AMES – Throughout his two seasons as a Cyclone, senior guard Curtis Jones has emerged as one of the most prolific scorers in school history. Whether he shoots a floater in the lane or a 3-pointer from way outside, Jones seemingly always finds ways to score.

It’s a quality that everyone looks for in a basketball player. Rebounds and assists are important, but the points are what everyone looks for first.

Jones fits that mold perfectly, and he did it even before his time at Iowa State, and head coach T.J. Otzelberger took notice of it.

Climbing up the ranks

With not a lot of options right out of high school, Jones–a Minneapolis native–took his talents to the junior college level at Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa.

In his lone season with the Warriors, he started all 24 games, shot 41.4% from the field and was a 38.7% 3-point shooter. It caught the eye of some Division I programs, and Jones transferred to Buffalo the following season.

At Buffalo, Jones didn’t see too much court time in his 28 games, playing 12 minutes on average and scoring 2.5 points per game. A season later, Jones entered the starting lineup and took advantage of his opportunity.

Jones started all 31 games, played a career-high 31.5 minutes on average, shot 41% from the field again and scored 15 points per game. After he got his shot, Jones went back to the portal in hopes of once again rising through the ranks of college basketball.

That was when Otzelberger and the Cyclones came knocking.

“It felt like his game had a lot of layers,” Otzelberger said. “To really understand his journey, where he was at, what he was doing and how he was willing to work, it has to point much more back to his character and work ethic.”

Becoming a Cyclone

Jones knew right away that the culture of Iowa State was one that he wanted to be a part of. His visit and calls with the Cyclone staff made Iowa State feel like the perfect place to play.

“They had a great culture, I could tell,” Jones said. “On my visit, it seemed like everybody was pretty close, so that was pretty cool. That’s what stuck out to me. It was a great first impression.”

Right away, Jones and his teammates created a strong bond, which has helped them in their on-court performance as well.

“[We are] real close friends,” senior guard Keshon Gilbert said. “I can go to him for anything.”

Like his first season at Buffalo, Jones came in off the bench to provide minutes and a spark on offense for the Cyclones. Throughout the first portion of the season, Jones struggled to see shots fall.

In non-conference games, Jones scored 22 points to set his season-high against Prairie View A&M but failed to score more than 10 in seven non-conference games.

The first stretch of conference games was an adjustment for Jones as well, considering the Big 12 was one of, if not the best conference in college basketball a season ago. As Jones progressed through the Big 12 gauntlet, he finally found a groove.

The first four conference games saw Jones score a combined 12 points, but after those, he scored over 10 throughout the rest of the conference slate.

Jones’ ability to become a consistent scorer throughout most Big 12 games helped Iowa State go 13-5 in the conference.

“He’s done the work that he said he would do prior to coming,” Otzelberger said.

Though he was up-and-down in Iowa State’s Big 12 Tournament championship run, he was the one who kept the Cyclones alive in the NCAA Tournament.

As the games got tougher, Jones got hotter, scoring 11 against South Dakota State, 14 against Washington State and finished his season with a season-high 26 points in Iowa State’s loss to Illinois in the Sweet 16.

When Jones announced he would return at the beginning of this season, Cyclone fans were ecstatic. The guy who was expected to become the leading scorer was returning, and with returning players like guards Gilbert and Tamin Lipsey, along with forward Milan Momcilovic, things were looking up for Iowa State.

Then came the question of whether or not Jones would be a starter. At the start of his senior season, Jones started the first game.

“I got the same role whether I start or come off the bench,” Jones said. “It’s just about the productivity you put out when you’re on the court.”

However, that was short-lived, as Jones would come in off the bench in every game, which proved to be a working formula until Momcilovic was sidelined with a broken hand for seven games.

That threw off the dynamic that worked for the Cyclones. Iowa State went 3-4 over that stretch, and Jones hit a bit of a slump after scoring a career-high 33 points against Arizona State. The next three games saw Jones shoot 3-for-21 from deep and Iowa State lost all three.

“Losing sucks,” Jones said. “Winning is fun.”

However, once Momcilovic was back, it seemed Jones was too, with 24 points in Momcilovic’s return.

Jones has scored 10 or more points in all but five games this season and 20 or more in 10 games. All of that has allowed him to be the leading scorer on the team this season with 17.2 points per game.

“He’s the most consistent player there is,” Otzelberger said. “Whatever’s thrown at him, that consistency shows up for [Jones] every single time that he takes the floor.”

But it isn’t always about the amount of points he gets, it’s about where he shoots from.

Not only does Jones make his 3’s, as he is a 36.8% shooter outside, but he shoots from anywhere. Sometimes, if he has the space, Jones will let it fly multiple feet back from the 3-point line, but it isn’t all that uncommon.

In fact, Jones’ teammates say he shoots from there in practice. It goes back to his ability to create separation even when there isn’t any.

“He’s going to make an advantage every single time he gets the ball in his hands,” junior forward Joshua Jefferson said. 

An uncertain future

In December, the NCAA ruled that junior college players who would have lost eligibility after the 2024-25 season would be granted an extra year.

Jones, who spent one season at Indian Hills, still doesn’t know if he can return to Iowa State next season. With two years at Buffalo and another two as a Cyclone under his belt, Jones will have played four seasons at the NCAA level at the end of this season.

As of now, Otzelberger and Iowa State are planning and preparing for next season with the mindset that Jones will not return. 

“At this point, we’re proceeding like there won’t be another year,” Otzelberger said. “[Jones] has had four years of playing in Division I. Certainly we would love to have him another year if that were a possibility, but we have nothing definitive.”

Should Jones return, he would do so with the likes of Lipsey, Momcilovic and frontcourt players in center Dishon Jackson and Jefferson.

If Jones is allowed another season, it is still uncertain whether he would take it. For now, the planning process will move forward without him, but that still could change.

Regardless, Jones has been a top-tier asset to the Cyclones on the offensive end for the past two seasons.

“Both years have been pretty fun,” Jones said. “I didn’t have expectations. I didn’t really know how good we [were] going to be, but I’m pretty happy with the way it turned out.”