Cyclones rallying cry: Remember the Aggies!

AMES - Remember the Texas A&M game.

That result - and the weaknesses is exposed - can serve as a rallying cry of sorts for the Iowa State women's basketball team, who hit a low point in last Saturday's 59-33 loss to the defending national champion Aggies at Hilton Coliseum.

“It was really a letdown on our part,” said Cyclone forward Chelsea Poppens, whose team hopes to post its first Big 12 win against No. 17 Texas Tech at 1:30 p.m. Sunday at Hilton Coliseum. “We didn't do a lot of the things we needed to do. We needed to have more hustle plays, more effort in that game and we didn't. Because of that we need to take that as an emotional loss to help fuel us for these upcoming games.”

Poppens noted that ISU has yet to play a complete game - one that melds utmost effort and good shooting for 40 minutes.

That's a big reason the Cyclones (9-7, 0-5) enter today's game against the Red Raiders (14-3, 2-3) in must-win mode.

“We definitely have faith we can turn it around,” said Poppens, the Big 12's leading rebounder at 11.1 per game. “With the way we played against Baylor and certain other teams. We know that we're capable of beating people. We just need to learn how to pull it all together at the right moment and have everyone come together as a team and put that effort in.”

ISU's 0-5 record is somewhat deceiving.

The Cyclones held second-half leads at Kansas and at Texas, but fell in double overtime against the Jayhawks and on a last-second shot to the Longhorns.

“We were so close,” said senior captain Lauren Mansfield. “It's just frustrating because we know we can do it. We know we're right there with them.”

Sunday's game will be televised live on Fox Sports Net.

The Red Raiders gave top-ranked Baylor its toughest Big 12 battle Wednesday, falling 72-64.

The Cyclones also kept it close against the Lady Bears before losing 57-45.

“We're tired of losing; we're tired of coming so close to winning and not finishing,” Poppens said. “All you can do is keep going. If you have a loss, it happens. That should motivate you for the next game.”