Peterson: Iowa State women's basketball 'proved we can hang with anybody' against Iowa
AMES – We’ve seen it happen. Right up the road. On the opposite side of the proposed CYTown Entertainment district. Inside Jack Trice Stadium and the football complex next to it.
We’ve seen a young team suddenly become veteran-like. We’ve seen Matt Campbell’s Cyclones football program mature right before our eyes.
So, anyone concerned about Iowa State’s women’s basketball program, please re-read the previous paragraphs as you soak in what happened during Wednesday’s 67-58 loss against third-ranked Iowa at a jam-packed and enthusiastic Hilton Coliseum. What’s been done up the road inside the football stadium could be unfolding on the other side of the parking lot.
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“Coming into this, there were not a whole lot of people that thought we could genuinely win this game,” super freshman Audi Crooks said after a 15-point, 10-rebound double-double. “I think there were a lot of people that thought we were just going to roll over and die, and let them do what we wanted to do. With 4 minutes left, we were up.”
That’s right. With 4 minutes to play, Iowa State led 55-54. The crowd was juiced. A Cyclone squad with many significant freshman contributors was hanging with one of the nation’s finest teams on a night when the finest of them all, Caitlin Clark, surpassed 3,000 points during her marvelous career.
“That game was a bunch of old guys beat a bunch of young guys,” Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said. “That’s what it came down to, and you’ve got to give them credit for that.”
Fennelly, who knows his way around the coaching gig better than most, had three true freshmen in Wednesday night’s starting lineup against a program that reached the NCAA final last season. Let me repeat that: Iowa State’s starting five included first-time collegians Kelsey Joens, Addy Brown and Crooks. Two other freshmen, Arianna Jackson and Jalynn Bristow, played 24 and 18 minutes, respectively.
Bristow was the second player off the Cyclones’ young bench. The next? Jackson.
And they’re immediately supposed to hang with one of the college basketball world’s elite teams?
Well, they did. There were a dozen lead changes. Nine times this game was tied.
“Our kids were in 7th and 8th grade when Kate Martin started playing in Iowa,” Fennelly said, referring to the sixth-year senior. “You can’t make that up. That gap was there. You’ve got to play through it.”
More: The Iowa State women's basketball team's toughest task Wednesday: Slowing down Caitlin Clark
Iowa State played through it, all right. The Cyclones did more than hang. For 35 minutes, they nearly matched the Hawkeyes point for point. They did it with one of the nation’s youngest teams, and geez, that sounds familiar. That’s the same situation up the road in the football complex.
Iowa State women’s basketball resets have happened before, and it’s happening now. The last roster changeover was after the 2019-20 season. Four new starters joined Ashley Joens. The program maintained, it persevered and even won the Big 12 Conference tournament last year. This roster can accomplish the same. Wednesday night showed me that the learning process may be further along than many people thought.
The 2023 recruiting class on display before an ESPN2 national audience Wednesday night was among Fennelly’s best, maybe the best. Against Iowa, the five freshmen combined for 39 points and 33 of the team's 43 rebounds.
There will be clunkers, like the football team losing at Ohio. There will be Abu Sama-like Kansas State moments, too. Put Wednesday night’s Cyclone women's performance somewhere between – possibly leaning toward the high end of in between.
“I told them after the game that I could not be more proud of how hard they played, the way they played, and the way they did things that we asked them do,” Fennelly said. “That kind of hinted to them that (opponents) better get us now.”
As in, it won't be long before the Cyclones are having their way with those opponents.
After Wednesday, not only is Iowa State women’s basketball future bright, but the present can be pretty shiny too. Like the coach up the road has done throughout the season, the Cyclone women showed me that Fennelly is in the process of not only winning for today but also developing and molding for the future.
“We proved ourselves right (Wednesday night),” said Brown, who had a 14-point, 12-rebound double-double. “We proved we can hang with anybody. The good news is that we have five freshmen. We’re young. We’re going to be here for a while.”
Iowa State columnist Randy Peterson is in his 51st year writing sports for the Des Moines Register. Reach him at rpeterson@dmreg.com, on X @RandyPete, and at DesMoinesRegister.com/CyclonesTexts
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State women's basketball shows it can be a factor this season
