Former Iowa State basketball star Milan Momcilovic is not going to the NBA just yet.

Anticipation was building ahead for fans to see what the former Cyclone would do leading into the May 27 deadline, which gave players one final opportunity to decide whether or not they were continuing with the NBA Draft process or maintaining NCAA eligibility for another season of college basketball.

After plenty of debate among college basketball fans regarding whether he would or wouldn’t continue, Momcilovic officially made his decision, electing to withdraw from the NBA Draft pool and return to college basketball on Wednesday night, according to multiple reports.

He and the rest of the NBA Draft candidates with remaining eligibility had until May 27 at 10:59 p.m. CT to decide whether or not they were committing to the NBA Draft process or return to college.

The 6-foot-8 sharpshooter had simultaneously entered the transfer portal when first declaring for the NBA Draft back in April. He will be a highly sought-after player. According to ESPN’s transfer rankings, he is the No. 1 overall player in the transfer portal. In the mock drafts that Momcilovic was included in, he was mostly projected to be a second-round pick.

He has reported interest from Kentucky, Louisville, St. John’s and Arizona.

Momcilovic is coming off a career-best year as a junior. The All-Big 12 second-team selection led the Cyclones with 16.9 points per game, while shooting 50.6% overall and 48.6% from deep. He led the country in 3-point shooting percentage and total 3-point makes, with 136. That mark is also an Iowa State single-season record, surpassing the previous mark set by Dedric Willoughby’s 102 3-pointers in the 1996-97 season.

He also had the fifth-highest true shooting percentage (69.3%) in the country and an effective field-goal percentage of 67.2%, which was good for 13th in the nation.

“I love Milan, he’s my guy. Obviously, I had a couple-year relationship prior to him even coming to Iowa State,” said Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger at the Cyclone Tailgate Tour opener in Des Moines on May 18. “What you want for everybody in your program is for their dreams to become a reality and obviously, with the season he had and how he’s continued to develop, he put himself in a great position for the draft. Yet, at the same time in the climate and landscape of college athletics, it’s important to keep your options open and leave that available at the end if it isn’t to go your way.

“All the conversations were great, really respect how he went through and made his decisions. I don’t think there’s anybody that’s a loser in this situation, right? We had a great experience with him for three seasons, he’s put himself in a great position to go get drafted. If that’s not able to happen for him, it’s important that he’s able to find a landing spot at college that fits what he’s looking for.”

Over the last few weeks, there has been some speculation that former Iowa State Cyclone star Milan Momcilovic may return to college, and potentially find himself in a great situation that can not only build his draft stock, but get him paid as well.

Most people are expecting Momcilovic to head to the Kentucky Wildcats, a school that has been struggling to find talent over the offseason. In a desperate manner, head coach Mark Pope hopes that Momcilovic will undeclare from the draft and head to Kentucky. He also could head to the Arizona Wildcats, who have recently gained interest. But it’s not confirmed, and people do believe that Momcilovic could stay in Ames, IA next season.

Momcilovic has been a three-year player under T.J. Otzelberger at Iowa State. As a freshman, he averaged 10.9 points per game, bringing it up to 11.5 points as a sophomore. He was a solid three-point shooter as well, shooting at 35.9% and 39.6%, respectively.

But it was in his junior season that he broke out, proving himself to the entire nation. He averaged 16.9 points per game, shooting an unbelievable 48.7% from beyond the arc. It was a historical season from the big man, who showcased everything throughout the season. His shooting was there, he proved himself in the post, and found ways to create open shots all around the court.

But after the season, he announced that he would be declaring for the NBA Draft, as well as the transfer portal. If he returns to college, it’s going to be a three-horse race between Kentucky, Arizona, and his former squad, Iowa State.

Why Momcilovic Should Come Back

Momcilovic needs to return to the Cyclones. Over the last few years, he has showcased that he perfectly works in Otzelberger’s system, and is becoming a better defender over time. In addition, Iowa State is a better team than the Wildcats, and that was showcased in the second round of the March Madness, where the Cyclones dominated by 19 points.

In addition, while Arizona beat Iowa State twice, their frontcourt depth may cause Momcilovic to get limited minutes. If Momcilovic wants to compete for a national championship, continue to play in a place that has worked out great, be the star, and wants to overall increase his draft stock, he has to come back to Ames.

All three are great options, and Momcilovic, being such an impressive player, will certainly perform well wherever he decides to go. However, Iowa State is definitely the right option for him next season if he wants to get the absolute best out of his unique and incredible game.

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The opening round of the Iowa High School Athletic Association Boys State Golf Tournaments took place on Tuesday in three classes of action.

Class 3A, Class 2A and Class 1A compete in the spring, as Class 4A crowned individual and team champions this past fall.

Defending Class 3A individual state champion Parker Rodgers of Nevada is out to a strong start, firing a round of 3-under at Gates Park Golf Course in Waterloo, Iowa, to take the early lead. Rodgers sits two shots ahead of Spirit Lake’s Jaizik Miller.

Rodgers, a junior who shot a two-round total of 7-under last year, four birdies and an eagle, carding a three on the par-5 sixth.

Jamin Colvin from Ballard is third at even-par as two others are at 1-over and four more at 2-over heading into Wednesday.

The team standings are packed at the top, as Knoxville, Ballard and North Polk all shot the same score and are tied for the lead. Atlantic and MOC-Floyd Valley are each just a shot back, with Solon sitting three back of first.

Trey Swanson Leads After Opening Round Of Class 2A

Junior Trey Swanson from Rock Valley holds the overnight lead in Class 2A, as he fired a round of 2-under at South Hills Golf Course in Waterloo, Iowa. A shot back of Swanson is McGavin Smith from West Beanch, as both Benny Waller of Aplington-Parkersburg and Judd Jirovsky of Grundy Center are tied or third at 1-over.

Waller was an all-state basketball player this past winter while Jirovsky earned honors on the football field and is committed to Stanford University to continue his golf career.

Waterloo Columbus Catholic holds a two-stroke advantage in the Class 2A team race over Rock Valley, as Unity Christian and Grundy Center are tied for third, eight shots back.

Defending Class 1A State Champion Faces Deficit

Keith Thompson of Hamburg, the two-time defending Class 1A individual state champion, is a shot back after 18 holes of competition. Thompson fired a 1-under to finish second heading into Wednesday, as East Marshall’s Cody Weaver is first.

Weaver, also a senior, carded a 3-under that included five birdies at Westwood Golf Course in Newton, Iowa.

Drew Henderson of North Union and freshman Sid Hesse of South Winneshiek are tied for third at 1-over.

Harris-Lake Park holds the team lead by three shots over both Boyden-Hull and South Winneshiek.

Complete results and live scoring can be found online at both the Iowa High School Athletic Association and Iowa PGA Junior websites.