Traveling to Cedar Falls hasn’t been kind to ISU basketball teams of late. The men’s team fell to Northern Iowa 99-82 on Dec. 1, and the women’s team lost 65-58 the last time it traveled to West Gym in Cedar Falls.

“I would say that when Iowa State goes to West Gym, it’s one of the biggest games of the year for UNI, and we need to be ready for that,” said ISU head coach Bill Fennelly. “They’re good at home, and they’re going to be real prepared.”

Since playing Iowa State is Northern Iowa’s only game for the week, the team should be well-prepared for the Cyclones.

The last time the Panthers played was Dec. 5, when they lost to Iowa 77-50.

Iowa State has less time to get ready for the Panthers after coming off a 69-40 win over Drake on Wednesday night.

Senior guard Anne O’Neil had 17 points and five rebounds.

She is the team’s second leading scorer, with an average of 14.3 points per game. O’Neil also leads the Cyclones in 3-point shooting, knocking in 52.2 percent.

“We went out and got a win [against Drake], and now our next big intrastate is UNI and we’re going to start focusing on that,” O’Neil said.

The Cyclones will need strong play from their posts with Panther Cassie Hager standing at 6 feet, 7 inches. The junior is averaging 15.8 points and 4.5 blocks per game.

The tallest ISU players are junior Brittany Wilkins and freshman Lisa Bildeaux, both 6-foot-3.

Against Drake, Wilkins had six points in six minutes of action. She’s leading the Cyclones in field goal percentage, hitting 66.7 percent of her shots.

The Cyclones will need help containing Hager from senior forward Katie Robinette, who is leading the Cyclones in scoring and rebounding, pouring in 16 points and grabbing 8.3 boards per game.

She also has 11 blocks and 11 steals on the season.

Northern Iowa has three players averaging double digits: Hager, senior point guard Emily Berry (12.3) and senior power forward Alex Cook (10.7).

The Cyclones lead the Big 12 in scoring offense with an average of 86.8 points per game; they also lead in scoring margin, with an average of 33.3 points per game.

The ISU defense has held opponents to an average of 53.5 points and 31 percent shooting.

The Panthers are at the other end of the spectrum, with an average of 61.5 points per game; their opponents have put up an average of 61 points per contest.

Fennelly said Iowa State must win the game if the team has any legitimate long-term goals.

“Final exams start Monday at Iowa State, but, to me, they start Saturday night,” he said.

“The basketball final is Saturday night.”

After the UNI game, Iowa State will not play again until Dec. 18-19 when the team travels to Las Vegas to play in the Duel in the Desert.

Other teams competing in the tournament will be Eastern Kentucky, Northern Arizona and UNLV.