No. 21 Iowa State women trying to stop skid against No. 20 Texas

AMES — Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly drew up a detailed plan with his assistants.

The mission: Turning a week off from Big 12 play into a rejuvenating spark for success down the stretch.

The reality: The No. 21 Cyclones suffered a dispiriting 73-60 setback Saturday at West Virginia following that important break — and now must play 20th-ranked Texas at 6 p.m. Monday night at Hilton Coliseum.

“I’ve always thought that when you get to Super Bowl week it’s almost like the Super Bowl leads into the rush to the end of the (college) basketball season,” Fennelly said. “I think everyone kind of really figures that out and that’s exactly where we are.”

ISU (15-7, 7-5 Big 12) resides in a precarious position after losing its third consecutive game. Chronic shooting woes have been joined by spotty defense — a troubling situation the Cyclones must change if they hope to stop tumbling down the Big 12 standings. It won’t be easy to fix such problems against the Longhorns (20-6, 11-2), though. They’ve won seven straight games this season and own a seven-game win streak in the series with ISU. Four of Texas’ six losses came in the first seven games of the season — and two were against ranked foes Connecticut and South Florida.

“I vote in the coaches poll and I’ve had Texas in the top 15 basically all year,” Fennelly said. “They’re gonna win our league. They’re physical. They have the best point guard maybe in the country, or one of the best point guards in the country, in Rori Harmon. They’re playing with a lot of energy and their style’s really hard to prepare for. I think they’re playing at a really high level.”

The Cyclones, meanwhile, are finding it hard to shine in a traditionally solid area: 3-point shooting. ISU went a dismal 5-of-30 from beyond the arc against the Mountaineers and are 24 of 98 from 3-point range in the past four games. The Cyclones have dropped to seventh in the Big 12 in 3-point shooting accuracy (31.5 percent) one season after leading the league in the same category.

Fatigue may be a factor. ISU’s had to lean much more heavily on its so-called “Big Three” of Ashley Joens, Emily Ryan and Lexi Donarski since the loss of star 6-6 forward Stephanie Soares to an ACL injury over a month ago. The Cyclones adjusted well initially, forging a four-game win streak that directly preceded the recent three-game swoon.

“Our 3-point shooting is really down from last year — everyone and dramatically,” Fennelly said. “And for us that’s not a good thing ever and especially now.”

ISU will need a nearly perfect finish to the season to retain hopes of hosting first- and second- round NCAA Tournament games next month. Right now, the outlook is bleak, but that vision could change completely if the Cyclones can break through against the Longhorns on national TV (ESPN2).

“It’s a great opportunity to showcase our university, showcase Hilton,” Fennelly said. “National stage. I think our kids will be excited to play.”

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