Sunday at 2 p.m., Iowa State will face Arkansas for the Big 12/SEC Challenge.

So far this season, Arkansas is 5-2 with an 88-85 loss to No. 19 Arizona State and a 61-54 loss to Pittsburgh.

In the preseason All-SEC poll, Arkansas was predicted to finish 11th in the conference which has 14 members.

Iowa State suffered its first loss of the season to South Dakota 64-59 on the road.

Coach Bill Fennelly thought the team played well defensively versus the ‘Yotes but struggled to score. He said some of the struggles on the offensive end arose from the Cyclones’ inability to consistently attack the basket and notch offensive rebounds during the game.

“Offensively, we just couldn’t find any kind of rhythm, especially the way we started shooting,” Fennelly said.

One of the bright spots for Iowa State on the offensive end in that loss was Madi Wise, who Fennelly said was “fantastic” in the fourth quarter. Wise finished the game with 19 points to lead the Cyclones in scoring against South Dakota.

Wise said a main reason the Cyclones lost on the road was a lack of communication and execution, but feels the team can build off of their fourth quarter performance.

“Anyone can have a great game, but we just all have to come out ready to play,” Wise said. “No one really picked each other up last game.”

Fennelly said the team needs to decide if they want to be a team which competes in the fourth quarter of the game or the first 27 minutes.

Alexa Middleton, Iowa State’s starting point guard, said the team had discussions about their performance after South Dakota and said they want to be the team which competes through all four quarters.

Middleton also said the team knew they hadn’t played to their potential and it was reflected on their long bus ride home from Vermillion, South Dakota.

“Deep down we all knew that wasn’t the expectation, and the bus ride home was just quiet, it was long,” Middleton said.

Against Arkansas, Fennelly said it will not only play fast, but “functionally fast”. He said Arkansas will look to push the pace against Iowa State, but won’t have many turnovers.

With Arkansas’ offensive style in mind, Fennelly said Iowa State will need to play tight on-ball defense and consistently be able to rebound on the defensive end.

Arkansas’ pressure won’t be exclusive on the offensive end as Fennelly said he expects them to attack the Cyclones and play physical on defense.

Middleton, who is a transfer from Tennessee, has faced Arkansas and says she knows to counter their offensive attack Iowa State will have to sit down on the defensive end and play disciplined help defense.

For herself, Middleton said it is exciting playing a school from around her home state of Tennessee, but the teams sole focus is winning the game.