With an overall record of 781-230 dating back to 1974 and 20 NCAA tournament trips, Texas has a long, storied tradition of success in women’s basketball.

“When you talk about women’s basketball, the name Texas is synonymous with greatness in our sport,” said ISU head coach Bill Fennelly. “The whole landscape of women’s basketball is full of people associated with the University of Texas.”

Last year’s Longhorn team was no different, as it finished the season with a 30-5 record and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.

Of those five starters from last year’s squad, only one was lost to graduation.

The No. 13 Longhorns returned their nucleus of Nina Norman and preseason all-Americans Jamie Carey, Tiffany Jackson and Heather Schreiber.

“[Texas is] something that makes our league and our sport special,” Fennelly said. “We really galvanize the opportunity to play a great team.

“You’re not just playing one team, you’re playing history to some degree.”

But guard Lyndsey Medders said the No. 18 Cyclones are in the midst of writing their own history. With a 17-2 (7-1 Big 12) record, the ISU women’s basketball team is on top of the Big 12 conference, tied with Texas Tech with one conference loss apiece.

“I think [people] also need to realize we’re the ones sitting atop the Big 12 and we’re the ones who are also in the top 25,” Medders said. “So as much as everyone’s going to look at it as a big game for us, I think it’s also a big game for Texas.”

Carey, Jackson and Schreiber are all averaging double-digit points per game.

Jackson, a sophomore, is third in the Big 12 with a 17.6 average, and leads the conference in steals with 3.21 per game.

In their last game, a 103-76 win over Colorado, the Cyclones attacked from the outside. They nailed 15 3-point shots, led by Megan Ronhovde’s 6-of-6 shooting from beyond the arc.

With 6-foot-3 Jackson and 6-foot-2 Schreiber in the lane, Iowa State will look to its perimeter players for some help in stretching the defense.

Medders said strong post play would create one-on-one chances outside for Iowa State.

The inside and outside games complement each other, she said.

Fennelly said the Cyclones don’t need to play a perfect game, but if they do everything well they’ll have a chance to win.

He said Iowa State’s rebounding, shooting and transition defense would all be important, along with avoiding turnovers.

Texas (13-6, 6-2) is coming off its fourth straight victory after defeating Texas A&M 77-62 on Wednesday night.

Of Texas’ six losses, five of them came from ranked teams and the sixth team, UCLA, was receiving votes at the time the two teams played.