Iowa State women's basketball team preparing for huge week at Hilton Coliseum
The Iowa State women’s basketball team got through the first three contests of the Big 12 Conference season unscathed with a trip to Oklahoma State, a visit at home from Kansas and a road game at BYU.
But those challenges are nothing like the Cyclones will face this week.
Iowa State will play not one, but two tough teams in the coming days. The first comes Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. when the Cyclones take on West Virginia at Hilton Coliseum. The second takes place Saturday at noon when Iowa State battles No. 7 Baylor at home.
“We’ll figure out Sunday at about 2:30, we’ll have a pretty good idea of where we are and all the stuff that we need to work on,” said Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly. “It’s good to be home, but at the same time, we know what we’re facing.”
The Cyclones (10-4 overall, 3-0 in Big 12) are facing one of the most difficult parts of their schedule. Their next two opponents have combined to go 27-1 this season. West Virginia (13-1 overall, 2-1 in Big 12) is coming off a loss to Texas and just fell out of the USA Coaches Poll. Baylor has rolled to a 14-0 mark including a 3-0 record in Big 12 play.
They'll be monumental matchups for Iowa State's young roster. The Cyclones have quickly turned into one of the biggest surprise stories of the season in the Big 12, using five freshmen for significant playing time. The five, Arianna Jackson, Addy Brown, Jalynn Bristow, Kelsey Joens and Audi Crooks, have had help from veterans Emily Ryan and Nyamer Diew. Transfers Hannah Belanger and Isnelle Natabou have also had a big impact.
The revitalized roster has tallied six straight victories. Suddenly, the Cyclones, who were expected to be in a rebuilding season of sorts, are in the hunt for a conference crown. They’ve also moved into the NCAA Tournament conversation with ESPN bracketologist Charlie Creme listing Iowa State among his last four in during his latest projections.
A big week from the Cyclones can keep them in those conversations even longer. Even with so much at stake so early in the season, Fennelly insists neither he nor his team is looking at what type of impact the week can have on the big picture of the season.
“I think you’ve got to be very careful about getting too excited about one game or even one week because there’s so many to go,” Fennelly said. “Our players know what the opportunity is, especially with West Virginia because we’re going to turn around and go there in two weeks. So, you want to be ready to play (Wednesday).”
The challenges of this week are certainly bigger than anything Iowa State has faced this season. West Virginia and Baylor boast not only talented teams but difficult defenses that Fennelly is preparing to give his team fits.
“I think West Virginia’s pressure and the way Baylor’s playing, we’re going to see a style that we don’t really fit that well (with),” he said. “So, we’ve got to have more of a mental toughness than maybe we’ve had or needed to have in some other games because of what we’re facing.”
The uptick in competition and what's at stake is something certainly new for much of Iowa State's young roster. It has the makings to have a big impact on the outcome of the team's season. But it likely won't make or break it with many other big opponents still awaiting the Cyclones.
"That's the Big 12 and that's the level you sign up for," Fennelly said.
Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He's the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State women's basketball embarking on a tough stretch of season
