AMES, Iowa – Iowa State men’s basketball coach T.J. Otzelberger has announced the addition of Utah Valley transfer Dominick Nelson to the 2025-26 Iowa State roster. Nelson is the fourth transfer to commit to the Cyclones, joining Purdue Fort Wayne transfer Eric Mulder, Eastern Washington transfer Mason Williams and Virginia transfer Blake Buchanan.

Nelson is a 6-5 guard out of Miami who prepped at Liberty Heights Athletic Institute in Charlotte, N.C. Nelson played last season for the Wolverines and the two previous seasons at Polk State College in Florida. He currently has one year of eligibility at Iowa State.

Starting all 34 games for Utah Valley, Nelson led the Wolverines to the WAC regular season championship and a berth in the NIT. The WAC Player of the Year, Nelson averaged 14.4 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Nelson led the WAC in both free throws made and attempted, while ranking 13^th in the NCAA with his 237 free throw attempts. He was fourth in the WAC in total points with 489, while ranking 10^th in the league with 24 blocked shots and 176 total rebounds.

“An explosive athlete, Dominick can get to the rim and draw a ton of fouls,” Otzelberger said. “He has good length and is a great rebounder on both ends of the floor from the guard position, while he excels in transition. Dominick is a high-character individual who has a great work ethic.”

Nelson scored in double figures in 27 of the 34 games he played last season, including a career-high 25 on three different occasions. All three games with 25 points were road victories for the Wolverines in WAC play. Nine of his games in double figures were 20 or more points, including a 22-point performance at Stanford. Nelson tallied a career-high nine rebounds in a victory at Murray State, while having 13 games with at least seven rebounds. In his two years at Polk State, he earned First Team All-Citrus Conference honors, while going over the 1,000-point mark. During the 2023-24 season, he averaged 20.1 points per game, while scoring in double figures in 27 of the 28 games. He had a season-high 33 points against Indian River State. He shot 45 percent from the field and 74 percent at the free throw line for Polk State.