Tuesday, January 20th, 2026

 Well, I have a lot to blog about today...

First, our family just got back from a fun vacation to Seattle!  Our flight got back to Minneapolis around 11:30 PM last night, and then we drove all the way home (it was about 3:45 AM when we got back to Ames).  We flew out to Seattle on Friday morning, so we had over 3 days out there.  The main reason for the trip was to visit Christian & Emily's family, and to meet baby Ellis!  Right now Oscar is 6 years old, Arlo is 3, and Ellis is 6 months.  

In Seattle we were able to check out Pike Place Market, we stopped by to add to the gum wall, and we had the kids play at a few different parks (Gas Works park was one that the kids really enjoyed). We also had plenty of good food, but my favorite was making our own crab and shrimp boil at Christian & Emily's place.  We bought a bunch of Dungeness crab, some shrimp, Andouille sausage, potatoes, and corn on the cob, and Emily cooked it all in a big pot with some Old Bay seasoning.  Maxwell had really been looking forward to trying some crab, so I wanted to make sure that he had the chance.  Really the highlight of the trip was just letting all of the kids have some good time with their cousins.  

Elizabeth meeting Ellis for the first time!

The Salton family at Pike Place market.

All of the cousins at the gum wall.

 The other thing that I wanted to blog about today was #9 Iowa State's convincing 87-57 win over the UCF Knights.

The Cyclones really seemed to play well as a team, as five players scored in double figures.  The star of the show was Joshua Jefferson, who recorded another triple double!  Jefferson ended up with 17 points, 10 rebounds, and 12 assists (and no turnovers). This was the 10th triple-double in Iowa State history, and I believe that Jefferson is now the first player in Big 12 history to record two triple-doubles in league play.  He was joined in double figures scoring for the Cyclones by Milan Momcilovic (20), Jamarion Batemon (12), Killyan Toure (12), and Blake Buchanan (11). 

Another fun thing to note is that this was Nolan's 50th ISU men's basketball game that he has attended!  Plus, he was able to cross UCF off of the list of conference teams that he needs to see Iowa State defeat.  The only 4 teams left that he has not seen ISU beat are Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, and Houston. I believe that this is Nolan's 17th conference win.  Oh, and Nolan even managed to grab a t-shirt at today's game!

As for myself, this is the second time that I have witnessed the Cyclones play (and defeat) UCF in basketball.  The previous time was last year's game, where the Cyclones won 108-83. 

Iowa State 87, Central Florida 57.

Saturday, January 10th, 2026

 #3 Iowa State 83, Oklahoma State 71.

Tonight I am happy because Maxwell was finally able to cross Oklahoma State off of his list of conference foes that he has seen ISU defeat, which now means that he has seen the Cyclones beat all of the "Old Big 12" teams. Of course there are still 6 other "New Big 12" teams that he needs to collect.  That includes Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Colorado, Houston, and Utah. Today's game was actually the third time that Maxwell has seen the Cyclones play against the Cowboys, including 2022 and 2018. This was the 40th men's basketball game that I have taken Maxwell to.

I believe that Oklahoma State is actually the conference opponent that I have seen play against the Cyclones the most, as today's game is the 11th meeting I have seen between the two teams. That includes Cyclone victories today and in 2024, 2020, 2019, 2017, 2015, 2014, and 2013. The Cowboys have won in 2022 and 2018. 

For today's game, I would say that Joshua Jefferson was the player of the game.  He led the team with 19 points.  He also chipped in 5 rebounds and 5 assists.  He was joined in double figures scoring for the Cyclones by Milan Momcilovic (18), Killyan Toure (12), Tamin Lipsey (11), and Blake Buchanan (10). One thing about today's game was that there were tons of fouls called, and the teams combined to shoot 56 free throws.  That did make the game drag on longer than usual.

GO CYCLONES!!

Friday, January 2nd, 2026

 HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Tonight I am excited because Nolan and I just got back from Hilton Coliseum, where we watched the 3rd-ranked Iowa State Cyclones defeat West Virginia, 80-59.

The most memorable part of today's game was seeing Joshua Jefferson record a triple-double!  He had 10 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists!  Jefferson even added 3 steals and 2 blocks, so he really stuffed the stat sheet.  Milan Momcilovic also had quite the game for Iowa State, as he scored 26 points while shooting 8/10 from three.  They were joined in double figures scoring for ISU by Blake Buchanan (14) and Tamin Lipsey (12).  Jefferson's triple-double is only the 9th in team history for Iowa State. The Cyclones are a perfect 14-0 on the season, and 1-0 in Big 12 play.

Tonight's game was the 49th ISU men's basketball game that Nolan has attended, and it was the third time he has seen Iowa State take down the Mountaineers (2024 and 2022 were the others).  

As for myself, this was the eighth basketball game that I have seen between Iowa State and West Virginia.  That includes Cyclone wins in 2024, 2022, 2019, 2018, 2013, and tonight. the Mountaineers won in 2020 and in 2017. 

It is worth noting that I have also witnessed triple-doubles by Keshon Gilbert vs New Hampshire in 2023 and Monte Morris vs The Citadel in 2016. 

GO CYCLONES!

Monday, December 29th, 2025

 #3 Iowa State 89, Houston Christian 61.

Tonight I went by myself over to Hilton Coliseum to watch the Cyclones defeat the Huskies of Houston Christian.  The Huskies are members of the Southland Conference, and of course they are located in Houston, Texas.

As for tonight's game, I would say that the Cyclones gave a somewhat lackluster effort, as they were only leading by 10 points with under 10 minutes left to play.  Then the Cyclones went on a 20-2 run to put the game away.  Joshua Jefferson was the player of the game for Iowa State, as he led the team with 23 points.  He was joined in double-figures scoring by Blake Buchanan (16), Milan Momcilovic (13), and Killyan Toure (11).  

On another note, I believe that the kids enjoyed Christmas.  We did not have to travel anywhere, so we enjoyed time at home.  The big present that the kids received was a PlayStation 5!  I'm actually not sure who is more excited for it... the kids or myself.  Besides the PS5, we enjoyed lots of Christmas cookies, and I made Swedish Meatballs for the kids. 

Sunday, December 21st, 2025

 #4 Iowa State 91, Long Beach State 60.

Today Nolan and Eben were both able to accompany me to Hilton Coliseum, where the Cyclones dominated "The Beach". It really was a blow-out from the start, as the Cyclones were leading 45-9 at one point. I would say that Milan Momcilovic was the player of the game for Iowa State, as he led the team with 27 points, including shooting 7-9 from three point range. He was joined in double-figures scoring by Joshua Jefferson (19), Blake Buchanan (13), and Tamin Lipsey (10).  Long Beach State University participates in the Big West Conference, and (no surprise) they are located in Long Beach, California. 

Tonight's game was the 48th ISU men's basketball game that Nolan has attended.  It had also been quite a while since dad joined me for a game, as I believe the previous time was three years ago against Baylor. 

Dad and Nolan with the scoreboard.

Nolan and Cy the elf

Sunday, December 14th, 2025

 #4 Iowa State Cyclones 78, Eastern Illinois Panthers 53.

Today I took Glen with me to Hilton Coliseum, where we watched the Cyclones easily defeat Eastern Illinois.  This was Glen's first ever ISU basketball game!  During the tailgating season he had mentioned that he had never been to a game, so I thought I might as well bring him to a game this year.  Hopefully he had a fun time.  I took his picture with Cy, and I gave him the t-shirt that Maxwell had caught during the Iowa game a  few days ago. 

Today's game was the third time that I have seen the Cyclones play Eastern Illinois.  The previous times were Cyclone wins in 2023 and in 2018.

Milan Momcilovic was the player of the game for Iowa State, as he led the team with 18 points.  He was joined in double figures scoring by Blake Buchanan (14), Joshua Jefferson (11), and Killyan Toure (10). The atmosphere inside of Hilton was more quiet than usual today.  I suppose that is because the student section was mostly empty.  Tomorrow is the start of finals week, so maybe most of the students were studying.  

Thursday, December 11th, 2025

 IT'S A CYCLONE STATE!!

As a matter of fact, this year is about the most dominant that ISU has ever been over Iowa. The Cyclones have already defeated the Hawkeyes in football, wrestling, volleyball, men's and women's cross country, women's basketball, and as of tonight... men's basketball!  

Tonight I took Maxwell with me to Hilton, where we watched #4 Iowa State win a hard fought battle with the Hawkeyes, 66-62.  Iowa seemed to play very well in the first half, and they led the Cyclones at halftime, 33-25.  Thankfully, Iowa State was able to rally in the second half, as they were led by Joshua Jefferson's 24 points.  Jefferson made some clutch plays down the stretch to help seal the win.  He drained a 3-pointer with about 3 minutes left to give the Cyclones a 5-point advantage, and he made the last 2 free throws to ice the game.  Jefferson was joined in double figures scoring by Tamin Lipsey (14) and Milan Momcilovic (10). 

Tonight was Maxwell's first Cy-Hawk basketball game, and it was the 39th ISU basketball game that he has attended. As for myself, this was the seventh men's basketball game that I have seen between ISU and Iowa.  That includes six victories for the Cyclones (today, 2023, 2021, 2017, 2015, and in 2013). 

Another thing to note was that Maxwell caught a t-shirt all by himself!  That makes 5 sporting events in a row where we have came home with a free shirt!  

GO CYCLONES!