FRESNO, Calif. — Iowa State's women's basketball team will enter Saturday evening's NCAA tournament opening-round game against Utah as the favorite. The higher-seeded Cyclones from the powerful Big 12 Conference are ranked No. 19 in the nation, while the Utes are unranked.
That doesn't mean, however, Cyclone coach Bill Fennelly is feeling particularly confident.
He knows — from personal experience — that his team can get beat by a team from Utah in the NCAAs.
The Utes downed Fennelly-coached Iowa State 66-57 in 1997 in a first-round NCAA game. Then, three years ago, BYU pulled a major upset by beating the Cyclones 75-69 in a second-round game on Iowa State's home court.
"We understand the task at hand," said Fennelly about his matchup with the Utes.
While the Cyclones have been a women's basketball power for most of the past decade — earning a No. 4 seed or better five times since 1998 — this year's success has been a bit of a surprise. Iowa State has actually missed the past two NCAAs and was picked to finish sixth in its conference this season.
Instead, the Cyclones went 12-4 in the Big 12 and 23-6 overall to earn a No. 7 seed in the Kansas City Regional. After a two-year absence from the tourney, Iowa State won't take Saturday's game for granted.
"We're looking forward to it," said Fennelly. "No team in the tournament is going to have more fun than us. We're going to enjoy it."
The Cyclones play a run-and-gun game that contrasts with the Utes' style. Iowa State averages 76.3 points per game — nearly 13 more than the Utes. They also average 8.7 3-pointers per game, making 38.7 percent of their attempts from beyond the arc.
Senior guard Anne O'Neil is the Cyclones' — and the nation's — top long-range bomber, having made exactly 50 percent of her 116 trey attempts this season. O'Neil leads Iowa State with a 16.7 scoring average, but she's been hobbled by a foot injury and has seen limited practice time in recent weeks.
"(O'Neil) will be ready to play," Fennelly said.
The other top players for the Cyclones are senior guard Mary Fox (10.8 ppg) and senior forward Katie Robinette (15.1 ppg, 7.4 rpg).
A key for Iowa State will be pushing the ball up the court and making sure the game is played at its pace, according to its coach. "We are not a great halfcourt team. We just aren't," Fennelly said. "We need to be aggressive in every way, shape and form offensively."
Defensively, the Cyclones have to deal with Utah's inside-outside punch of Kim Smith and Shona Thorburn, who were named co-MWC players of the year. The Ute duo accounts for 32.6 points and 15.3 rebounds per game — nearly half of the team's total.
"What you see with Utah (this year) is what you see with Coach (Elaine) Elliott's teams every year," said Fennelly. "They play very good halfcourt defense and have a lot of offensive weapons . . . I've been very impressed. They have good depth and a lot of size."
The Cyclones know stopping Smith and Thorburn won't be easy. "You just have to make it as hard as you can on players like that and hope they have a bad night," said Fennelly. "You have to make them earn everything they get, but while you do it, make sure you don't forget that there are three other players on the court too."
GAME NOTES: Utah is 3-0 all-time in games against Iowa State. In addition to the 1997 NCAA tourney win, the Utes beat the Cyclones in regular season games in 1989 and 1992 . . . Utah's only other game against a Big 12 opponent this year didn't go so well. The Utes dropped a 72-59 game to Oklahoma at the Huntsman Center earlier in the season. The Sooners were 8-8 in conference games . . . The Cyclones are averaging 79.3 points in their wins but just 64.8 points in their losses . . . Ute freshman Marie Warner is not expected to play due to a knee injury sustained in the MWC tournament semifinal game against BYU. Warner averages 2.6 points per game in just under 10 minutes.
NCAA Women's Tournament
No. 10 Utah (25-7) vs. No. 7 Iowa State (23-6)
Saturday, 6 p.m.
Save Mart Center (Fresno, Calif.)
TV: ESPN2
Radio: KALL 700 AM
E-mail: lojo@desnews.com