Night and day.

That’s how ISU women’s basketball player Lyndsey Medders described the difference between her team’s game against Colorado in Hilton on Saturday from the defeat they suffered in Boulder, Colo.

“These games couldn’t have been more different,” she said. “We were not going to lose today; it didn’t even cross my mind.”

Indeed, the roles were reversed from the Jan. 10 contest, when Colorado trounced the Cyclones 81-67. Iowa State (19-7, 7-6 Big 12) began to dominate the game late in the first half, and never looked back during the sweeping 74-55 home victory over Colorado (11-14, 5-8).

The key to Iowa State’s success: Not letting the past repeat itself.

Colorado’s Jackie McFarland, the leading scorer with an average of 18.1 points per game, was held to 12 points on the night, 10 less than she accrued in the first meeting.

McFarland’s athleticism on the post was a factor the team set out to limit from the beginning. ISU coach Bill Fennelly credited the success of McFarland’s low scoring output to his post players.

“We tried to put a smaller person on McFarland and double with the bigger person, which Toccara [Ross] and Nicky [Wieben] did very well,” he said. “Defensively we were locked in from the very beginning.”

The strategy also included a solid defense on the perimeter. Colorado executed 13-for-23 on 3-pointers in the first matchup, but were only able to muster two Saturday.

“We remembered they hit a lot of big shots last game, so we wanted to force them to the left and get a hand in their face,” said freshman guard Alison Lacey. “We definitely focused on not letting them get those shots off.”

Iowa State, on the other hand, was hot, shooting 8-for-20 from behind the arc, including a game-opening three by Lacey. The team shot 50 percent from the floor, including a 7-for-9 performance from Wieben, who finished with 18 points for her fourth consecutive game of double-digits.

“Nicky has kind of been on this up-and-down thing, but she’s had a really great week,” Fennelly said. “She’s been efficient, scored, defended, played long minutes; she’s really figuring some things out that we need her to do. It says a lot about the effort she’s put in, when she’s playing long and active, and it gives us some options.”

Lacey was second on the team with 13 points, including 3-for-4 on 3-pointers, and Medders contributed seven assists and seven rebounds. Colorado’s Kara Richards tossed in 11 points for the Buffaloes.

Wieben said overall, the balance the Cyclones found between the two games was the difference in dismantling Colorado this time around.

“I think we just came out more prepared mentally and came out from the very beginning,” she said. “If we’re scoring outside and inside efficiently, it’s hard to stop a team like that.”