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Women's Basketball
UW-Oshkosh (Ex.)
Iowa State University Athletics
Cyclones Open Big 12 Play with No. 6 Oklahoma
01.07.2008 | Women's Basketball
Jan. 9, 2008 ? 7 p.m.
Ames, Iowa. ? Hilton Coliseum (14,356)
Radio: Cyclone Radio Network/Learfield
Talent: Rich Fellingham (pxp); Brent Blum (color)
Webcast: Clone Zone
Cyclone Notebook
-Iowa State begins its 12th season of Big 12 Conference action on Wednesday when the Cyclones play host to sixth-ranked Oklahoma at 7 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum. The last time the two teams met, it was for the 2007 Big 12 Championship in Oklahoma City. The Sooners claimed a 67-60 win to take the tournament title.
-The Cyclones are coming off a nine-day layoff and begin Big 12 play against the Sooners. Following the opener, the Cyclones will travel to Colorado on Jan. 13, and Texas on Jan. 16.
-ISU's lone senior, Toccara Ross, will miss the remainder of the 2007-08 season due to a torn ACL suffered in the game at Minnesota.
-With a 76-50 win over Montana State, the Cyclones collected their 500th win in program history. The are now 507-474 overall.
-Oklahoma holds a 28-17 advantage in the all-time series between the two teams. The Sooners have won the last four meetings, and Iowa State had won 10 of the last 11 before the current stretch.
-ISU has won its last 15 games at home, dating back to last season. The Cyclones have won 17 straight at home against non-conference opponents.
-Oklahoma is also coming off a nine-day layoff after defeating South Carolina, 95-63, on Dec. 30. The Sooners are 9-2 on the season after dropping their first two games of the season against Maryland, 76-66, and Tennessee, 70-67, on neutral courts.
-Subscribers to the Clone Zone will have access to nine more live game web casts of the women's basketball team, including the Oklahoma game. To subscribe to the Clone Zone, go to Cyclones.com.
-Iowa State returned 10 letterwinners from its 2006-07 NCAA Tournament team. Last year's squad went 26-9 overall and 10-6 to finish tied for fourth in the Big 12 Conference. Iowa State lost four players from last season, including a pair of four-year starters in Lyndsey Medders and Megan Ronhovde.
-The Cyclones have added three newcomers to their roster, but only one is a freshman. Kelsey Bolte is Iowa State's only true freshman from Ida Grove, Iowa. Denae Stuckey is a sophomore transfer from Butler Community College and junior Jocelyn Anderson came to ISU from Des Moines Area Community College.
-Iowa State is coming off one of its best seasons in school history, recording a 26-9 overall record, one win shy of the school record. The Cyclones made the postseason for the 10th time in the last 11 seasons, making it to the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Cyclones won nine of their final 11 games of the season and won three games in as many days to make it to the title game of the Big 12 Championship against Oklahoma in Oklahoma City.
-Head coach Bill Fennelly is 270-121 at Iowa State and in his 13th season with the Cyclones. He is 436-174 in his head coaching career, which began at Toledo in 1988.
A Closer Look At Oklahoma
-Oklahoma is averaging 80.5 points this season, while holding opponents to 57.6 per game. The Sooners are 9-2 on the season, but have won nine straight after dropping their first two games on neutral floors to Maryland, 76-66, and Tennessee, 70-67. Oklahoma's wins have come against Arizona State, Illinois, Michigan State, South Carolina and others.
-Courtney and Ashley Paris lead the Sooners in scoring this season. Courtney leads the squad with 16.3 points and 16.3 rebounds per game. Ashley isn't far behind on the scoreboard with 13.2 points per game and 6.9 boards, which ranks third on the team. Amanda Thompson is second on the glass with 7.1 rpg. Freshman Danielle Robinson leads the squad in assists with 4.5 per contest.
-Courtney Paris scored just 10 points, but collected 24 rebounds to continue her double-double streak to 72 games against South Carolina. She has 77 double-doubles in 80 career games.
-Oklahoma head coach Sherri Coale is tied with Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly for Big 12 regular-season career wins with 110. Coale is in her 12th season at the helm of the Sooner program. She has led OU to the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles the last two years. Coale is the current president of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association. She led the Sooners to the NCAA title game against Connecticut in 2002.
-The Sooners are outrebounding opponents by 17.7 boards a game. Oklahoma is shooting 49 percent from the field and 34.2 percent from long range. The Sooners have held opponents to 35.3 percent shooting. OU is averaging 17.4 assists, but 18.7 turnovers per contest.
Quick Hits
-Iowa State is 7-4 in Big 12 season openers. The Cyclones have opened the conference season against Oklahoma twice and have split those meetings. ISU and OU met in the league opener last in 2005-06, when the 18th-ranked Sooners earned an 87-67 win in Ames.
-The Cyclones have swept the state of Iowa for the last three seasons, winning all three games against instate Division I opponents. ISU knocked of Iowa, 58-44, Drake, 58-51, and Northern Iowa, 69-41, for its third straight mythical state title this season.
-The Cyclones averaged 10.7 three-pointers per game during their three-day tournament last weekend. Iowa State is now averaging 8.2 treys per game for the season. A Cyclone player has hit at least five treys in five different contests this season. Alison Lacey has hit three or more treys in each of the last six games, and has hit five twice.
-Junior Nicky Wieben has been in double digits in 10 of ISU's 13 games this season. Wieben has led the Cyclones in scoring in six contests this season.
-Nicky Wieben and Jocelyn Anderson have combined for 55 of ISU's 73 blocked shots on the season. Wieben is averaging 2.4 blocks per game after swatting seven in the first half against Hampton. She ranks fourth in the league and tied for 25th in the nation in blocks per game. She holds the ISU class record for freshmen and sophomores and already is tied for third on the junior list with 31 this season. She needs just four to break the ISU career record and 16 to break the junior class record.
-Sophomore transfer Denae Stuckey has started every game in her initial season at Iowa State.
-Heather Ezell hit 10 three-pointers against Sacramento State and Alison Lacey hit nine treys in the next contest against Michigan. The pair knocked down nine combined three-pointers at Minnesota and 10 combined against Bowling Green.
-Amanda Nisleit is averaging 6.9 ppg, after entering the season averaging 1.6 for her career. She is averaging 4.6 rebounds per contest after coming in posting 1.2 rpg.
-Toccara Ross earned the Cyclones' first double-double of the season against Iowa with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Kelsey Bolte got the second double-double of the season against Creighton with 15 points and 10 rebounds.
-The Cyclones have been outrebounded three times this season, but they hold an +8.2 rebounding margin through 13 games.
-Junior forward Gillian Bjerke has transferred to Concordia University, St. Paul, a Division II school. Bjerke did not play for the Cyclones this season, but had played in 26 games in her career prior to this season.
Build It and They Will Come
In the national attendance rankings which were last put out on Monday, Dec. 17, by the University of Wisconsin, the Cyclones ranked third nationally in fans per game with 9,540. Tennessee and Connecticut are the only two teams ahead of Iowa State this season.
Last Time Out
Iowa State swept the American Family Insurance Cyclone Shoot-Out last weekend, defeating Bowling Green, Tennessee-Martin and Hampton. The Cyclones knocked off Hampton, 66-47, on Dec. 30, behind Alison Lacey's 19 points and Nicky Wieben's seven blocked shots and 16 points. Lacey was named the MVP of the tournament, while Amanda Nisleit earned a spot on the all-tourney team after pulling down 10 rebounds against Hampton. The Cyclones shot 46.9 percent from the field and hit nine from long range, while holding the Lady Pirates to 27 percent from the floor. Hampton outrebounded ISU, 41-34, and forced the Cyclones into 17 turnovers.
70 Is the Magic Number
ISU is 64-4 (.941) in the last five seasons when scoring 70+ points in a game. The Cyclones currently have a 23-game win streak when reaching the 70-point mark, dating back to a 79-71 OT win over Wisconsin-Green Bay on March 16, 2006.
Getting Defensive
Iowa State has held opponents to 50.7 points per game and has only allowed two opponents to score more than 60 points this season (62 by No. 19 Vanderbilt and 69 by Minnesota). ISU's opponents have shot 34.8 percent from the floor and 30.5 percent from three-point range. ISU has forced opponents into 15.4 turnovers per game. Iowa State leads the Big 12 in scoring defense.
Nationally Speaking
ISU ranked in the top 25 in eight NCAA statistical categories, released Jan. 3, including leading the nation in fewest personal fouls. The Cyclones were fifth in scoring defense and three-point field goals made. ISU was tied for sixth in fewest turnovers per game, 14th in assist-to-turnover ratio and 17th in blocked shots per contest. On an individual level, Nicky Wieben is tied for 25th in blocked shots. Alison Lacey ranks in the top 50 in three categories, including ranking ninth in three-point percentage, 17th in three-pointers per game and 44th in assist-to-turnover ratio.
Big 12 Rankings
As a team, Iowa State ranks in the top six of the conference in nine of the 19 statistical categories. The Cyclones lead the conference in three-point field goal percentage (.384) and scoring defense (50.7). Iowa State is second in the league in three-pointers per game (8.2), assist-to-turnover margin and blocked shots (5.6). ISU is third in rebounding defense and is fifth in field goal percentage defense. Individually, Alison Lacey leads the league in three-pointers made with 2.9 per contest and three-point percentage (.474). Heather Ezell is tied for fifth in three-pointers made with 2.3 pg. The pair also rank fourth and seventh, respectively, in assist-to-turnover ratio. Lacey is 13th in scoring (13.8 ppg) and Nicky Wieben is 17th (13.2 ppg). Wieben is also fourth in blocked shots, seventh in the conference in free throw percentage and 10th in field goal percentage.
Down on the Block
Junior Nicky Wieben finished in double figures against Hampton (16), marking the 44th time in her ISU career she has scored in double digits and the 10th time this season to score 10+ points for the Cyclones. She also has 31 blocks on the season and 152 blocked shots for her career. She needs just four blocks to break the Iowa State career record.
Big 12 Player of the Week
Heather Ezell was named the Big 12 Player of the Week on Monday, Nov. 19, after she tied the Big 12 and Iowa State records for three-pointers in a single game, knocking down 10 in a 99-45 win over Sacramento State. She broke the Hilton Coliseum record, which was previously eight three-pointers, and she tied Stacy Frese (ISU, 1999) and Laurie Koehn (Kansas State, 2003) in the Big 12 record book.
On Point
Sophomore Alison Lacey set a new career high with 10 assists against Pepperdine in her official debut as ISU's starting point guard. Lacey has passed out a team-leading 57 assists this season for a 4.4 apg average, while committing just 30 turnovers.
Coaching Consistency
Iowa State has returned the same coaching staff for the last five seasons. Associate head coach Jack Easley is the newest to the staff and is in his fifth campaign with the Cyclones. Latoja Schaben is not new to the staff, but she was married during the offseason, going from Latoja Harris to Latoja Schaben. She played for Coach Fennelly at Toledo, while fellow assistant Jodi Steyer coached for Fennelly at Toledo from 1989 to 1996 and has been at Iowa State for the past five seasons.
The Votes Are In
The Iowa State women's basketball team received 17 votes in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll last week, ranking 30th. The Cyclones have not received a vote in the AP Poll in the last several weeks.
Coming On Board
Iowa State will add the services of three outstanding newcomers in 2008-09, head coach Bill Fennelly announced when Ashley Arlen (Cascade, Iowa), Whitney Williams (Ft. Worth, Texas) and Alexis Yackley (Onida, S.D.) each signed national letters of intent.
Arlen is a 6-1 forward, who averaged 19.2 points, 9.8 rebounds and two blocks per game, while shooting 56 percent from the field for the Cascade Bruins last season.
Williams, a 5-7 guard, plays for the Texas Home Educators Sports Association (THESA) of Fort Worth, which finished 38-12 last year under head coach Alan Burt. She hit 206 three-pointers last season at a 48.7 percent clip and averaged 24.3 points as a junior.
Yackley, also a 5-7 guard, has been the starting point guard for Sully Buttes High School since the eighth grade, and led the Chargers to the South Dakota State B Basketball state title in her junior season. She was named first-team all-state as a sophomore and junior.
Fennelly's the Dean of the Big 12
With Jody Conradt stepping down as head coach at the University of Texas at the conclusion of last season, Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly became the new dean of Big 12 coaches. Fennelly wrapped up his 12th season at Iowa State, followed closely by Deb Patterson (Kansas State) and Sherri Coale (Oklahoma), who each finished their 11th campaign at a Big 12 institution. Fennelly is tied with Coale for the most Big 12 regular-season wins by current league coaches with 110.
Home Sweet Hilton Magic
The Cyclones have been phenomenal at home during head coach Bill Fennelly's tenure, compiling a 163-27 record (.858) in Hilton Coliseum, including a 78-3 (.963) mark against regular-season non-conference opponents. Iowa State was a last-second shot away from going undefeated at home in 2006-07, finishing with a 15-1 record at Hilton. ISU finished the 2006-07 season ranked seventh in attendance, marking the ninth consecutive season the Cyclones have ranked 11th or higher in the nation.
Trey Bien
Iowa State has made at least one three-pointer in 392 consecutive games dating back to 1995. That streak now ranks second in the nation. Canisius College unofficially holds the longest current streak at 402 consecutive games, while Iowa State is second.
NCAA Tournament Host
Iowa State will play host to the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball First and Second Rounds at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, Iowa, on March, 22 and 24, 2008. The site will host eight teams and if Iowa State is selected for the 2008 NCAA Tournament, it is guaranteed that the Cyclones will be one of the eight teams that will play in Des Moines. The teams selected to play in Des Moines will be announced on the NCAA Selection Show on ESPN Monday, March 17, 2008.
Fans can purchase all-session tickets ($35 for adults and $20 for students and youth) and single-session tickets ($15 for adults and $10 for students and youth per session). A single-session ticket will be available the week of the event and each session will include two games. Anyone 18 and under and all college students qualify for the student/youth fee. Fans can purchase tickets online at www.dahlstickets.com or by calling 1-8866-55DAHLS (866-553-2457).
Preseason Picks
The Iowa State women's basketball team was picked sixth by the Big 12 Conference coaches in the 2007-08 preseason poll. Iowa State was ranked 36th by CBSSports.com in its preseason magazine. The Cyclones were one of seven teams from the Big 12 ranked by the magazine.
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/ Women's BasketballBill Fennelly Media Day 10-16-25
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Tuesday, July 15
Bill Fennelly 7_15_25 interview
Tuesday, July 15
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