From spectator to star, Lipsey thriving
KANSAS CITY – Before Tamin Lipsey was a Cyclone, he was a Cyclone.
Not just a Little Cyclone like he was at Ames High School, which he led to a state championship in 2022, but a diehard in cardinal and gold, living and breathing Iowa State basketball.
“When they’ve won games, he’s celebrated,” Rob Lipsey said of his son’s younger years. “And when they’ve lost, he’s cried.”
That joy and those tears often came when watching Iowa State in the Big 12 Tournament, which perhaps as much as anything was the symbol of the Cyclones’ success under coaches Fred Hoiberg and Steve Prohm. The Cyclones set program records for NCAA Tournament appearances while going to Sweet 16s during that time, but the four Big 12 tourney titles the Cyclones collected between 2014 and 2019 stand apart for the consistency and pageantry of Iowa State’s success.
That first title from that stretch came when Lipsey was a preteen. The last came when he had become a highlevel college prospect.
The latest Iowa State Big 12 Tournament title came with Lipsey as the Cyclones’ point guard.
“I have experience as a fan,” Lipsey said moments after the buzzer sounded on Iowa State’s 69-41 thumping of top-ranked Houston in the title game Saturday night, “but as a player it’s so much better. Seeing all these people here supporting us, just having a great time.
“Obviously, I’ve seen past Cyclone teams do it. It’s just so much fun to spend it with these guys and the coaches and enjoy the moment.”
Lipsey spent much of his youth dreaming of wearing the Iowa State jersey, and now he’s not only donning it, he’s elevating it.
He was an every-game starter on an NCAA Tournament team as a freshman. Now, as a sophomore, he is a first-team all-Big 12 selection, a Big 12 Tournament champion and perhaps the most important player for a team capable of reaching the Final Four.
“It’s surreal,” his mother, Holly
Lipsey, said. “A wonderful season. It’s amazing. They’ve all worked so hard and worked well together. “Surreal.”
Lipsey is averaging 12.3 points, 4.7 rebounds, 4.9 assists and 2.8 steals per game as one of the nation’s best twoway guards.
“He’s always going to give everything he has every game,” Iowa State freshman Milan Momcilovic said. “He’s one of the best guards in the country, if not the best.
“He’s going to give it both on the offensive and defensive side.”
It’s the realization of a dream long in the making.
“I remember Tamin, I want to say elementary age,” Ames High coach Vance Downs said, “there was talk of this young man’s goal was to play at a high level at college and potentially go to the NBA.
“To see him grow up and work so hard and have pieces of that fall into place for him has just been a thrill for us.”
The thrill may just be beginning. The Cyclones begin the NCAA Tournament on Thursday against South Dakota State (6:35 p.m.; truTV) with their highest seed in two decades and playing their first- and second-round games in nearby Omaha.
Iowa State finished second in the Big 12, the country’s best conference, and bulldozed its way through the conference tournament.
The potential for the best NCAA Tournament run in a generation – or perhaps ever – is clearly present. Iowa State’s lone Final Four appearance came in 1944.
The Cyclones’ only other Elite Eight season was 1999-2000.
“The ceiling,” Lipsey said, “is the best team in the country. Our goal is the national championship.”
No longer living for the Cyclones from the stands or through the TV, Lipsey is right at the center of everything the Cyclones have and can still achieve.
“For him, this is a moment he can cry and celebrate at the same time,” Rob Lipsey said not long after confetti fell Saturday at the T-Mobile Center. “Cry for joy, and celebrate. We’re proud to see it for him and take this journey with him.
“We’re just happy for the Cyclone family.”
A family of which their son has always been a member. Even before he was.