The Cyclone basketball teams both have big upcoming weekends that could be very revealing as to the respective team’s true potential.

The women play Louisiana Tech, the second-ranked team in the country, on Friday night at 7. The game, which was not originally scheduled to air on the Cyclone radio network, now will be broadcast over the airwaves.

The game is part of the Insight Women’s Classic held in Tucson, Arizona. While ISU and Tech play in the first game, host Arizona will face Sam Houston State in the nightcap.

The Lady Techsters have a juggernaut of a team. They return four of five starters from a team that a year ago finished 31-4 and lost in the NCAA title game.

This is the first meeting between the two schools, and it is indeed a marquee matchup, pitting the second- and 18th-ranked teams in all the land on a neutral court.

Amanda Wilson led the LTU in scoring last year with over 18 points a game and this year is averaging 11 points, second behind guard Tamicha Jackson, who is tallying 11.5 points per contest.

The Lady Techsters are coming off a 92-73 loss to two-time defending champion Tennessee on Monday, which snapped their 52-game home winning streak and left them with a record of 3-1 for the year.

The Cyclones, meanwhile, are 4-0 and have not played anything close to a nail-biter yet, as their average margin of victory in the wins has been 30.5

They will be buoyed by the return of starting point guard and floor leader Stacy Frese, who has missed parts of the team’s last three games with an ankle injury suffered in the team’s blowout win over cross-state rival Iowa.

Coach Bill Fennelly estimated that Frese will be around 90 percent for the game.

Meanwhile, in Ames the men’s team will face off against a North Texas team that has yet to win a game this year. The Mean Green are coming off a 122-69 loss to TCU and are winless in three attempts this season.

They are lead by three freshman, Dexter Tennel, Deginald Erskin and Kenneth Mangrum, who combined for 49 points in their last game.

The Cyclones are 3-2 and coming off a disappointing loss to the Panthers of Northern Iowa.

They have been led this year by forward Marcus Fizer, who was named Big 12 player of the Week after averaging 19.7 points in the Great Alaska Shootout.

Point guard Michael Nurse will miss the two-day tourney with injuries suffered when he was hit by a truck in Ames on Sunday.

Nurse, who has been crucial to the success of the team this year, is expected to miss at least another week.

The women figure to be big underdogs, and if no upsets occur, would face Sam Houston State in the second round of the Insight Classic.

The LadyKats are 3-3 this year, and they have four players who measure 6-feet or taller. They have played only one home game this year.

Friday will be the squad’s third game of the year against an Arizona opponent, following a loss to Arizona State and a victory against Northern Arizona in overtime.

They are lead by Shayla Teaque and Alicia Ferguson, averaging 12.0 and 11.3 points per game, respectively.

The men’s team figures to match up with Princeton in the final of the Cyclone Challenge.

The Tigers are 2-1 this season after having a tremendous year of 27-2 a season ago.

They are led by Gabe Lewullis and Brian Earl, who are the only two starters left from last year’s squad.

This weekend should indeed be a very interesting one for ISU basketball.