Iowa State to Face Kansas State in Top 25 Clash

01.29.2009 | Women's Basketball

By: cyclones.com

AMES, Iowa - The No. 22/23 Iowa State women's basketball team returns to Hilton Coliseum for a two-game homestand, beginning with a rematch against No. 14/12 Kansas State Saturday at 7 p.m. ISU is holding a letterwinners reunion Friday night and will recognize all former letterwinners at halftime Saturday with a special tribute to the NCAA Elite Eight team of 1998-99.

Who: No. 22/23 Iowa State (15-4; 3-2) vs. No. 14/12 Kansas State (18-1; 5-1)
When: Saturday, Jan. 31, 2009 ? 7 p.m.
Where: Ames, Iowa ? Hilton Coliseum (14,356)
Live Stats: Live stats will be available at cyclones.com
Radio: Cyclone Radio Network/Learfield: Rich Fellingham (pxp); Molly Parrott (color)
Webcast: Clone Zone

Complete Pre-Event Coverage
Notes Webcast		Live Stats

Cyclone Notebook
? Following the game against Kansas State, the Cyclones will play host to No. 11/7 Texas A&M Wednesday at 7 p.m. Iowa State will next return home on Feb. 15 for a nationally televised game (ESPN2) against No. 16/17 Texas in the Cyclones' Pink Zone game. Fans are encouraged to pack Hilton Coliseum in pink as a part of the WBCA initiative to raise breast cancer awareness.
? Iowa State's game against Kansas State is the Cyclones' final contest in a string of four straight against Big 12 North division teams.
? Iowa State's 12-2 non-conference mark ranked fourth among Big 12 squads this season. The Cyclones are 10-0 at Hilton Coliseum and are 2-3 against ranked teams with an exciting 55-51 win over 20th-ranked Vanderbilt and a 63-55 win over No. 21 Oklahoma State.
? Iowa State is 3-2 in the Big 12 this season, with both league losses coming on the road against teams ranked in the Top 20 (No. 5/5 Baylor, No. 17/14 Kansas State).
? ISU seniors Heather Ezell and Nicky Wieben have each joined the 1,000-point club this season. They became the 19th and 20th players, respectively, in ISU history to reach the monumental mark. Ezell reached her 1,000th career point against Drake, and Wieben cleared the hurdle against IPFW. Junior Alison Lacey also needs just 54 points to become the third Cyclone this season to join the club.
? Iowa State won a string of eight straight games from Dec. 11 through Jan. 10. The Cyclones have won 40 straight regular-season non-conference contests at Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones have not lost a regular-season non-conference game at home since the 2003-04 season (Washington).
? ISU is in its 36th season of women's basketball and its 14th season under head coach Bill Fennelly. Iowa State is 533-488 in school history.
? Iowa State is coming off a 21-13 campaign in 2007-08. The Cyclones made it to the second round of the NCAA Championship a year ago, defeating Georgia Tech in the first round and falling to Rutgers in the second. ISU finished 7-9 in the Big 12 for a seventh-place tie with Texas in the final league standings. The Cyclones made it to the Big 12 Championship semifinals by defeating Colorado, 76-50, and 15th-ranked and regular-season Big 12 champ Kansas State, 66-65, in an overtime thriller.
? Head coach Bill Fennelly is 295-136 at Iowa State and in his 14th season with the Cyclones. He is 461-189 in his head coaching career, which began at Toledo in 1988.

The Series
? Kansas State holds a 44-25 lead in the all-time series between the two teams, which dates back to 1974. The Wildcats are 16-14 against Iowa State in Ames. The series has been much closer, however, since the formation of the Big 12. Iowa State holds a 15-12 lead in the series since the beginning of the Big 12 Conference.
? Iowa State had won four straight meetings with Kansas State until the Wildcats won both regular-season games last season. The two teams met for a third time in 2007-08 in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals, where the Cyclones knocked off the 15th-ranked Wildcats, 66-65, in an exciting overtime contest.
? In the first meeting of the season, Iowa State fell 59-52 at No. 17/14 Kansas State. Kelsey Bolte led the Cyclones with 20 points, while Alison Lacey contributed 13. The Cyclones shot 33.9 percent from the field and went 4-for-17 from three-point range. Shalee Lehning scored 22 points, while Marlies Gipson poured in 13 for the Wildcats. Kansas State shot 47.6 percent from the field and knocked down just two three-pointers, but went 17-for-27 from the charity stripe. Lacey nailed a trey and Bolte hit a jumper to make the score 54-50 with 1:50 remaining, but Lehning hit a long three-pointer to extend the KSU lead back to seven with 34 seconds left. Lacey hit a pair of free throws (57-52) and the Cyclone defense got a stop on the other end, but ISU couldn't get a shot to fall and KSU finished off the win with two free throws.

A Closer Look At Kansas State
? The defending Big 12 Conference regular-season champion, No. 14/12 Kansas State comes to Ames with an 18-1 overall record (5-1 in the Big 12) and riding a four-game winning streak. The Wildcats' only loss this season came at Oklahoma (64-48).
? Kansas State's nearly perfect record this season has come as a direct result of solid performances by a trio of upperclassmen. Ashley Sweat has led the Wildcats with 15.8 points per game. Marlies Gipson is averaging 13.4 ppg and leads the squad with 3.6 blocks per contest. Shalee Lehning is posting 11.7 points per game, has led the squad on the glass with 7.6 rpg and is passing out an NCAA-leading 8.4 assists per game.
? The Wildcat defense is leading the nation, holding opponents to 49.3 points per contest this season. Even more impressive is the 48.8 ppg Big 12 opponents have been held to by KSU.
? The Kansas State offense has been solid this season, as the Wildcats are shooting 46.5 percent from the field and 32.5 percent from beyond the arc. Six KSU players have hit 10 or more three-pointers this season, and as a team Kansas State averages 5.8 treys per contest.
? Kansas State is the reigning Big 12 Conference regular-season champion after going 13-3 in league action last season. The Wildcats finished the season 22-10 overall and made it to their 10th NCAA Championship, where they went to the second round before being ousted by Louisville.
? Head coach Deb Patterson is in her 13th season at Kansas State and holds a 258-139 overall record. She was named the 2008 Big 12 Coach of the Year. She has been assistant coach at Vanderbilt, Southern Illinois and Northern Illinois.

Making the Connection
Iowa State junior Anna Florzak has played AAU basketball with many of the Kansas State players. Freshman Whitney Williams will reconnect with Shalin Spani. The two competed against each other at the homeschool national tournament, and are great friends. Their friendship extends to their families as well.

Cyclones on the Web
At least 16 Iowa State women's basketball games this season will be broadcast on the internet on the Clone Zone at cyclones.com. Fans can purchase monthly memberships for $8.95 or annual memberships for $79.95. Memberships also allow fans to view press conferences and special interviews with members of the Cyclone women's basketball team. The Clone Zone will broadcast the remaining games this season: Kansas State (Jan. 31), Texas A&M (Feb. 4), Nebraska (Feb. 18), Colorado (Feb. 25) and Kansas (March 7).

Last Time Out
Iowa State hit 11 three-pointers and the Cyclone defense pressured the Huskers into 22 turnovers as ISU earned a 62-48 win at Nebraska last Saturday. It was ISU's first league road win of the season. Iowa State shot 39.3 percent from the field and hit 42.3 percent from long range. Iowa State outrebounded NU 34-29, after trailing 15-14 on the boards at the break. The Huskers shot 44.7 percent from the field. Alison Lacey led ISU with 14 points and Kelsey Bolte had 13. Nicky Wieben contributed 10 points and seven rebounds. Amanda Nisleit and Heather Ezell each added nine points as well. Nisleit led ISU with nine rebounds. As a team, the Cyclones picked off 15 steals, including six by Lacey. Bolte ignited in 11-0 run by the Cyclones, with eight straight points of her own, to push ISU ahead 34-21. The Huskers cut the lead to six in the second half but every time Nebraska threatened, the Cyclones found answers.

The Votes Are In
With wins over Missouri and Nebraska last week, Iowa State moved back into the Associated Press Top 25, ranking 22nd. ISU is one of six Big 12 teams to rank in the AP Top 25 this week. The Cyclones have ranked as high as No. 20 in the AP Poll this season. Iowa State is ranked 23rd in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Top 25 this week. ISU has dropped three spots in the last two weeks, despite back-to-back wins last week.

1,000-Point Club Members
The Cyclones could have three different players hit the 1,000-point milestone this season. Heather Ezell (1,151) was the first to reach the mark in the win over Drake. Nicky Wieben (1,049) joined the club against IPFW. Alison Lacey (946) is also within striking distance of the mark. With the addition of Ezell and Wieben, 20 players in school history have already reached 1,000 career points.

Getting the Stop
Iowa State's defense has been solid all season, holding opponents to 54.5 points per game. The Cyclones have held 15 opponents under 60 points, going 14-1 in those games. The only exception was a loss at Kansas State despite holding the Wildcats to 59 points. Iowa State has held four of its five Big 12 opponents under the 60-point mark this season. ISU held Missouri to 42 points on Jan. 21, which was the Tigers' lowest scoring output in the 67-game series. It was also the fourth lowest scoring total by an ISU opponent in Big 12 Conference history.

The Magic Number
Iowa State is 67-11 (.859) all-time in Big 12 conference regular-season play when holding opponents under 60 points. ISU is 52-50 (.510) when a Big 12 opponent scores 60-79 points and 1-16 (.059) when the opponent scores 80 or more points. The Cyclones have lost 15 consecutive contests when allowing a league foe to reach the 80-point mark.

Home Court Advantage
Iowa State has been a much stronger team at Hilton Coliseum this season. The Cyclones are averaging 10.9 points per game more at home than on the road (70.7-59.8). The ISU defense is also giving up 12.2 points per game more away from Hilton. One of the most dramatic differences has been the number of free throws averaged by the home team. ISU is averaging 15.9 free throws made per game at home and just 8.2 on the road. ISU's opponents are posting 14.3 free throw makes per game in their home gyms, while hitting just 6.8 per game at Hilton Coliseum.

Road Warrior
While the Cyclones are playing better at home than on the road as a team, Kelsey Bolte has been better in opponents' gyms this season. Bolte is shooting 54.7 percent from the field on the road (38.8 percent at home) and is shooting 55.2 percent from three-point range away from Hilton (29.3 percent at home). She has posted 13.7 points per game in road contests, while turning in 8.9 at home.

Nationally Speaking
(As of Jan. 26) Iowa State ranks in the top 35 of eight NCAA statistical categories. The Cyclones rank eighth nationally with their 8.0 three-pointers per game, but that is not all they are doing well. ISU also ranks in the top 35 in: rebounding margin (13), scoring defense (20), personal fouls per game (25), turnovers per game (27), won-lost margin (29), assist-to-turnover ratio (31), and scoring margin (34). Heather Ezell ranks 16th with 2.7 three-pointers per game and 42nd with her 40.3 three-point shooting percentage. Alison Lacey ranks 39th in assist-to-turnover ratio.

Making A Mark
With each blocked shot Nicky Wieben records this season, she adds to her Iowa State career record, which currently sits at 176. In the final game before her injury last season, Wieben surpassed Angie Welle's previous ISU career mark of 155. Wieben has also moved up the Big 12 career list, tying Texas A&M's Morenike Atunrase (176, 2005-08) for ninth place. Three other current players in the Big 12 are also in the career top 10.

Jocelyn Anderson also ranks in Iowa State's career top 10 for blocked shots, sitting in sixth place with 89. She now needs three to move into a tie for fifth place with Stephannie Smith (92).

Heather Ezell ranks 14th in Iowa State career scoring with 1,151 points. She is seven points shy of 13th place (Colleen Peterson, 1,158). She broke the Iowa State career three-point attempt record on Jan. 24 (737) and ranks third with 251 three-point makes in her career. She surpassed Megan Ronhovde (241) for third place against Baylor and needs 23 more to tie Stacy Frese for second place. Ezell's 169 career steals rank seventh in ISU school history and she needs just one more to move into sixth place and two for fifth.

On the Glass
Iowa State has been a stout rebounding team this season, averaging 40.5 rebounds per contest, its most since averaging 40.6 in 2005-06. The Cyclones have grabbed 277 rebounds off the offensive glass this season, which makes up 36 percent of their rebounding. Four players have posted 89 or more boards this season.