AMES – Iowa State junior Addy Brown hasn’t forgotten the uneasiness she felt during Selection Sunday last March.
Brown remembers sitting in the Scheman Building for a watch party near Hilton Coliseum, watching the NCAA Tournament brackets being unveiled and wondering if she and her teammates had done enough to earn an at-large bid.
“I think sitting there and being a little concerned and worried about whether we were even going to make the NCAA Tournament kind of hit me hard,” Brown said during the team’s annual media day at the Sukup Basketball Complex on Oct. 16. “I was like, ‘I don’t want to be in this position again.’”
That feeling has bothered Brown all year. It pushed her during the offseason and has motivated the Iowa State star and her teammates as they get ready for what is expected to be another year full of big expectations. Only this time around, the Cyclones are hoping that they live up to the high hopes bestowed upon them.
“We’re here to prove people wrong and prove ourselves right and that’s what we’re going to do,” Brown said.
Iowa State will offiically get that chance when the Cyclones begin the season with an exhibition game against UW-Oshkosh on Oct. 28. The Cyclones will open the regular season on Nov. 3 against St. Thomas. The two early-season contests mark the beginning of what could be a season of redemption for Iowa State.
“I think we can be in a way different position this time around if we take care of business early and don’t let our foot off the gas,” Brown said.
With a most of last season’s roster returning, Iowa State enters this upcoming campaign with a lot of hype. The Cyclones, who bring back their top two scorers in Brown and superstar post player Audi Crooks, begin the season ranked No. 14 in the first Associated Press poll. Iowa State was also picked to finish second in the Big 12 Conference.
Sound familiar?
It was just last season that Iowa State, with Crooks and Brown coming off big freshman seasons, began the 2024-25 campaign with even bigger expectations ranked in the Top 10 in both the AP and USA TODAY Sports Network Coaches polls. The Cyclones were also picked to finish second in the Big 12 that season as well.
But some early-season struggles including losses to in-state rivals Northern Iowa and Iowa, hurt the Cyclones, who never could seem to get into a rhythm. Iowa State didn’t tally a marquee win until the final day of the regular season and finished in the middle of the pack of the Big 12. That left the Cyclones waiting around to see if they would go dancing.
“We got kind of humbled coming into the season,” Brown said.
Selection Sunday turned out to be a dramatic day for the Cyclones, who were selected to play in one of the “First Four” games of the NCAA Tournament. It was far from what anyone on Iowa State’s team envisioned having to do before the season.
Iowa State won its first game of the tournament but was then bounced in the following contest. It was an early exit for a team that had nearly gone to the Sweet 16 the previous season and made it to the Big 12 Tournament title game. While they ended up winning 23 games and going to the NCAA Tournament, there was still some disappointment.
“We know that we’re better than that,” said Iowa State guard Kenzie Hare.
They’re determined to fix that with so much of the roster coming back. Crooks was named the Big 12 preseason player of the year. Brown is one of the most versatile players in the nation. Iowa State also added Arizona transfer Jada Williams to run the point guard spot with Emily Ryan finishing out her collegiate career. With the three now leading the team, there are once again high hopes.
But this time around, there is also an eagerness to rebound from last season, something Williams said she sensed early on from her new teammates.
“I think they’re hungry to have a chip on their shoulder,” Williams said. “They had high expectations last year that they didn’t accomplish. So, now, coming into that, I have the same chip on my shoulder as they do.”
Iowa State has five of its six top scorers from last season back. Seven players with starting experience return. Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said he believes the additions the Cyclones made in the offseason, along with the experience they picked up last season, puts them in a better position to succeed. For those reasons, they have lofty goals. Crooks has her sights set on winning a Big 12 title and going deeper in the NCAA Tournament.
“Those goals are very much attainable,” Crooks said.
They’ll have plenty of opportunities to achieve them. While others are getting bullish about the Cyclones again, Brown said they’re trying to stay level-headed this time around. She understands it’s not about what people are saying about them right now. If they’ve learned anything from last season, it’s that expecations don’t always match reality.
“It doesn’t matter what we do now in the beginning of the season,” Brown said. “It matters what we do in March and April.”
There’s plenty of hope that they can accomplish a ton at the end of this season.
“We’re a big machine,” Williams said.
Kenzie Hare is good to go
One of the biggest reasons for Iowa State’s issues last season was the loss of Hare. The Marquette transfer was expected to play a major role for Iowa State and did early on, averaging 8.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game. She was shut down after just 10 games due to a preexisting hip injury that required surgery.
Hare was cleared to return in the offseason but went through a setback after she sprained three ligaments in her foot while moving over the summer. While the latest injury cost Hare some valuable time, she’s now healthy and good to go. Fennelly said she’d start if the Cyclones had a game now. Once again, she’s expected to be a difference-maker.
“I’m excited for our fans to get to see her healthy,” Fennelly said. “Last year, they got to see her a little bit. But she was not anywhere near what she is now. I think that’s going to be a big plus for us.”
Iowa State has a softer non-conference schedule
The leadup to Big 12 play won’t be as daunting for Iowa State this season. The Cyclones had an extremely challenging non-conference schedule last season, taking on South Carolina and UConn to go along with their typical slate of in-state foes including Iowa, Northern Iowa and Drake. South Carolin and UConn aren’t on the schedule this time around, something that could help ease Iowa State into the season better.
Still, Fennelly said simply finding opponents to schedule was difficult.
“Nobody wants to play here and no one wants to play against Audi,” Fennelly said. “And I wasn’t stupid enough to go back to South Carolina and back to UConn again. That wouldn’t have been the smartest move.”
Iowa State’s fresh faces ready to contribute
Fennelly said that several of Iowa State’s newcomers could make an instant impact.
He said Williams will start at point guard while freshman Reese Beaty will be her backup. Fennelly said that Evangelia Paulk, a 6-foot junior guard transfer from Wofford, gives Iowa State a great on-ball defender, an offensive rebounder and a “slasher type.” Even freshman Freya Jensen, who arrived on campus late, put together a strong showing in Iowa State’s last scrimmage, making three 3-pointers in about 45 seconds, Fennelly said.
But Williams, Paulk and Beaty are expected to get significant playing time right away.
“We added four players and all four of them, I could not be more pleased with,” Fennelly said. “It’s gone even better that I thought, to be honest with you.”
Tommy Birch, the Register’s sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He’s the 2018, 2020 and 2023 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State women’s basketball team motivated from last season’s struggles
Reporting by Tommy Birch, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
