ISU women fighting with thin numbers heading to UNI

AMES - Injuries and sickness struck the Iowa State women's basketball team during its stay in Cancun, but that doesn't mean the Cyclones will be making excuses.

The adversity does give a little peek into how the team will approach its upcoming schedule of six games in three weeks.

'The kids that are healthy, you can't overuse them,” said Coach Bill Fennelly. 'We had seven kids that could go (Monday) in practice. You work hard, you work short and maybe use a little more walk-through or a little more video. It's not just game night and that's what everyone looks at.”

Perhaps the most questionable to return in the near future is freshman Bridget Carleton, who was elbowed in the face in a loss to Duke. She played just nine minutes in the game and did not return that night or against Idaho - the last of a three-game stint in Mexico.

The Cyclones (2-3) will know what they have from players like Seanna Johnson and Jadda Buckley when they travel to Northern Iowa on Wednesday, but the rest of the players provide several question marks. Fennelly has seen bright spots from some players, but not as often as he'd like.

'Some people kind of get in their comfort zone of what their role on the team is,” Fennelly said. 'Well now we have people that their role is different and they've got to do more things and we've got to be more balanced. Whoever plays Wednesday night needs to do that because we have a really tough game ahead of us.”

Center Bry Fernstrom is averaging 10.6 points and 5.8 rebounds through the first five games, but has been a roller coaster in consistency. She had 25 and 15 points against Texas State and Duke, respectively, but just three against Idaho.

Fernstrom said she got some confidence back in her offensive game in the first two contests of the tournament, but couldn't sustain it in the last game. Her focus is to take some pressure off her teammates and carry a little more of the scoring load on a regular basis.

'I feel like I can do that every game, it's just a in-my-head kind of thing,” Fernstrom said. 'I'm really inconsistent and unreliable in a way, but it's good for me to know I can play that way. It's something to shoot for and to do every game. It's just getting to that point.”

Johnson, on the other hand, has been a model of consistency and is averaging 16.4 points and 11 rebounds per game. She's coming off a 28-point, 12-rebound performance against the Vandals and said her consistency has been a matter of playing to what the defense has given her.

'My teammates help me. They get me the ball,” Johnson said. 'They're aware, especially with teams that get in the lane. I'm usually trying to work on my assists so when my teammates make shots, it helps me a lot.”

Tipoff between the Cyclones and Panthers (3-2) is slated for 7 p.m. in the McLeod Center.

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