No matter how many times Iowa State advances to the NCAA tournament, waiting to hear his team announced never gets old for Bill Fennelly.

During the Selection Monday show on Monday, March 18, 2013, the ISU women’s basketball team advanced to the NCAA tournament for the 14th time with Fennelly at the helm. Even with his team well-secured entering the unveiling of the bracket, Fennelly was anxious.

“I’m like a kid at Christmas time,” Fennelly said of Selection Monday. “My wife Deb was going crazy, she was like ‘It’s going to happen, you’re fine.’ It never gets old. My thing is, if it gets old I should quit.”

Iowa State (23-8, 12-6 Big 12) finished second in the Big 12 this season only to the No. 1 team in the country, Baylor. The Cyclones were slotted as a No. 5 seed Monday and will take on No. 12-seeded Gonzaga on Saturday, March 23, 2013, in Spokane, Wash.

The draw isn’t an easy one for Iowa State as it will face the lower-seeded Bulldogs at their home facility in Washington.

“It’s a road game alright,” Fennelly said. “But we play a lot of tough road games. That’s what this tournament is about — 15 of the 16 sites someone is playing at home and I think that’s good for the event; it’s good for the tournament.”

With their selection to the NCAA tournament the Cyclones are one of just 13 teams in the country to make it in seven consecutive seasons. Iowa State’s seniors will be playing in their fourth and final NCAA tournament.

While the team waited until the end of the selection show last season to hear its name called, on Monday, it came fast.

“It happened really quick so I didn’t have time to get ready,” Fennelly said. “To do it seven years in a row is special.”

Entering the night, players and coaches had a slight idea where the team would be seeded based on its finish in the Big 12. Iowa State generally fell right into the predicted spot with its No. 5 seeding.

“I heard a lot about being a four, five or six [seed],” said ISU center Anna Prins. “I was expecting somewhere in there. I think it’s a great accomplishment; it tells the kind of year we’ve had together as a team.”

Fennelly felt that based on his “number crunching,” his team would end up in one of three locations: Knoxville, Tenn.; Louisville, Ky.; or Spokane, Wash. He was right on the mark with the latter.

Following Iowa State’s selection Monday, the team huddled outside Johnny’s at Hilton Coliseum where Fennelly told his team to enjoy the moment and not take the NCAA tournament trip for granted.

“This is what it’s all about — it’s why you do what you do every single day,” Fennelly said of the tournament. “To see the look on those kids’ faces, to see them cheer, to see Iowa State’s name come up on national TV is why we do what we do.”

After the Cyclones appeared on national TV early, they will now switch their focus to an opponent.

“We got here and we were excited to figure out who we’re playing,” said ISU guard Brynn Williamson. “Now it’s just time to go to business. Time to get in the gym, put in a game plan and know what we need to do to go there and win.”