Iowa
See which celebrity NCAA brackets have Iowa State, Drake going far in the men’s tournament
Iowa State basketball: TJ Otzelberger optimistic for NCAA Tournament
Iowa State basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger shared why he feels optimistic for Cyclones going into the NCAA Tournament.
Basketball reigns supreme in March with the start of the men’s and women’s NCAA Tournaments, and fans of all ages are filling out brackets to predict the eventual champion.
Some celebrities have gone online to share their brackets, and some had the Iowa teams competing in the tournament going far, while others had them getting eliminated quite early.
Here are the brackets for celebrities and how far they have Iowa teams going.
What Iowa teams are in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament?
Iowa State and Drake are the two teams representing the state in the men’s tournament.
The Cyclones enter the tournament as the No. 3 seed and will play No. 14 Lipscomb Bisons in the first round. The No. 11 seed Bulldogs face a fellow Midwest school in the No. 6 seed Missouri Tigers in the first round of the men’s tournament.
NBA, NFL stars have Drake and Iowa State winning their first-round games
Recent Super Bowl winner for the Philadelphia Eagles, DeVonta Smith and Baseball Hall of Famer CC Sabathia, both predicted that Drake would reach the Sweet 16 of the tournament, a feat the team hasn’t accomplished since 1971.
Sabathia, a World Series-winning pitcher for the New York Yankees, even has Iowa State reaching the Elite Eight, which hasn’t happened since 2000 when it lost to that year’s National Champion Michigan State.
Another prominent former professional athlete predicting Iowa State to reach the Elite Eight is eight-time NBA All-Star Dwight Howard. He doesn’t think as highly as Drake, however, as the former NBA Champion has them losing to Missouri in the first round.
Like Howard, San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle also has Drake losing in the opening round. Unlike Howard, however, Castle predicts a huge upset happening in the form of Lipscomb beating ISU in the first round.
Iowa State has experienced both sides of NCAA Tournament upsets in recent years. In 2022, the No. 11 Cyclones made it to the Sweet 16 after knocking off a No. 6 and No. 3 seed. A year later, Iowa State was the one being upset after losing to No. 11 Pittsburgh Panthers in the first round as a No. 6 seed.
Here are the Iowa State and Drake predictions from other professional athletes according to their brackets
Grant Williams, NBA
- Drake: Round-of-32
- Iowa State: Round-of-32
Maxx Crosby, NFL
- Drake: Round-of-32
- Iowa State: Sweet 16
Paolo Banchero, NBA
- Drake: Round-of-32
- Iowa State: Sweet 16
Quinshon Judkins, NFL prospect
- Drake: First round
- Iowa State: Sweet 16
Bobby Witt Jr., MLB
- Drake: First round
- Iowa State: Sweet 16
Legendary cartoon characters pick Iowa State, Drake winning first-round games
While someone like Stephon Castle doesn’t believe Drake and Iowa State will do much this March Madness, two individuals who know a thing or two about playing high-level basketball have faith that these two schools will at least make it out of the first round.
I’m, of course, talking about Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, who — with the help of little-known NBA player Michael Jordan — took down the ‘Monstars’ back in 1996 in a game for the ages. (We won’t talk about the follow-up that took place in 2021)
Both Daffy and Bugs have Iowa State and Drake making the Sweet 16 and the Round of 32, respectively.
Cooper Worth is a service/trending reporter for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at cworth@gannett.com or follow him on X @CooperAWorth.
Two people are dead after a Dubuque bar fight escalated, with one man shooting another and then being killed by police.
An officer with the Dubuque Police Department was outside the Odd Fellows bar just before 1 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 4, when he witnessed a physical altercation, according to a news release from the Dubuque Police Department.
As the officer exited the patrol vehicle, an adult man allegedly used a handgun to shoot one of the people involved in the fight. The officer fired at the offender, who then ran into the bar.
The victim who was shot first was provided medical treatment by officers at the scene and then transported to MercyOne Hospital in Dubuque.
The offender was treated by police officers inside the bar and then transported to UnityPoint Finley Hospital.
Both were later pronounced dead.
The names of those involved are not being released at this time pending notification of family members.
The incident is being investigated by the Dubuque Police Department and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. The officer involved was not injured and has been placed on critical incident leave in accordance with the department’s policies.
Nick El Hajj is a reporter at the Register. He can be reached at nelhajj@gannett.com. Follow him on X at @nick_el_hajj.
With the season coming out of the holiday break, now is the perfect time to take a look at the top Iowa high school girls basketball players by grade.
These are just some of the top players in Iowa and not a complete list of all of them. Statistics are based on those uploaded to the Bound website by January 4, 2026.
Here are the top junior girls basketball players in Iowa high school basketball:
A high-level producer, Maggie McChesney heads into 2026 averaging 23.6 points, nine rebounds, 2.7 steals, 2.6 assists and over two blocks per game.
The next standout from North Union, Ainsley Ulrich is posting nearly 23 points with six rebounds, and over three steals a night.
Flirting with averaging a double-double is Izzy Gilbertson, as the junior stands at 21.7 points, 9.7 rebounds, four blocks, 3.6 steals and three assists.
Along with posting 20 points and grabbing six rebounds, Cora Sauer also adds four steals and three assists.
A big sophomore season has carried right over for Melina Snoozy, as she leads the Crusaders with 20 points, eight rebounds and 3.5 steals a night, along with averaging a block per game.
Up north is Riley Meyer, a 20-point scorer per game who adds six rebounds and two steals.
Sitting right under 20 points a night is Addy Wolfswinkel, as she is also averaging five rebounds, three assists and three steals.
A standout on both ends, Maryn Franken posts nearly 20 points and over eight rebounds per game with three steals and 1.4 blocks.
Following in the footsteps of Audi Crooks, Graclyn Eastman has been nearly unstoppable for the Golden Bears, scoring 19 points per game with nine rebounds, 3.5 steals, 2.6 blocks and two assists.
Another Maroon standout named Muller, Katie is scoring over 18 points per game with six rebounds, 3.5 assists and over a block and steal.
One of the top players in the North Central Conference, Hayden McLaughlin has taken over as the No. 1 option for the Bulldogs, scoring 17 points per game with nearly six rebounds and two steals.
The Hawks rely on KeaOnna Worley to do a lot, and she delivers nightly, scoring 16.5 points with nearly five assists, four rebounds and two steals.
The balanced Comets are led by Campbell Schulz, as the junior posts 14 points, 4.6 rebounds, four assists, three steals and nearly three blocks.
Forming a powerful 1-2 punch with Addy Wolfswinkel is Deidra Doeden, who averages 18 points and 13.5 rebounds per game.
Down low for North Mahaska is Natallya Linder, a nightly double-double at 15.7 points and 13 rebounds to go along with 2.6 steals, 2.3 assists and a block.
The last name has long been a staple for Pella Christian, and Rachel is carrying it on now, averaging 14 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block per game.
The forward is a threat all over the court for the Falcons, posting 18 points, 11.6 rebounds, two steals, two assists and a block.
Triple-doubles are in the future for Aniya Hardee, as she is averaging nine points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.6 assists and nearly five steals per game.
Penn State landed Iowa State’s pair of quarterbacks earlier Sunday, including starter Rocco Becht, in a splash move. Now, the Cyclones’ leading receiver is coming with them.
Wide receiver Brett Eskildsen committed to Penn State via the transfer portal, becoming the seventh Cyclone to join the Nittany Lions this weekend. He announced the move on social media.
Eskildsen recorded 30 receptions, 526 yards and five touchdowns as a sophomore in 2025. He also appeared in all 13 games as a freshman but made just two catches for 17 yards.
The 6-1, 200-pound wideout is from Frisco, Texas, and is a three-star in the 247Sports transfer rankings (No. 118 overall, No. 30 WR). He was a three-star out of high school as well, where he had more than 1,5000 career receiving yards.
Becht’s top man from 2026 is now in place. He’ll also be able to throw to standout Penn State freshman Koby Howard and quick youngster Tyseer Denmark, who have confirmed their returns thus far.
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