AMES – The final regular season and home game of the season is upon us as the Cyclones take on No. 14 Kansas State at 3 p.m. Sunday. Iowa State will also celebrate its lone senior, fifth-year guard Emily Ryan.
Head coach Bill Fennelly has talked about the impact Ryan has had on this program all year, and her final game in Hilton Coliseum is now here. As a five-year starter, Ryan is at or near the top of just about every assist list.
“Part of [Ryan’s] growing up was here in front of these fans, so I think it’s a cool thing,” Fennelly said. “Hopefully, it is a memory that [Ryan] will have for a long time, and hopefully, it’s a way for our fans to thank her one more time for the things that she’s done for us.”
“Emily has done so much for us, so, you know, just to honor her and have the day all about her is really great,” sophomore guard Kelsey Joens said. “She’s done a lot for the Iowa State program.”
Despite the significance of the game for Ryan, her mindset never wavers from the task at hand, and she is focused on the game she is preparing for. The Cyclones are 20-10 and have the No. 7 seed locked in for the Big 12 tournament. The Wildcats are 25-5 and the No. 4 seed, but could move up to No. 3.
“It’s gonna be cool, but the main focus is just the game and dealing with that other stuff when it comes,” Ryan said. “Right now, just focusing on the game and trying to get that job done, but it’s tough to avoid it.”
In the last matchup with Kansas State, the Cyclones took the Wildcats to overtime. In regulation, Iowa State was a Ryan 3-pointer away from pulling off the upset. With the home crowd backing the Cyclones in this one, a win would be huge heading into the Big 12 tournament.
“At this point of the season, every win you can get is huge, especially a top-15 win,” Ryan said. “You just want to show up every single night, and once you get to March, whether it is still regular season or postseason, you want to get as many wins as possible.”
It is beneficial to have that other game to look back on and improve on things. With no ranked wins this season, this is the final chance to grab one before postseason play.
“You can look back at what went well and what didn’t go well in the past game,” Ryan said. “And then obviously, look at their more recent games and kind of take on their tendencies and how they’re playing right now.”
Winning five of their last six games, the Cyclones are playing well when it is most important. Iowa State will look to keep the good play rolling.
“We’re arguably playing the best basketball that we have played. You kind of want to just keep rolling with that momentum,” Ryan said. “Focusing on what you’re doing to get to that point and what’s working.”
Kansas State is one of the few teams Iowa State will have played twice this season, so it knows a little bit about what to expect. The Wildcats’ seventh-year senior Ayoka Lee has still been dealing with an injury, and will not play Sunday.
Someone that Fennelly knows will be playing is guard Serena Sundell, who had 23 points, eight assists and three steals in the last matchup between the two.
“It’s hard because [Sundell] has the ball a lot,” Fennelly said. “Her length is a problem because she is a tall guard, very smart, she doesn’t force things. They run a lot of unique stuff for her, I think for us, it goes back to our core of how we try and defend it.”
Iowa State looks to close the regular season out on a high note, taking on No. 14 Kansas State at home at 3 p.m. Sunday. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN 2.
