Coach Fennelly hopes his Cyclones can get hotstreak for Big 12 tournament

AMES - Iowa State Coach Bill Fennelly couldn't stress the significance of this year's Big 12 Championship enough.

For the first time in the last several years, the Big 12 tournament won't feature a team that has been deemed the runaway favorite. There won't be a team at the tournament, Fennelly said, where his team feels like it has no chance to beat.

'I think everyone feels like they have a little bit better chance if they get hot. This is a league where over 18 games, it's really hard to do, but you get hot in a weekend and play three great games in a row, that's what makes conference tournaments so special.”

Iowa State tied for third to finish the Big 12 regular season and received the fifth seed at the Big 12 Championship. The Cyclones (18-11, 9-9) will take on No. 4 seed Oklahoma State (19-10, 9-9) at 11 a.m. on Saturday in American Airlines Arena in Dallas, Texas.

The confidence Fennelly spoke of manifested through beating Baylor and Oklahoma once and Texas twice this season. Those teams received the No. 1, 2 and 6 seeds respectively, and can carry a lot of weight in the minds of the players, too.

'Anybody in this conference, if they play how they know how to play, any team can be beat,” guard Nicole 'Kidd” Blaskowsky said. 'That's what makes us the Big 12. There are great teams out there and it's just going to be a matter of who wants it more.”

The Cowgirls are one of two Big 12 teams, along with Kansas, who swept Iowa State in the regular season. Oklahoma State also beat the Cyclones in the first round of the Big 12 tournament last year in Oklahoma City, making this draw a sweet one.

'That's not something I was too happy about,” said guard Nikki Moody. 'So playing them a third time is great for us.”

After Iowa State's home win against Baylor, Fennelly said a little pressure has been taken off his team in the conference tournament, but there is an opportunity in Dallas to solidify a spot.

'I've always been somebody that says until I see our name come on the screen, you don't know,” Fennelly said. 'The best way to make that easier is to win a lot of games and we have an opportunity to win three more.”