 in eight seasons overall.