On Saturday night, the ISU women’s basketball team will try to continue the long-range shooting that has them ranked first in the conference in successful 3-pointers and 3-point percentage.

Iowa State (14-7, 3-5 Big 12) will match up with the Missouri Tigers (8-14, 1-8 Big 12) at 7:30 p.m. in Hilton Coliseum. The meeting will be the first of two between the schools, which split their games last season.

“Iowa State always plays extremely well at home, and they shoot the ball extremely well,” said Missouri coach Cindy Stein. “And [ISU head coach Bill Fennelly] is probably one of the masterminds of being able to throw teams off their rhythm.”

Fennelly may want to downplay his mastermind abilities and let the Tigers stay on the same rhythm that they’ve been sustaining the last month. The Tigers have lost seven straight games and are in last place in the Big 12. They’re the only team without a winning overall record in the conference.

The fact that Missouri is last in the league in defending against the three could indicate the Cyclones will thrive against them, but Fennelly understands that numbers can be misleading.

“The numbers sometimes look better than they are because we’ve had some games when we’ve made a lot of threes,” Fennelly said. “I’ve been in games where, at the end of the day, you haven’t made very many. And when you’re not making threes, you’re not getting to the free-throw line and you better find other ways to score.”

The Cyclones boast the two best three-point shooters in the league with freshman Kelsey Bolte and sophomore Alison Lacey, both of whom are shooting 46 percent. Lacey started the week ranked eighth in the nation in 3-point percentage and 13th in three-pointers per game with 2.8.

It would be wise of the Tigers to pressure the Cyclones on the perimeter and prevent the guards from getting open looks. The Cyclones made 17 threes against Sacramento State on Nov. 18 – the third most by any team in the nation this season. Villanova hit 18 twice.

If the Cyclones are to win with the three, they will have achieved a least a very small milestone in the waning season.

“A win would guarantee us at least 15 wins – which, you know, would at least give us a .500 season,” said Fennelly. “We can then build from there.”

The outcome of the game could potentially catapult the two teams in opposite directions. With a win, the Cyclones will have won two straight and three out of four. A Missouri loss would drive them deeper into despair and be their eighth in a row.

“We lost a little confidence like every team does when you lose,” said junior Brittany Lang. “Then we gained it back with a win. Since they’re losing now, I’m assuming confidence is low – which can play to our advantage.”