Rob Gray

No. 3-seed Iowa State fully needed its stars to be at their best for 40 minutes in Friday night’s tense 78-71 first-round NCAA women’s basketball tournament win over 14-seed UT Arlington.

Iowa State narrowly missed advancing to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2010 a year ago, but now embarks on a new postseason quest beginning with Friday’s first-round tournament game against UT-Arlington at Hilton Coliseum.

Some Iowa State players aren’t completely new to March Madness, but they have traveled circuitous paths to return to it.

LSU fired head coach Will Wade just before the NCAA Tournament. Iowa State’s Izaiah Brockington has personal experience with tumultuous times within a program.

8th-seeded Cyclone senior also has high expectations at tournament in Detroit this weekend

Iowa State women’s basketball coach Bill Fennelly has taken 20 Cyclones teams to the NCAA Tournament and he said it’s like Christmas every time.

Iowa State is a No. 3-seed in the NCAA women’s basketball tournament and will host UT-Arlington in the first round.

Iowa State men’s basketball is dancing for the first time in three years. The Cyclones, a No. 11 seed, will open tournament play Friday against sixth-seeded LSU in Milwaukee.

Ashley Joens scored 33 points, but Iowa State fell to Texas, 82-73 in overtime, in the semifinals of the Big 12 women’s basketball tournament.

Tenth-ranked Iowa State led by as many as 21 points, but had to fend off a spirited West Virginia rally to prevail, 66-60, in Friday night’s Big 12 tournament quarterfinals.

Iowa State has lost three straight games, including a 72-41 Big 12 tournament quarterfinal loss to Texas Tech, and sloppy play on both ends of the floor is the primary reason why.

It’s full-go this year at the Big 12 tournament for the 10th-ranked Iowa State women’s basketball team and its fans, who will give this group of ISU seniors its first so-called “Hilton South” experience Friday.

Tyrese Hunter, the Big 12 freshman of the year, is the only rookie among the league’s top 10 leaders in assists. He often serves as the bellwether for Iowa State in this resurgent yet mercurial season.

Ashley Joens, Lexi Donarski and Emily Ryan were named first-team All-Big 12, giving Iowa State its most first-team picks in program history.

Iowa State’s defense can build around linebacker O’Rien Vance in 2022.