Chatted with Bill Fennelly today

[MattVanWinkle]

I ran in to Coach Fennelly at an Ames High baseball game today. Chatted about a few WBB topics that I'll share with you guys. (Please note that these aren't direct quotes from coach, just some things that stood out in our conversation).

Bill talked very highly of Jadda Buckley. Says she will no doubt be a starter this year and praised her defensive skills. Says she's Big 12 ready. So who will run the point, Nikki Moody or Buckley? Fennelly says it will all depend on match ups. For example, if Odyssey Sims is guarding Moody, then Buckley will play point. I'm personally very excited to see what Buckley can do. Saw her play a few times in high school with Mason City and came away very impressed.

The Cyclones will play small next year. With Poppens and Prins out of the picture now, there isn't really a whole lot of height down low. JUCO transfer Rosie Gambino will contribute and Fennelly says he will need about 5-7 minutes out of Madison Baier each game. Baier battled injury last year, but played in 15 games. Freshman Jordan Jensen, a talented standout from Arizona, will also see some action.

Hallie Christofferson will also play some post. Fennelly is expecting a big year out of her. She's only gotten better in her time in the cardinal and gold, so there are a lot of expectation coming her way in 2013-14.

Kidd Blaskowsky has a year under her belt now. Bill says he hope she picks up where she left off last year. Hopefully that experience means more maturity and leadership out of her. With a small lineup, she and Brynn Williamson will be putting up a lot more shots, one would think.

A couple other notes:
Steve Fennelly (Bill's son and former assistant) who is now an Assistant Coach at Cal State Fullerton is doing well. Bill says he's been out recruiting a lot and adjusting to the move to California. Hope he does well out there.

Chelsea Poppens is hoping to sign with a team in Australia. Fennelly plans to meet with her next week.
Anna Prins is done playing basketball. She is going to pursue her career as a teacher.
Good to see former Cyclones doing well.

That's it from me.

-MVW

 

[clonedude]

Thanks for the info! Always appreciated.

I think Christofferson, Williamson, and Kidd are going to have big years. Of course, so will Moody as well. Adding Buckley into the mix can't hurt either.

I think we'll have to play somewhat "small" ball next year, which is fine. Works for Fred.

 

[LostinIowaCity]

Thanks for the update!

 

[mred]

Nothing too surprising here, but it's good to hear what Bill is thinking when it comes to lineups. It sounds like we can expect Moody and Buckley to both start and split PG duties (although I expect Moody to do the bulk of that). Given the horrible drop-off we had last year anytime Moody was out of the game, I think it's good to get Buckley time at PG ASAP so we can limit that dropoff. Moody is great, but she could probably be even more effective if she doesn't have to play 38 minutes per game (she averaged 34.9 and that includes the early season blowout games). Around 32 per game would be much more reasonable.

Moody, Buckley, and Hallie will all likely be starting. Kidd, Brynn, and Seanna will all likely get major backcourt minutes, no matter which one or two of them start. Frontcourt is a big question mark: Baier has limited experience, Gambino is a defense-first post without flashy stats, and Jensen missed her senior hs season with an ACL tear. At least we know Hallie is awesome, and we know that Ellis is a solid post player capable of playing the 3 or 4 (most likely 4 this coming season).

 

[jay moe]

I like the idea of spreading the floor with 4 shooters and one post, or 5 shooters with Hallie playing some post or on the perimeter, should be fun to watch.

 

[00clone]

But what we all want to know...did he say anything about Bubu?

 

[CycloneRulzzz]

great stuff. The thought of a Buckley Moody back-court excites me greatly.

 

[Jambalaya]

But what we all want to know...did he say anything about Bubu?

<< LMAO


Or ask Bill about bringing back baseball?

 

[psyclone51]

Great to hear that Buckley will be giving Moody some rest. Last year, there were games you could see Moody trying really hard, but especially against the very aggressive teams, she just ran out of gas mentally and physically. That must have been very frustrating.

For what it is worth, I think Ellis will make a big jump this year.

 

[twistedredbird]

Thank you Matt for the post.

Not to look to far ahead, but Moody and Buckley could go down in history as one of the best 1/2 combos we have had at ISU. I'm excited to see them this year, but can't help but think with a year of playing together, next season will be spectacular for ISU in the guard court. While many have griped at times about Moody, the last two seasons would have been bunk without her, and she didn't have much help, and to do what she did as a Frosh and Soph was pretty amazing. Yes, her 3 and TOs could be better, but she also had some spectacular plays and assists.

I would agree with MRed that Moody will probably do the bulk of the PG duties, given Buckey plenty of time to learn the plays, and learn the Big 12.

What I do also like about this year, is we have several options in the guard court for the 3 ball.

Although not stated, I can't see Brynn not starting. Her 3pt percentage and length will be much needed in a smaller line-up on defense, and she also seems to be a good leader.

Bill always say he works to find a way for to get the best 5 players on the court.

 

[Dryburn]

Nothing really surprising except I'm surprised there was little to no mention of Tyseanna Johnson. I think she has just as much chance of making a huge contribution as any of the newcomers, if not more. I hope she gets the chance.

 

[MattVanWinkle]

Just because I didn't mention a particular player doesn't mean they will or won't contribute. We didn't talk about every player/every topic. Just a few. It's still July after all.