The women’s basketball season was officially underway Nov. 11, when the ISU team came away with a victory against Western Illinois.

Since then, the Cyclones have had a break in the early action after three wins, two of which were exhibition games that they won by hefty margins.

Sophomore guard Nikki Moody has sat out the past two games with a viral illness. ISU coach Bill Fennelly said if everything goes according to plan, Moody will be back on Nov. 18.

“Nikki is easing her way back in,” Fennelly said. “Barring anything crazy, she’ll dress for the game on Sunday. I don’t know if she’ll start the game, but everyone else has been available.”

Moody said she was ready to get back out on the court, without a doubt that she was healthy.

“I’m feeling perfect,” Moody said. “Everything is fine now; [the doctors] just wanted to make sure [I was ready]. I feel like I can go the whole game.”

Moody sat on the bench during her two-game leave. While keeping her teammates company, Moody said she was able to rest and also learn from the game.

“When I was watching, I saw things that we, as a team need to improve on,” Moody said. “It’s been really beneficial for me to just sit back and watch.”

Even though she was able to learn from the sidelines, Moody said she it was hard not to be playing the game she loves.

“It’s been hard. I love playing and that’s my passion,” Moody said. “It’s been kinda hard to just sit back and watch everything.”

Moody had five points and four rebounds in her only exhibition game of the season.

In Moody’s absence, freshman Emiah Bingley has stepped up to fill the role of a starter. Bingley said she didn’t expect to be starting so soon as a freshman.

“We don’t expect for certain situations like that to happen, but it was great to be put in that position and that situation,” Bingley said. 

Moody said even though it was a sudden change, Bingley handled the transition well.

“Being thrown in there like that, it helped her improve in a lot of ways so she can know how it’s going to be if I’m sitting down,” Moody said.

In her first game as a Cyclone, Bingley had six points, four rebounds and five steals.

Iowa State will tip off against North Dakota at 3:30 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 18, at Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State is 1-0 after their home opener Nov. 11.