Iowa State women’s basketball has started the season 20-3, but losing a pair of blowouts back in January to Texas and Baylor shined a light on the otherwise unseen issues of the team.

While the season has gone well from Iowa State’s perspective so far, the issues that popped up during those losses are still prevalent with the team. The Cyclones are a top team in the Big 12 whether these issues are worked out or not, but they could find themselves among the top teams in the country if the issues are fixed.

Perhaps the most glaring weakness that showed up for the Cyclones was scoring trouble when the three-point shots were not falling.

It is clear that three-pointers are a big piece of the puzzle for the Cyclones as they are top-six in NCAA Division I women’s basketball in three-point attempts, makes and percentage.

Against Texas, the Cyclones shot 6-23 from beyond the arc, which resulted in the team scoring just 48 points. One game later, Iowa State made just seven threes on 27 attempts, resulting in just 61 points.

Looking into a microscope at these two games may seem like a reach, but in order for the Cyclones to reach the levels that they hope to reach, these are kinks that need to be worked out.

For the most part, Iowa State has not had any issues scoring; however, when the three-point scoring has not been successful, it has also impacted the post scoring. Without the range of scoring, post player Morgan Kane was only able to muster up a total of 11 points in two games.

The three-point scoring is not going to be there every night, especially with the Cyclones playing NCAA Tournament caliber teams night in and night out. The main question is: how will the team react when this challenge presents itself?

Fans will likely see if the Cyclones have become more of a dynamic offense as the second half of Big 12 play kicks into high gear. 

The other area that the Cyclones are extremely dependent on is free throw shooting. Not only do the Cyclones know how to get to the line, they knock down their shots when they get there.

Sitting just above 81 percent from the free-throw line this season, Iowa State is second in the nation in free throw percentage (only trailing Iowa).

The game that showed just how important free throws are for Iowa State was back on Jan. 11, versus Kansas State. The Cyclones made just three free throws in the game, and while they ultimately got the win, it took a 12-23 night from the three-point line in addition to some late game heroics.

It is difficult to find flaws in a team that has matched its best start in school history and is riding a four-game winning streak, but the team has had its share of struggles. With rematches against Texas, Baylor and Oklahoma looming, the Cyclones will need to be on their ‘A’ game in order to come out on top of the Big 12.