At this point in the season, sometimes it all comes down to which team wants it more — that’s a good thing for the ISU women’s basketball team.

After cruising through the first and second rounds of the NCAA Tournament with wins of 85-53 and 71-57, the Cyclones posted one of their best consecutive offensive performances of the year.

It was just the third time all season that the Cyclones have posted back-to-back 70 plus point games, and the first time since they dropped 89 and 76 against Niagara and North Dakota on Dec. 29 and 30. Iowa State had only surpassed the 70 point mark once since then, with a 76-63 home victory over Colorado.

What caused this sudden offensive outburst? It could have been the outstanding performance from long-distance, as the team hit 26 three-pointers in the two games, or the fact that the team racked up 40 assists to just 26 turnovers.

But according to coach Bill Fennelly and his players, it wasn’t really about anything they physically did on the court.

It all came down to things much greater than the teams’ athletic ability.

It was about heart, determination and the fact that nobody is ready to call it quits just yet.

“I think our players — because of the experience we have and a really motivated senior class — they know what it takes to keep playing,” Fennelly said. “We’ve practiced well, we’ve prepared well, and I think our players have a great understanding of what this tournament is about.”

Fourteen different Cyclones have scored in the NCAA Tournament this year, and there have been nine separate double-digit scoring performances recorded over the last two games.

But even if the ball won’t fall, Iowa State players are still finding a way to contribute.

Leading scorer Heather Ezell found her way to just eight points in 37 minutes in the second round against Ball State, but the senior spent plenty of time making sure her teammates found the bottom of the net, as she dished out nine assists and never turned the ball over.

If Iowa State can continue its balanced and well-rounded offensive effort along with keeping the fire that has been resonating around the team during postseason play, the players know they can always step up to the challenge.

“We have a lot of kids on our team that know what time of year it is and what it means,” Ezell said. “You know it could be your last game. We’ve said all year that if all of us are on, we’re all shooting well and we’re playing our game, we’re going to be hard to beat. And we’ve been playing like that for the last couple of games. Everybody is scoring and everybody is doing their part, and hopefully we can carry that over to the next part of the tournament.”