Iowa State men’s basketball will have the opportunity of welcoming No. 2 Baylor back to game action after the Bears’ COVID-19 pause with a matchup in Waco, Texas, on Tuesday.

Baylor has not played in three weeks and postponed six games during the pause, with the Bears’ last game being a 83-69 win over Texas on Feb. 2.

The Bears are the second-ranked team in the country at 17-0 overall and 9-0 in the Big 12, while Iowa State’s latest loss to No. 9 Oklahoma on Saturday dropped its season to 2-16 overall and 0-13 in conference play.

And while Baylor holds a roster full of talent, experience and an undefeated record, how should Iowa State approach Tuesday’s game with the Bears coming off such a long break? Iowa State Head Coach Steve Prohm answered that question by going back to the first matchup on Jan. 2 in Ames.

Yes, Baylor did beat the Cyclones 76-65, but the final score was not indicative of how close the two teams played for much of the game in Prohm’s assessment.

“You go back to January 2 and we played them really well,” Prohm said. “You know when you look at all their games, [there was] two minutes to go and we’re down five with the ball. That’s probably as good as anyone’s played them when you get down to the stretch but they haven’t played in three weeks.”

Prohm isn’t expecting the Bears to be any different than the last time the two played in terms of how they structure their lineup and what they’ll want to do on offense and defense. 

Baylor’s highly touted backcourt in Jared Butler and Davion Mitchell received praise from Prohm due to how free they seem to play the game and their knowledge of the numerous ball screens Baylor runs.

Butler is second in the Big 12 in scoring at 17 points per game, while Mitchell leads the Big 12 in assists at 5.8 per game. Butler ranks right behind him, averaging 5.2 assists of his own.

But while Prohm isn’t going into Tuesday’s contest expecting much change on the Baylor side, lineup changes could be made for the Cyclones.

“I may go with the group that played in the second half [on Saturday] from a guard standpoint,” Prohm said. “I’m still kind of tossing that around a little bit.”

The guards he mentioned are sophomore Tre Jackson and junior transfer Tyler Harris, both of whom replaced starters Javan Johnson and Jaden Walker for minutes in the second half against the Sooners.

Walker and Johnson didn’t play at all in the second half Saturday because Prohm liked the energy, toughness and offensive efficiency of Jackson and Harris, which has been a big indicator for Prohm of who he has liked on the floor and who he hasn’t over the years.

Even if Walker and Johnson are swapped out for Jackson and Harris, Prohm said Tuesday’s game will require a high pace in order to win, especially from the guard spot in terms of defense.

Whether changes come, Iowa State will have a tall task ahead of itself in its battle with Baylor.

Iowa State and Baylor are set to tip off at 7 p.m. in Waco, Texas. The game is available to watch on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.