2007-08 ISU Women's Basketball Season In Review

04.21.2008 | Women's Basketball

By: cyclones.com

Cyclone Notebook
- Iowa State overcame a pair of season-ending knee injuries to two starting post players and relied on three newcomers as the Cyclones earned their ninth NCAA berth in the last 12 seasons and their seventh trip to the NCAA second round in school history.
- The Cyclones finished the season with a 21-13 overall record, reaching the 20-win mark for the ninth time in school history. ISU went 7-9 in the Big 12 to finish in a tie with Texas for seventh place in the final league standings. Iowa State lost four league games by a three-point margin.
- Iowa State moved on to the second round of the NCAA Tournament by defeating Georgia Tech, 58-55, but fell to seventh-ranked Rutgers 69-58.
- Iowa State made it to the Big 12 semifinals by defeating Colorado, 76-50, and 15th-ranked and regular-season Big 12 champ Kansas State, 66-65, in an overtime thriller. Iowa State fell 65-53 to 11th-ranked Texas A&M in the semifinals.
- The Cyclones made it to the Big 12 Championship semifinals for the second consecutive season and the seventh time in 12 tries. ISU has been in the semifinals more times than any other conference team.
- Iowa State received votes in poll the Associated Press Poll as well as the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll on and off throughout the season, including 21 votes in the final coaches' poll of the campaign.
- The Cyclones defeated three ranked teams during the season, all on the road or on a neutral court. ISU knocked off Colorado, 84-77, in a double-overtime battle in Boulder when the Buffaloes were ranked 23rd. ISU went to Stillwater, Okla., on Feb. 17, and buried 10 treys, including nine in the first half, en route to a 62-57 win over the 15th-ranked Cowgirls. ISU took down 15th-ranked Kansas State, 66-65, in overtime in the second round of the Big 12 Championship. The Cyclones knocked out the top-seeded Wildcats despite trailing by six points with just 20 seconds remaining in overtime.
- Iowa State front-court starters Toccara Ross and Nicky Wieben missed 25 and 18 games, respectively, due to torn ACLs. Ross tore the ACL in her right knee at Minnesota and Wieben tore the ACL in her left knee at Texas. Ross was awarded a fifth season of athletic eligibility, since she was under the 30 percent participation mark. Wieben will be a senior next season since she had already passed the 30 percent mark at the time of her injury.
- With a 76-50 win over Montana State, the Cyclones collected their 500th win in program history. They are now 517-485 overall. ISU's Big 12 Championship semifinal game against Texas A&M was its 1,000th in program history.
- Head coach Bill Fennelly is 280-132 at Iowa State and in his 13th season with the Cyclones. He is 446-185 in his head coaching career, which began at Toledo in 1988.

NCAA Championship Facts
- In 2007-08, Iowa State made its ninth NCAA Tournament appearance, with all nine berths coming in the last 12 seasons under head coach Bill Fennelly's watch. The Cyclones are now 11-9 in NCAA Tournament games and 3-4 in second round games.
- Iowa State earned a seventh seed or better for the eighth time in school history. The only time the Cyclones have been lower than a seven seed was in their first NCAA Tournament berth in 1997, when they received a 12 seed.
- Iowa State played host to the NCAA women's basketball first- and second-round games for the seventh time since 1998, in addition to serving as host to the 2002 Midwest Regional. The Cyclones hosted the first and second rounds at Wells Fargo Arena in Des Moines, drawing the best attendance of any of the first- and second-round sites with an attendance of 22,650 for the three sessions combined.

Season Highlights
- Four players on Iowa State's roster averaged double-figure scoring for the first time since the 2000-01 campaign. Sophomore point guard Alison Lacey led the squad in scoring with 14.2 points per game, while junior Nicky Wieben posted 12.7 points per game in her 16 games of action. Junior Heather Ezell tallied 10.5 ppg and freshman Kelsey Bolte racked up 10.3 ppg.
- The Cyclones swept the state of Iowa for the third straight season, 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 consecutive mythical state title.
- Freshman Kelsey Bolte scored 20 or more points in each of her first four Big 12 games, becoming the first freshman in league history to do so. She contributed double figures in 10 league games and averaged 12.8 ppg in conference play.
- The Cyclones averaged 7.9 threes per game for the season to rank sixth nationally. Iowa State has ranked in the top 15 in the nation in three-pointers per game for the last 10 years.
- A Cyclone player hit five or more treys in 10 different contests. Alison Lacey hit three or more treys in 14 games, and hit five or more on five occasions. Heather Ezell hit three or more in 11 games and hit five or more on four occasions. Kelsey Bolte drained a career-high five treys in the NCAA first round win over Georgia Tech.
- The Cyclones set a single-season school record for blocked shots with 154. Iowa State ranked 35th in the nation with 4.5 rejections per game. Jocelyn Anderson broke Nicky Wieben's previous single-season ISU record with 75 blocks. Wieben blocked 35 shots of her own in just 16 games, breaking the Iowa State career record for blocked shots just before she was hurt, setting the new mark at 156.
- ISU won the Cyclone Shoot-Out, defeating Bowling Green, Tennessee-Martin and Hampton. Alison Lacey was named MVP and Amanda Nisleit was named to the all-tournament team.
- Nineteen of the Cyclones' 26 opponents in the 2007-08 season earned a postseason berth, including 12 to the NCAA Tournament. Iowa State posted wins over four teams which won its regular-season league titles, including Iowa (Big Ten), Drake (Missouri Valley), Bowling Green (Mid-American) and Kansas State (Big 12).

On Fire
Iowa State junior guard Heather Ezell was named to the 2008 Big 12 Championship All-Tournament Team, announced after the title game. She was the only player named to the team who did not play in the championship game. The Springfield, Mo., native averaged 19.7 points, four rebounds and 2.7 assists per game over three tournament games. She hit 17 three-pointers in the tournament, breaking the Big 12 Championship record. Ezell tied the Big 12 Championship single-game record for three-pointers with seven in the Cyclones' first-round win over Colorado. She then broke that record by hitting eight treys in Iowa State's quarterfinal win over Kansas State. Ezell shot 48.8 percent from the field and 51.5 percent (17-33) from three-point range for the tournament.

Conference Honors
Iowa State sophomore Alison Lacey and freshman Kelsey Bolte earned Big 12 postseason honors. Lacey was named to the All-Big 12 Second Team, while Bolte was named to the Big 12 All-Rookie Team. Lacey ranked 12th in scoring in the Big 12 with 14.2 points per game. She led the conference in three-point shooting, hitting 40.7 percent from long range. She also ranked second in three-pointers per game (2.6) and was fourth in assists (4.3). Bolte was named to the all-rookie team after being named Big 12 Rookie of the Week on three occasions, including the first two weeks of the Big 12 season. The Ida Grove, Iowa, native scored 20+ points in each of her first four conference games, a feat no other freshman has accomplished in Big 12 history.

Head of the Class
Amanda Nisleit and Alison Lacey were named to the 2008 Academic All-Big 12 Teams. Nisleit was named to the academic first team, boasting a 3.82 grade-point average in elementary education. The Woodbury, Minn., has won the award for two consecutive seasons. Lacey earned a spot on the second team after posting a 3.13 GPA in her last two semesters combined in communication studies.

Double Trouble
Six players accounted for Iowa State's eight double-double performances in 2007-08. Junior Amanda Nisleit earned her first career double-double with 11 points and 12 boards against Georgia Tech in the NCAA first round. 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. Nicky Wieben added the third of the year at Colorado with 14 points and 11 boards. Alison Lacey claimed the fourth double-double of the season and came very close to a triple-double vs. Missouri with 14 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists. Jocelyn Anderson earned the first three double-doubles of her career against Baylor, Missouri and Kansas State (in the Big 12 Championship). Lacey earned the first point-assist double-double of her career with 13 points and 10 assists vs. Colorado in the Big 12 Championship.

Record Set
Junior Nicky Wieben broke Angie Welle's Iowa State career record for blocked shots against Texas, before suffering her season-ending knee injury. Wieben reset the record with 156 blocked shots in her first three seasons at ISU. Welle set the previous record from 1998 to 2002 with 155. Wieben is also seventh on the Big 12 career list.

In the Books
Jocelyn Anderson rewrote the Iowa State single-season blocked shots record. Anderson blocked 75 shots in 2007-08, taking down Nicky Wieben's previous record of 62, which she set in 2006-07. Anderson also finished the season ranking eighth on the Iowa State all-time career chart. She blocked a career-high seven shots, one shy of the ISU single-game record, against Baylor.

Build It and They Will Come
ISU ranked fifth nationally in fans per game with 9,388, in the national attendance rankings which were put out following the regular season by the NCAA. Iowa State had 11,824 fans at the Kansas game, which ranked 20th on the ISU all-time attendance list.

Weekly Big 12 Honors
Iowa State earned five weekly honors from the Big 12. Kelsey Bolte earned Big 12 Rookie of the Week honors three times apiece during the season, while Heather Ezell and Alison Lacey each were named Big 12 Player of the Week once during the season.

Bolte was named Big 12 Rookie of the Week during the first two weeks of conference play, after four straight games with 20+ points, and again on Feb. 18 after solid performances vs. Kansas State and Oklahoma State.

Alison Lacey was named Big 12 Player of the Week on Feb. 11, after she averaged 23 points, six rebounds, and five assists in Iowa State's wins over Texas Tech and Missouri.

Junior Heather Ezell was named 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.

A Fine Line
In their first four games decided by five or less points, the Cyclones came up on the short end. Iowa State had lost four games in conference play by three points, but four of its final six wins came by margins of five (Oklahoma State), four (Missouri), one (Kansas State at the Big 12 Championship) and three points (Georgia Tech in the NCAA tourney). ISU also fell to Baylor by four points during that stretch.

Three of a Kind
Alison Lacey and Heather Ezell combined for 165 of Iowa State's 267 three-pointers. Lacey was 26th in the nation in three-point percentage and 28th in three-pointers per game. Ezell was 102nd nationally in three-point percentage and 62nd in treys per game.

Ezell hit 10 three-pointers against Sacramento State. Lacey hit nine treys in the next contest against Michigan and drained seven at Colorado. In the Big 12 Championship, Ezell tied the tournament record with seven treys against Colorado and then broke it the next day against Kansas State with eight. She finished the tournament with a Big 12 Championship record 17 threes.

The pair knocked down nine combined three-pointers at Minnesota, 10 combined against Bowling Green, 10 combined at Colorado, 13 vs. Colorado in the Big 12 Championship and hit all 12 of ISU's three-point makes vs. KSU in the Big 12 quarterfinals.

Lacey hit a three-pointer in all but one game. Ezell had at least one in 27 of the Cyclones' 34 games. Lacey hit three or more in 14 games, while Ezell hit three or more 11 times.

Taking Care of the Ball
Sophomore point guard Alison Lacey finished her first season as Iowa State's full-time starting point guard. She ranked 60th nationally and second in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio. She passed out 4.3 assists per game, while committing just 2.6 turnovers per contest. In Big 12 contests, Lacey had 57 assists and 39 turnovers.

Anderson's Turnaround
Junior Jocelyn Anderson hit 15 consecutive free throws before missing one in the second half against Baylor. The streak began in the Kansas State game and spanned four contests. Before the Kansas State home game, Anderson was shooting 48.4 percent from the charity stripe and from that point forward she shot 60.5 percent. Anderson knocked down a key pair of free throws at the end of the game to clinch the win at Mizzou and finished the season shooting 53.3 percent from the stripe.

70 Is the Magic Number
ISU is 66-5 (.930) in the last five seasons when scoring 70+ points in a game. The Cyclones had its 24-game win streak when reaching the 70-point mark snapped during the 2007-08 season at home against Nebraska. The streak dated back to a 79-71 OT win over Wisconsin-Green Bay on March 16, 2006.

Getting Defensive
Iowa State held opponents to 55.9 points per game and Nebraska and Kansas State were the only two teams to break the 70-point mark in regulation against ISU. An ISU opponent only hit the 60-point mark 10 times in 34 tries. The Cyclones finished the season third in the nation in fewest fouls with 13 per game. ISU's opponents shot 38.9 percent from the floor and 32.1 percent from three-point range. ISU forced opponents into 13.4 turnovers per game.

Nationally Speaking
ISU ranked in the top 35 in six NCAA statistical categories, in the final season statistics, including ranking third in the nation in fewest personal fouls per game (13.0). The Cyclones were sixth in three-pointers per game (7.9), 16th in turnovers per game (14.0) and 18th in scoring defense. ISU was 27th in three-point percentage (.363) and 35th in blocked shots per game (4.5). On an individual level, Alison Lacey finished the season ranked 26th in three-point percentage, 28th in threes per game, 60th in assist-to-turnover ratio and 74th in assists. Heather Ezell was 62nd in treys per game and 102nd in three-point percentage. Jocelyn Anderson was 30th in blocked shots.

Big 12 Rankings
As a team, Iowa State finished the season ranked in the top six of the conference in eight of 19 statistical categories. The Cyclones led the conference in three-pointers per game (7.9), three-point percentage (.363) and rebounding defense. Iowa State was second in assist-to-turnover ratio and scoring defense (55.9). The Cyclones were fifth in rebounding margin, and sixth in free-throw percentage (.689) and blocked shots (4.5). Individually, Alison Lacey led the league in three-point percentage (.407) and was second in three-pointers made with 2.6 per contest. Heather Ezell was fifth in three-pointers made with 2.3 pg and Kelsey Bolte was 12th (1.4). Lacey and Ezell also ranked third and seventh, respectively, in assist-to-turnover ratio. Lacey was 12th in scoring (14.2 ppg) and fourth in assists (4.3), while Ezell was 13th in assists (3.1). Jocelyn Anderson was fifth in blocked shots per game (2.2).

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 in 2006-07.

Williams, a 5-7 guard, played for the Texas Home Educators Sports Association (THESA) of Fort Worth, which finished 38-12 om 2006-07 under head coach Alan Burt. She hit 206 three-pointers 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 2006-07. She was named first-team all-state as a sophomore and junior.

Trey Bien
Iowa State has made at least one three-pointer in 414 consecutive games dating back to 1995. That streak now ranks second in the nation. Canisius College unofficially holds the longest current streak at 419 consecutive games, while Iowa State is second.

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 finished 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 six seasons.