AMES – Iowa State heads into Manhattan, Kansas, where the No. 11 Wildcats wait for the 7:30 p.m. Thursday night matchup.
The Cyclones have been on a tear lately, winning five of their last six games, with four of the five wins being by a margin of 10 or more points. The Wildcats, on the other hand, were handed just their second loss of the season against 13-6 Colorado, bringing them to 19-2.
Unfortunately for Kansas State, its top scorer and seventh-year senior Ayoka Lee went down with a fractured foot against Arizona State, and she is out indefinitely moving forward. She missed her senior and freshman seasons due to injury as well.
“[Lee] is an incredible player, and it breaks your heart to see her come down with another injury. Hopefully, she’ll be able to come back and play later this season,” Iowa State fifth-year senior guard Emily Ryan said. “They’ve played a little bit without her, so it’s not new to them, and they have a well-rounded team.”
At 6 feet 6 inches, Lee would have been a tough matchup for sophomore center Audi Crooks, but without her, the Wildcats’ defense becomes a little more unpredictable.
“It’s hard to judge on what they’ll do, but we try and prepare for a lot of different things,” Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly said. “Certainly, you know, [Crooks] is gonna be a big piece of what we do, and we have to decide, because right now, it’s kind of you front her and limit her touches, or once she catches you get her.”
Fennelly also mentioned that Kansas State forward Kennedy Taylor played well and looked athletic in the loss to Colorado, something that has worked against Crooks this season.
“The Taylor kid played really well against Colorado in their last game, and it’s not just the height,” Fennelly said. “That’s the one thing [Crooks] has struggled with at times, kids that are really athletic or sheer height of an opponent.”
Outside of Lee, guard Serena Sundell is the player to watch on Kansas State, who does similar things to Brown with filling the stat sheet. Sundell has five double-doubles this season, and even put together a triple-double against USC Upstate with 26 points, 13 assists and 10 rebounds.
“You have to pick your spots because they shoot the 3 well, so it’s hard to double team her, you just got to be smart,” Fennelly said. “She’s one of those kids that when she plays, the game ends and you’re like ‘she’s pretty good,’ and you look at the stat sheet like ‘damn she was really good.’”
It is a given that the Cyclones will try to work through Crooks against Kansas State, as she is averaging 23.1 points per game in conference play while shooting 57% from the field. However, sophomore forward Addy Brown has quietly put together a very impressive conference campaign.
Brown is averaging 14.9 points, 7.9 rebounds and 6.3 assists per game against Big 12 opponents. Against a top-15 team in the country, Brown and Crooks, along with the rest of the group, will need to perform at a high level to topple the Wildcats.
“It’s one of those things that you just try to show up every day, trust the process and know that if you do the right thing every day, day in, day out, you show up, do the work, give everything you have, that things will work out in the end,” Ryan said. “Coach Fennelly always said that you can’t guarantee that good things will happen, but by working hard, you can make your odds better.”
Iowa State hopes to shock the No. 11 Wildcats and get its first win over a Big 12 opponent with a conference record over .500 at 7:30 p.m. Thursday. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN.