Iowa State women's basketball: Takeaways from Cyclones media day include high expectations

Iowa State women’s basketball: Takeaways from Cyclones media day include high expectations

Posted by Admin October 8, 2024 Basketball

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AMES – Iowa State women’s basketball coach Bill Fennelly walked into the Pete Taylor Media Room at Hilton Coliseum on Tuesday for his team’s annual media day. Waiting for him were a couple dozen reporters, fans and supporters holding cameras, microphones and notepads, waiting to hear from the longtime Cyclones leader.

“I thought there was something else going on here,” Fennelly said with a smile. “I remember when there was two of us.”

Those days are long gone. All eyes are on the Cyclones, who are getting ready to embark on a heavily anticipated season. With the bulk of the roster returning from a successful season, Fennelly’s bunch is expected to do even bigger things in 2024-25. And everyone is interested in what’s going to happen next.

Excitement for the Cyclones is through the roof. And for good reason.

“I think it’s a combination of our team and Audi (Crooks),” Fennelly said.

Iowa State, which appeared headed for a rebuild last season, instead reloaded and retooled its roster with a team that won 21 games last season, played in the Big 12 Conference Tournament title game and reached the round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament.

But Fennelly believes the group − which included a phenomenal freshman class that included Crooks, Arianna Jackson, Kelsey Joens and Addy Brown − could do even more down the line. He hammered on that idea during the offseason.

“The message to our players and our staff is if that’s the best year that those, especially those freshmen, are going to have, that’s a problem for them and for me,” Fennelly said. “Hopefully it’s the start of something.”

The Cyclones bring back those four freshmen and bolstered their roster with some strong shooters, acquiring Lily Hansford, Kenzie Hare and Sydney Harris from the transfer portal.

Iowa State’s Audi Crooks excited for the upcoming basketball season

Iowa State star Audi Crooks talks about why she’s so optimistic for the upcoming basketball season.

That hope is that with a versatile lineup, a dominant presence in the middle (Crooks) and strong shooting from beyond the arc, the Cyclones can play deep into March.

“I have high expectations,” Joens said. “We have a lot of goals set. We want to win the Big 12 championship. We want to make it to the Final Four, Elite Eight − that kind of stuff.”

Those goals seem attainable for an Iowa State team that was picked to finish second in the Big 12 this season. ESPN ranked the Cyclones No. 8 in its preseason rankings in September. Crooks said it’s not too much hype placed upon a young team that includes just one senior.

“I’m really excited,’ Crooks said. “I’m really optimistic and I think our potential is kind of limitless.”

Injury update

Fennelly said that newcomer Lilly Taulelei will be out probably five weeks with a sprained ankle. Taulelei, a 6-foot-3 transfer from UMass, averaged 6.7 points and 2.5 rebounds as a freshman last season.

Freshman Tanke has been impressive early on

With many contributors returning from a season ago and the Cyclones leaning on new additions from the transfer portal, playing time may be hard to come by for Iowa State’s freshman class. But Johnston native Aili Tanke has made a strong first impression and is already vying for playing time, Fennelly said.

“Aili’s been really good,” Fennelly said. “I’m going to tell you, she’s been better than we thought.”

Tanke averaged 15.2 points per game while shooting nearly 50% from beyond the arc with 68 3-pointers as a senior for the Dragons. Her shooting isn’t the only thing that has impressed Fennelly. Tanke’s basketball IQ has also caught his attention early on.

“She’s smart,” Fennelly said. “She knows where to be.”

3-point shooting could be even better for Iowa State

One area of emphasis during the offseason was improving Iowa State’s 3-point shooting. With Crooks in the post and Brown being a versatile player, Fennelly figured the team’s long-range shooting could use some help. He believes they addressed it in the offseason with Hansford, Harris and Hare coming aboard.

Hansford, a transfer from Oregon State, shot better than 45% from 3-point range last season. Harris, who played at TCU, shot 40% from beyond the arc. Hare, who played at Marquette last season, ranked first in 3-pointers made in the Big East Conference.

“What we really wanted to do was add people that could make shots and I think we did that,” Fennelly said.

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.