When Desir‚e Francis burst onto the scene in ’98, it didn’t take the energetic junior long to establish herself as a force to be reckoned with in the Big 12.

The conference newcomer of the year endeared herself to fans and teammates alike from day one with her exciting play, confidence and freedom of expression.

“Everyone in the media loves Des because she says exactly what she thinks,” head coach Bill Fennelly said. “But she’s an amazing person, she’s fun to be around and she doesn’t have a bad bone in her body.”

Francis enters her senior season as the returning Cyclone leader in steals, number two in field goal percentage and number three in rebounding and points per game.

“She’s a senior, and every single WNBA team wants to know about her,” Fennelly said. “She can jump. She can shoot. She can do everything you want in a basketball player. Now it’s just a matter of getting her to do it every day.”

As Fennelly points out, Francis’ only downfall in ’98 was occasional inconsistency. The junior routinely followed breakout performances with disappearing acts.

“Last year, there were times when I wasn’t happy with her and I didn’t even want to put her in the game, and then she’d go in and get the first four rebounds and make some shots and just go crazy,” Fennelly said. “Then, the next day, she just wouldn’t feel like playing.

“We can’t have a 15-point, 12-rebound game one night and then the next night, she doesn’t show up. We need to know every game what we’re going to get from her.”

Francis also recognizes the need this year to focus on every game.

“I have to give 100 percent this year, and if I can give an extra five percent, I need to do that, too,” she said. “My coaches and teammates will be looking to me to come every day and play hard.

“I totally expect to come out and play as a senior should. This is my last shot, and I have to make it the best year of all.”

Despite some inconsistency, however, Francis was a major reason for the Cyclones’ success.

“Having said all of that, we’re still talking about the Big 12’s newcomer of the year,” Fennelly said.

Francis also had a knack in ’98 for coming to play in the Cyclones’ most important games.

In addition to a 24-point, 12-rebound effort against No. 2 Louisiana Tech and exceptional regular season showings against Kansas and Texas Tech, Francis really emerged in the NCAA tournament.

After scoring 19 points in 19 minutes against Oregon in the second round, she led ISU with 19 points in their Elite Eight loss to Georgia.

Going into ’99, Francis is eager to help the Cyclones take the next step. After that, she’s not counting out anything.

“Anyone that loves the game this much wants to keep playing it, even up to the next level,” she said. “So, I’ve thought about playing professionally, whether it’s WNBA or overseas. I just want to keep playing as long as I can.”

With her athletic offensive play and patented one-handed rebounds, Francis has been wowing fans for years in both the United States and her native West Indies. After excelling at the high school level, she went on to become Kirkwood Community College’s first-ever Kodak All-American before reaching the ISU campus.

Acting as ISU’s sixth-man, Francis is often called upon to be the spark off the bench that ignites a rally or overcomes a sloppy opening.

This season, the senior will be a crucial component of the Cyclones’ shot at a top-ten rating and a possible Final Four berth.

“She gets frustrating at times, but she’s fun to coach and she’s fun to play with. A lot of the 7,000 people bought tickets because they want to see her play,” Fennelly said. “She won us a lot of games last year, and we hope she can win a few more.”