# 1980–81 Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball team

The 1980–81 Iowa State Cyclones men's basketball team represented Iowa State University during the 1980–81 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Cyclones were coached by Johnny Orr, who was in his 1st season. They played their home games at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa.
They finished the season 9–18, 2–12 in Big Eight play to finish in eighth place. The Cyclones lost in the first round of the Big Eight tournament to Missouri, falling 95–70.

## Schedule and results

| Date time, TV | Rank$^#$ | Opponent$^#$ | Result | Record | Site city, state |
| Regular season ||||||
| December 1, 1980* 7:30 pm | | at Vanderbilt | L 87–97 | 0–1 | Memorial Gymnasium (15,545) Nashville, Tennessee |
| December 4, 1980* 7:35 pm, Heritage | | Drake Iowa Big Four | W 74–72 | 1–1 | Hilton Coliseum (13,268) Ames, Iowa |
| December 6, 1980* 7:35 pm | | Northern Iowa Iowa Big Four | W 83–69 | 2–1 | Hilton Coliseum (8,988) Ames, Iowa |
| December 9, 1980* 7:35 pm, ESPN (delay) | | at SMU | L 55–58 | 2–2 | Moody Coliseum (3,106) Dallas, Texas |
| December 12, 1980* 7:38 pm, KETV | | Creighton | L 73–77 | 2–3 | Hilton Coliseum (9,527) Ames, Iowa |
| December 20, 1980* 3:05 pm, Iowa Basketball Network | | at No. 16 Iowa CyHawk Rivalry | L 59–85 | 2–4 | Iowa Fieldhouse (13,365) Iowa City, Iowa |
| December 23, 1980* 7:35 pm, Hawkeye Cablevision | | Alabama-Birmingham | W 71–70 | 3–4 | Hilton Coliseum (6,129) Ames, Iowa |
| December 29, 1980* 7:35 pm | | vs. East Carolina Elm City Classic Semifinals | W 80–73 | 4–4 | Alumni Hall (1,450) Fairfield, Connecticut |
| December 30, 1980* 7:45 pm | | at Fairfield Elm City Classic Championship | W 47–46 | 5–4 | Alumni Hall (1,600) Fairfield, Connecticut |
| January 5, 1981* 7:35 pm, Heritage | | Wisconsin-Parkside | W 67–58 | 6–4 | Hilton Coliseum (6,837) Ames, Iowa |
| January 10, 1981* 7:35 pm, Heritage/Iowa Cable Network | | Western Illinois | W 94–72 | 7–4 | Hilton Coliseum (10,232) Ames, Iowa |
| January 14, 1981 8:10 pm, Heritage/USA | | at Kansas | L 58–70 | 7–5 (0–1) | Allen Fieldhouse (14,850) Lawrence, Kansas |
| January 17, 1981 1:30 pm | | at Missouri | L 69–92 | 7–6 (0–2) | Hearnes Center (11,112) Columbia, Missouri |
| January 19, 1981* 7:30 pm | | at Saint Louis | L 59–61 | 7–7 | Checkerdome (2,556) St. Louis, Missouri |
| January 21, 1981 7:35 pm | | Oklahoma | W 88–67 | 8–7 (1–2) | Hilton Coliseum (8,247) Ames, Iowa |
| January 24, 1981 3:00 pm | | at Oklahoma State | L 75–81 | 8–8 (1–3) | Gallagher Hall (6,700) Stillwater, Oklahoma |
| January 28, 1981 7:35 pm | | Nebraska | L 56–61 | 8–9 (1–4) | Hilton Coliseum (9,017) Ames, Iowa |
| January 31, 1981 7:35 pm | | Kansas State | L 62–75 | 8–10 (1–5) | Hilton Coliseum (11,238) Ames, Iowa |
| February 4, 1981 9:05 pm | | at Colorado | L 62–75 | 8–11 (1–6) | Coors Events Center (4,750) Boulder, Colorado |
| February 7, 1981 2:38 pm, NBC–TVS Big Eight | | Missouri | L 56–70 | 8–12 (1–7) | Hilton Coliseum (10,018) Ames, Iowa |
| February 10, 1981 7:35 pm | | at Oklahoma | L 66–78 | 8–13 (1–8) | Lloyd Noble Center (2,038) Norman, Oklahoma |
| February 14, 1981 7:35 pm | | Kansas | L 49–51 | 8–14 (1–9) | Hilton Coliseum (10,230) Ames, Iowa |
| February 18, 1981 7:35 pm | | at Nebraska | L 61–81 | 8–15 (1–10) | Devaney Sports Center (11,118) Lincoln, Nebraska |
| February 21, 1981 7:35 pm | | Oklahoma State | L 69–76 | 8–16 (1–11) | Hilton Coliseum (7,665) Ames, Iowa |
| February 25, 1981 8:05 pm | | at Kansas State | L 60–67 | 8–17 (1–12) | Ahearn Fieldhouse (11,220) Manhattan, Kansas |
| February 28, 1981 7:35 pm | | Colorado | W 67–56 | 9–17 (2–12) | Hilton Coliseum (7,826) Ames, Iowa |
| Big Eight tournament ||||||
| March 3, 1981 8:05 pm | (8) | at (1) Missouri Big Eight tournament quarterfinals | L 70–95 | 9–18 | Hearnes Center (7,303) Columbia, Missouri |
| *Non-conference game. $^#$Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. ||||||