Iowa State and Northwestern Set for High-Stakes Exhibition Showdown—What’s at Stake?
Get ready, because Iowa State is shaking up the exhibition calendar in a way that’ll catch your eye. The Cyclones are gearing up to face Northwestern in not one, but two upcoming preseason games set for 2025 and 2026, marking a fresh chapter in their basketball rendezvous. It’s been a hot minute since we saw preseason action at Hilton Coliseum — since 2017, to be exact — and now we’re looking at a full doubleheader of exhibitions, a feat not pulled off since 2009. This comes on the heels of their recent announcement to play Creighton in the same time span, turning heads and raising expectations for what’s ahead. With the NCAA easing rules around preseason contests, allowing up to two exhibition games without the old charity donation strings attached, the Cyclones are set to maximize this new opening — and fans are all the better for it. Oh, and a little history nugget for you: Iowa State and Northwestern have an evenly split ledger, with only two clashes dating back to 1949 and 2009, so these upcoming games have some old-school spice to them. Curious to see how this will all play out? Dive deeper right here. LEARN MORE
- Iowa State and Northwestern will play men’s basketball exhibition games in 2025 and 2026.
- The 2025 game will be played at Hilton Coliseum in Ames. The teams will play in Evanston, Illinois, in 2026.
The Cyclones announced on May 21 that they will play exhibition games against Northwestern in 2025 and 2026. The announcement comes one day after the program revealed it will play exhibition games against Creighton in 2025 and 2026 as well.Tip-off time and TV designation for the Oct. 26 exhibition will be announced at a later date.The Cyclones are coming off a 25-10 season, losing in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Wildcats went 17-16 and finished thier season in the second round of the Big Ten Tournament.In January, the NCAA’s Division I Men’s Basketball Oversight Committee approved a proposal to relax preseason basketball contests and allow schools to participate in up to two preseason exhibition games. The rule goes into effect for the 2025-26 season.The game ahead of this season will be the first preseason exhibition in Hilton Coliseum since 2017. The 2025 campaign will be the first time Iowa State has played two preseason exhibitions since 2009.
Iowa State and Northwestern are tied, 1-1, in the all-time series. The only meetings between the two teams were an Iowa State win in 1949 and a victory for the Wildcats in 2009.
Eugene Rapay covers Iowa State athletics for the Des Moines Register. Contact Eugene at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @erapay5.In past years, public exhibition games were approved through a waiver process and the proceeds from games were donated to charity. The new proposal eliminated that requirement and schools can decide how to allocate revenue generated from exhibition games.
Iowa State will welcome the Wildcats to Hilton Coliseum on Oct. 26. The series will head to Evanston, Illinois and Welsh-Ryan Arena in October of 2026.Schools were also previously allowed to forgo a public exhibition game and compete in up to two closed-door or “secret” scrimmages that were conducted in private without official scoring. That is no longer a requirement, but exhibition games will still not count toward regular-season records.
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