Completed Event: Women's Basketball versus UCF on January 31, 2026 , Win , 65, to, 52
Final
Women's Basketball
65
UCF
52
Iowa State University Athletics
CYber CYd: Denae Stuckey and Her KU Brother
09.30.2008 | Women's Basketball
Another school year has begun and the Cyclone women's basketball team is already back hard at work, preparing for the upcoming season. In order to give Cyclone fans an inside look at the Iowa State women's basketball team, head coach Bill Fennelly and members of the ISU team will be posting a weekly blog at cyclones.com on Tuesday of each week throughout the school year.
Fans will have a chance to hear directly from Coach Fennelly throughout the year about how practice is going, how the team is doing during the season, and what he sees as the staples of the ISU women's basketball program. Players will talk to you each week about their perspective of school life, practices, games, and the daily hurdles of being a Division I student-athlete.
Denae Stuckey talks to you about her split football allegiance this weekend, with a loved one on each team. She discusses her family and what she sees for her future. Next week check back to hear from Claire Rockall. Find out how the freshman from Ireland has made the transition to the United States and what she thinks about Cyclone basketball.
This is a good week. Monday, I ran the mile in 6:47; which is 30 seconds better than my first time. As a matter of fact, I did quite well in conditioning all week.
I am very excited about this weekend. I am looking forward to seeing my family, my fianc?e's (Michael Bibbs for those who don't know) family, and most importantly my brother Darrell (a safety for the Kansas football team). He is playing against our team Saturday.
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I don't get to go home much during the school year because of the basketball season, so my family coming up and staying the weekend means a lot to me. This will be the first time my parents and Michael's will meet in person. They have met over the phone, but it is nothing like spending a little time together.
Darrell and I have a really close relationship (people even think we are twins, but really we are 11 months apart), but we are so busy that we don't get to talk much and we rarely see each other. I didn't have a chance to go to a game last season to see him play, so the fact that he plays against us at home means that I finally get to watch him play in person. I know that it's cute that he and I both play in the Big 12, but I think it's even better to be able to have a relationship with him.
Sometimes I have to remind him that I'm his sister - not his daughter - but it's good that he tries to keep me in line I guess. I keep him in line too. When we were in high school, it seemed like I was the older one because I had to make sure he woke up and got dressed so we could leave on time. Darrell was not a morning person, so he would go right back to sleep when I walked away. It's great being his sister and I had an interesting life following him around as a little girl, but I'm grateful for the man he has become.
My brother is a highlight in my life, as well as my mother. But most people don't know that I have a niece, Jayla, who is pretty much my child. When I was a junior in high school, my sister (Jodi) had Jayla, but she was hospitalized because of medical problems. I took care of Jayla alone while I was in school and playing basketball. It was hard because I never was a mother, but I have little cousins that I babysat sometimes. That gave me some sort of experience with infants. I was tired all the time because I was waking up all through the night. I didn't want to wake my mother and ask her for help because she worked nine hours every day. I have a bond with Jayla that I couldn't share with anyone else, at least not until I have my own in some years. If you come to my home basketball games, you will see her with my mother cheering. She will be here for the football game against KU, so if you are on KU's side you will see her with my mother.
Even though Darrell plays for KU, I am still representing ISU. I am getting a shirt made with Darrell on one half and Michael on the other. When I told my mother about my shirt she insisted that I make her one, but she wanted Darrell on one side and me on the other. For the longest time, my mother insisted that I was going to sit on KU's side with her and the rest of my family while I cheered for Darrell, but I told her that I get in free with my ticket and I'm representing ISU not KU.
It would be nice to attend the same college as Darrell, but ISU is my path and this is where God placed me. Just like KU is where He placed Darrell. I love playing at ISU. I wouldn't transfer colleges if I had the chance. I think this is my destiny and I am going to finish school here.
My major is child and adult family services and I believe it is the best major ever. There isn't anything better than helping children develop. I have so much care and love in my heart that I need to share it with some very important (and vulnerable) people, which are kids. I want to teach them what their parents need me to teach them. It makes me happy inside and out to see a child smile and laugh. When I finally finish college, I want to work on opening up my own daycare center until it escalates to a huge center with many employees who care about the children just as much as I do. I will of course have a family of my own and plan on living the life that I dream of.
Go ISU!
Players Mentioned
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