| Year: | 1980–81 |
| Record: | 9–18 |
| Sport: | Basketball |
| Conference: | Big Eight Conference |
| Short Conf: | Big Eight |
| Team: | Iowa State Cyclones |
| Head Coach: | Johnny Orr |
| Conf Record: | 2–12 |
| Hc Year: | 1st |
| Asst Coach1: | Charlie Harrison |
| Stadium: | Hilton Coliseum |
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.
|-!colspan=6 style=""|Regular season|-!colspan=6 style=""|Big Eight tournament|-[2]