Lauren Mansfield could do nothing but look up as the ball sailed through the air.

With 0.7 seconds, Texas’ Yvonne Anderson’s floater in the lane sunk the Cyclones and lifted the Longhorns 62-60 on Jan. 18.

“I saw it going up,” Mansfield said. “We’ll have [the shot] in mind; I think it’ll be good motivation to play harder and remember that every possession counts.”

Now Iowa State (12-8, 3-6 Big 12) has moved on since the Texas (13-8, 3-6) loss. Since that game, the Cyclones have gone 3-1 with a win against then-No. 17 Texas Tech. The only loss during that stretch was to No. 14 Texas A&M on last-second free throws.

What the players have said was a big help is what the coaches gave them: a clean slate. That’s what the ISU women’s basketball team got from the coaching staff for the month of February.

“Of course the start of the season is always going to be in our heads,” said freshman Brynn Williamson. “We have to push it aside and know that it’s not what we’ve done already but what we can do.”

So far, Iowa State is 1-0 with seven more games. Five of those will be played at Hilton Coliseum.

The players did not hesitate to say it is more of a comfort knowing most of the games remaining are at home.

“I think the crowd plays a huge role,” Mansfield said. “It’s like having a whole other person out there on the court. And then of course it’s hard for the other team because it gets so loud and it’s such a great atmosphere.”

Iowa State will have to deal with a strong Texas trio.

Chassidy Fussel is fourth in the Big 12 with 17 points per game. Behind her is Ashleigh Fontenette and Yvonne Anderson, who both average double-digits. Put all three of them together, and they average 39.4 of the Longhorns’ 69 points per game.

One thing that has been key in the Cyclones’ 3-1 roll is that they have been able to get hot from 3-point range. In these past four games, they have canned 32 from beyond the arc while shooting 37.8 percent, which is up 7 percent from the season average.

“I do feel like we’re getting on a roll,” Williamson said. “Especially with everyone’s attitude knowing that we have to commit to each other and to the team. And show the fans that we can play ‘Iowa State’ basketball for 40 minutes. We’re all understanding of the goal, and we’re just trying to make it happen now.”

Williamson said she feels like now that they have a few games under their belt, they are finally figuring out how to leave it all out on the court and win games.

“I think coming together we’re just focusing now are we leaving it all out there,” Williamson said. “When we walk up the ramp at the end of the night do we not have anything left, did we leave it all out on the court? Everyone’s having the understanding that’s what we need to do to win games now.”

Saturday’s game is set to start at 1 p.m. at Hilton Coliseum.