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
No. 16 Cyclones to Face UConn in Second Straight Sweet 16
03.25.2010 | Women's Basketball
AMES, Iowa - The 16th-ranked Iowa State women's basketball team will move on to face top-ranked Connecticut in the NCAA Sweet 16 at 11 a.m. (CST) Sunday at UD Arena in Dayton, Ohio. The Cyclones are making their second consecutive and fifth overall trip to a Regional Semifinal. The game is a rematch of the 1999 Regional Semifinal in Cincinnati, Ohio, which Iowa State came from behind to win 64-58.
What: No. 16/16 Iowa State (25-7; 11-5 Big 12) vs. NO. 1/1 Connecticut (35-0; 16-0 Big East)
When: Sunday, March 28, 2010 ? 11 a.m. (CST)
Where: Dayton, Ohio ? UD Arena (13,266)
Radio: Cyclone Radio Network/Learfield; Talent: Rich Fellingham (pxp); Molly Parrott (color)
TV: ESPNHD/ESPN360.com; Talent: Bob Wischusen (pxp); Stephanie White (color); Rebecca Lobo (sideline)
Live Stats: NCAASports.com
Cyclone Notebook
? Iowa State holds a 25-7 overall record and an 11-5 mark in the Big 12, which was good for a second-place finish, ISU's best finish since winning the Big 12 title during the 1999-2000 season. Iowa State's 23 regular-season wins tied the school record set twice before in the 1997-98 season and the 2009-09 campaign. Iowa State has also posted its fourth consecutive season and its 11th overall of 20 wins or more.
? The Cyclones are making their fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance and their second straight NCAA Sweet 16. ISU has earned a pair of NCAA Elite Eight berths in 1999 and 2009. Iowa State is playing in its 11th NCAA Tournament and is 16-10 overall in NCAA tournament games.
? ISU senior Alison Lacey has garnered a number of honors and awards this season. Most recently she was named a finalist for the 2010 State Farm Coaches' All-America Team. She earned a spot on the WBCA All-Region 5 Team. She is a finalist for the Lieberman Award for the nation's top point guard. She was named a unanimous All-Big 12 First Team pick by the league's coaches and has earned All-Big 12 First Team accolades given by the Dallas Morning News and the Waco Tribune-Herald.
? ISU has continued its success in the Big 12 Conference. Including this season's second-place finish, the Cyclones have finished in the top four of the league's final standings in four of the last six campaigns. Iowa State is tied for the second best conference record in Big 12 history (139-85) with Texas Tech.
? Iowa State is in its 37th season of women's basketball and its 15th season under head coach Bill Fennelly. Iowa State is 569-501 in school history.
? Iowa State has had another outstanding season inside Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones finished with an 18-1 record at home, with their only home loss coming at the hands of then-undefeated Nebraska on Jan. 9.
? ISU won three games this season against teams ranked in the Top 25. The Cyclones' wins came at then-No. 20 Texas in overtime (73-71), and at home against then-No. 11 Oklahoma (63-56) and then-No. 11 Baylor (69-45). Only two of Iowa State's seven losses this season have come against teams not ranked in the Top 25 and both of those were on the road.
? The 2008-09 season was one of the best in school history for the Cyclones. They tied the school record with 27 wins and advanced to the Elite Eight for the second time. They finished third in the Big 12 standings with an 11-5 league record.
? Head coach Bill Fennelly is 332-148 in his 15th season with the Cyclones. He is 498-201 in his head coaching career, which began at Toledo in 1988.
A Closer Look At UConn
? Connecticut is 35-0 this season and is in the midst of a 74-game win streak in which the Huskies won the 2009 National Championship. UConn defeated No. 16 seed Southern and No. 8 seed Temple to advance to the Sweet 16 for the 18th time in school history. The Huskies have qualified for the NCAA Championship every year dating back to 1989 and have won six national titles and own an all-time NCAA mark of 73-15.
? In two games in the 2010 NCAA Championship, UConn is averaging 92.5 points per game, while holding opponents to 37.5, for a scoring margin of +55.0 ppg. Eight Huskies are averaging 8.5 ppg or better in the tourney, led by Maya Moore's 20-point average. Tina Charles, the 2009 Final Four MVP, is averaging 17 points per game in the tournament, while leading the squad in scoring for the campaign with 18.3 ppg.
? As a team, UConn ranks first or second nationally in 11 statistical categories. The Huskies are averaging 82.1 points a game, which ranks second, and the 46.2 ppg average they hold their opponents to leads the nation. They have won games by an average margin of 35.9 points, and their 19.9 assists per contests are tops in the country. The Huskies are also posting an NCAA best 12.1 fouls per game and they are holding opponents to 23.9 percent shooting from outside the arc.
? Head coach Geno Auriemma holds a 731-122 overall record in 25 seasons and is 73-15 in NCAA Championship games, which ranks second on the NCAA women's tournament win list, behind Pat Summitt.
Series Information
Iowa State is 1-1 all-time against Connecticut. The Cyclones first met the Huskies in Storrs on Dec. 31, 1990, falling 69-56. ISU upset UConn, 64-58, in the 1999 NCAA Regional Semifinals in Cincinnati, Ohio, as the Cyclones earned their first ever NCAA Elite Eight berth. ISU had four players finish in double figures in that contest, led by Stacy Frese's 16 points. Megan Taylor hit three of ISU's eight treys for 13 points. The Cyclones shot 35.6 percent from the field and 30.8 percent from long range. UConn was led by Tamika Williams' 14 points as the Huskies shot 29.9 percent from the field and were just 3-for-26 from long range for the contest.
ISU NCAA Championship Nuggets
? Iowa State is making its 11th NCAA Championship appearance, with all 11 berths coming in the last 14 seasons under head coach Bill Fennelly. The Cyclones are 16-10 all-time NCAA Championship games. ISU is making its fifth trip to the Sweet 16 and has posted two Elite Eight berths in school history (1999, 2009).
? The Cyclones improved to 10-2 in NCAA Championship games played at Hilton Coliseum with the wins over Lehigh and Green Bay last week.
? Iowa State is one of just 20 teams to make the NCAA Championship field in each of the last four seasons and is one of just five teams to play in the NCAA Sweet 16 in each of the last two seasons. Oklahoma, Baylor, Connecticut and Stanford are the other four teams who can boast that accomplishment.
? ISU went to three consecutive NCAA Regional Semifinals in 1999, 2000 and 2001. The Cyclones went back to the Sweet 16 in 2009 for the first time since the 2001 season.
? Alison Lacey ranks highly on a number of ISU's NCAA Tournament record lists. She leads ISU in assists in career tournament contests with 46. She ranks fifth in games played with 10. She ranks fifth in career NCAA points with 121. Kelsey Bolte ranks fifth with 44 rebounds in career tournament games and she is tied for third with 17 three-pointers.
? The Cyclones hit 16 three-pointers in their 2009 NCAA first-round win over Eastern Tennessee State. That mark tied the NCAA Championship single-game record. South Dakota State also tied that mark on the same night, making it a three-way tie for the top spot. Iowa State hit 15 three-pointers against St. Francis in 2000, giving the Cyclones two of the top four single-game marks in NCAA Championship history.
? ISU has been a four-seed or higher seven times in the NCAA Championship. The Cyclones also earned a No. 4 seed last season, which was their highest seeding since earning the third seed in 2002.
? Iowa State played eight teams in the NCAA field of 64 during the regular season. The Cyclones faced six teams that are seeded sixth or higher during the 2009-10 slate. ISU is 7-5 against teams in this season's NCAA field.
? The Cyclones are making their fourth consecutive NCAA appearance, and have been to the second round in each of the last four seasons. Last season, Iowa State matched its best NCAA run in school history when the Cyclones made it to the Elite Eight before falling to Stanford.
? Nine teams from the Big 12 earned a spot in postseason play, with seven making the NCAA field. The Big 12's seven NCAA Championship teams were all seeded No. 6 or higher for the second straight year. Four Big 12 squads are still playing in the Sweet 16 this weekend, which is tied with the SEC (4) for the conference with the most teams left.
Last Time Out
? The No. 16 Iowa State women's basketball team battled back from an eight-point second half deficit to come away with a hard fought 60-56 victory over Green Bay in NCAA Championship Second Round action Tuesday night in Hilton Coliseum.
? ISU only led for 2:17 of the game and made just 37.3 percent from the field, including a poor shooting night from its top two scorers Alison Lacey and Kelsey Bolte, who combined for 8-of-30 shooting from the field.
? Kelsey Bolte finished the game with a team-high 15 points and Alison Lacey added 12 points and seven assists in the win.
? Iowa State improved to 18-1 at Hilton Coliseum this season.
? With 13 points, Anna Prins was in double figures for the fifth consecutive game and the 14th time this season. She was 3-for-3 from long range to tie her career high in three-pointers.
? The attendance at the NCAA first and second rounds in Ames ranked second in each round, only behind Tennessee. ISU's total attendance for the two contests reached 13,236.
Notable Senior Class
Five Cyclones make up the ISU senior class, including: Alison Lacey, Denae Stuckey, Genesis Lightbourne, Shellie Mosman and Anna Florzak. The 2009-10 ISU senior class is one of only four classes in school history to go to four consecutive NCAA Tournaments. These seniors rank as the third winningest class in school history by victories (99) and the fourth winningest by percentage (.723). They have made the last two NCAA Sweet 16s and have never finished short of the NCAA second round. They made the Big 12 Championship semifinals in the first three seasons of their career. They have made one Big 12 Championship title game (in 2007) and one NCAA Elite Eight berth (in 2009).
All-Big 12 Honors
? Four Iowa State players earned All-Big 12 Conference accolades, led by Alison Lacey's unanimous pick to the First Team. Junior Kelsey Bolte was named an honorable-mention selection, while Denae Stuckey was selected to the All-Defensive Team and Anna Prins earned All-Freshman Team honors.
? Lacey earned All-Big 12 honors for the third consecutive season, but was named to the First Team for the first time in her career. She is the first Cyclone to earn All-Big 12 First Team honors since Lyndsey Medders did it in 2007. She is the seventh Cyclone to make a top All-Big 12 squad. Lacey was also named to the All-Big 12 First Team by the Dallas Morning News and the Waco Tribune-Herald.
? Bolte was an All-Big 12 honorable-mention pick for the second consecutive season. She has averaged 12.7 points per game and has been in double figures 20 times this campaign.
? Stuckey garnered the first conference honor of her career, earning a place on the Big 12 All-Defensive Team. She has posted 41 steals and been a constant pest to opponents this season. The Kansas City, Kan., native has also been one of ISU's top rebounders, snagging 6.2 boards per contest.
? Prins is the first Cyclone to win Big 12 All-Freshman Team accolades since Bolte did it in 2008. The Broomfield, Colo., native ranks second among Big 12 freshmen in scoring with 9.9 points per game. She has been in double figures 14 times this season.
The Votes Are In
Iowa State ranked 16th in last week's Associated Press and ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Polls. ISU has twice ranked as high as 13th in the AP poll this season, its highest ranking since coming in 10th in the final poll of the 2001-02 campaign. Seven Big 12 squads are ranked in the AP Top 20, led by Nebraska's No. 3 ranking. ISU ranked No. 12 in the Coaches' Poll four weeks ago, its highest mark in the regular-season poll since ranking 10th in the final week of the 2001-02 season.
Take Me to Your Leader
Senior point guard Alison Lacey returned to the court in the NCAA First Round against Lehigh after missing three consecutive games and three weeks worth of practice time due to pneumonia. She has missed four games total this season, including the last two of the regular season and the Big 12 quarterfinal game with pneumonia. Lacey also missed the game at Nebraska due to a concussion. She dressed for the Senior Day game against Colorado and made the start, but was quickly subbed for and did not play more than a couple of seconds.
1,500-500-500 Club
In the win over Missouri, senior Alison Lacey became the only player in Iowa State history and only the seventh player in the history of the Big 12 Conference to reach 1,500 points, 500 rebounds and 500 assists in her career. Lacey currently holds 1,611 points, 574 rebounds and 525 assists. She ranks sixth in ISU career scoring, third in career assists, and is 14 boards shy of ranking in ISU's top 10 for career rebounding.
Youth Movement
While the bulk of the attention is on ISU senior Alison Lacey, and rightfully so, the Cyclone underclassmen have also played a large role in Iowa State's success this season. ISU's four freshmen and two sophomores are responsible for 50.7 percent of ISU's scoring and 48.9 percent of its rebounding this season. The underclassmen have also made 43.8 percent of ISU's starts this season (70).
Impact on Winning
ISU head coach Bill Fennelly talks to his team daily about having an impact on winning. He tells them that their impact on a win could come in many forms, whether it is on defense, rebounding or scoring. Alison Lacey's impact can be found in a number of statistical categories, but her impact on ISU's scoring is dramatic. She has either scored or assisted on 43.7 percent of Iowa State's points this season, despite missing four entire games. She has assisted on 184 field goals and nearly half of those (94) have come on three-point field goals by her teammates.
Fennelly on Track for 500
Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly is on track to reach his 500th career victory. He has 498 wins in his head coaching tenure at Iowa State and Toledo. Fennelly would become the 25th active Division I women's basketball coach to reach the 500-win mark in his career. He will be the 41st Division I coach to reach that remarkable milestone. He is coaching is 700th career game against Connecticut.
Players Mentioned
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
F
/ Women's BasketballF
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's Basketball
C
/ Women's BasketballC
/ Women's Basketball
G
/ Women's BasketballG
/ Women's BasketballSyracuse Post-Game vs. ISU (NCAA First Round)
Saturday, March 21
Syracuse Previews Iowa State (NCAA Tournament First Round)
Friday, March 20
Iowa State Previews Syracuse (NCAA Tournament First Round)
Friday, March 20
Bill Fennelly and Audi Crooks Talk NCAA Selection Show
Sunday, March 15
