While the ISU women’s basketball team was fighting through its two-week tour of top-tier Big 12 competition, the Baylor Bears were getting comfortable at home in Waco, Texas.

For the first half of this week, Iowa State was preoccupied with an upcoming Wednesday road trip to play No. 21 Texas A&M. Baylor has been able to spend the whole week preparing for the Cyclones.

“We didn’t catch a break with the schedule-makers this year,” said coach Bill Fennelly. “We go to Oklahoma State on Sunday, College Station on Wednesday and then have to play again Saturday morning, while Baylor has been sitting home resting. I don’t know how that worked out.”

Saturday morning’s 11 a.m. matchup with No. 9 Baylor (22-3, 10-2 Big 12) will be the fourth consecutive ranked foe the Cyclones (16-9, 5-7) have faced, and Baylor may present the biggest challenge of them all.

The Bears are one of the most balanced teams in the nation and are the only team in the conference with five players averaging double digits in points.

“They’re in the top 10 for a reason, and they’re first in the conference for a reason,” Fennelly said. “Their balance gives them the ability to score the ball from all five spots on the floor, and their defensive numbers are great. When you look at the national stats and all of the stats that really impact winning, they’re there in every single one of them.”

The Cyclones do catch one break against the Bears. Baylor’s fourth-leading scorer, junior guard Jhasmin Player (12.2 points per game), was sidelined for the season on Feb. 2nd after tearing her ACL in a game against Kansas State.

Senior guard Angela Tisdale is Baylor’s leader on the hardwood and ranks in the conference top 15 in points, assists, steals, free throw percentage, and 3-pointer percentage.

“She’s a handful to take care of,” Fennelly said of Tisdale. “She just finds a way to win games. When you have a player with the leadership that she possesses and the skill set she possesses, it’s amazing how good your team can become.”

The Bears pounded No. 11 Oklahoma, 79-59, in their most recent game, but have become fallible in the month of February after going 8-0 in January. They have seen both of their conference losses come in the last two weeks in road games against Oklahoma State and Texas.

A win over Baylor would put the Cyclones at 2-2 in this tough two-week stretch, which also consisted of games against No. 15 Kansas State, No. 16 Oklahoma State, and No. 21 Texas A&M.

Those four teams, along with Oklahoma, occupy the top five spots in the standings.

Iowa State has just four games left on the regular season schedule and needs three wins in those games to reach an even 8-8 conference record, an ideal number for a possible berth in the NCAA tournament.

With the postseason in mind, Iowa State has found a higher sense of urgency and motivation.

“We’re scraping right now,” said sophomore Alison Lacey.

“We’re really trying to get enough wins for the tournament, so we need every win we can get. And if that’s not motivation enough, I don’t know what is.”

No. 9 Baylor at Iowa State

When: Saturday, 11 a.m.

Where: Hilton Coliseum

TV: FSN

Notes: Iowa State is playing its fourth consecutive ranked opponent and coming off a loss at Texas A&M on Wednesday. Baylor has dropped two of its past four contests since losing Jhasmin Player to an ACL injury. Baylor is tied for first in the conference.