Fennelly's fantastic freshman class has Cyclones ready for postseason push
No college basketball team in Iowa has surprised as much as the Iowa State women this season. That's because no one really knew what to expect from one of the youngest teams in the entire country.
But Coach Bill Fennelly quickly guided his talented group into one of the best teams in the Big 12 Conference.
"Coach told us, (on the) very first day we moved in: 'You need to be ready like today, not tomorrow, like today. You need to be ready.' (We were still) moving our boxes into our apartment," freshman forward Addy Brown recalls.
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Brown, guard Arianna Jackson and center Audi Crooks make up 60 percent of the Cyclones' starting lineup and are all playing their first year of college ball. Fellow freshmen Kelsey Joens and Jalynn Bristow are also key contributors who average at least 15 minutes a night.
"I think this team has grown and shown a lot of people what we're capable of," Jackson says.
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They all helped Fennelly secure his 10th season with at least 12 conference wins in his 29 years in Ames. Fennelly says this year's freshmen fit so well together because they all bring something different to the team.
"We can put all five out there together. So, it's not like we signed three quarterbacks and two of you have to sit," Fennelly says.
The formula has worked. The Cyclones are 18-10 overall as of March 6 and 12-6 in league play.
They're riding a four-game winning streak as they head into the .
"Coach Fen talks about all the time how special people finish things. So, he's been saying that continuously over the past few weeks," Jackson says.
But Fennelly sees something special in this group that goes beyond basketball.
"I've been here so long that we have groups of teams they still vacation together. They go together with all their kids ... I can see this group of five being friends for life."