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Tuesday, March 27
Iowa State, Welle get tall test in regional
AMES, Iowa -- Iowa State's Angie Welle is getting a chance
to find out just where she stands in the pecking order of college
centers.
A third-team All-American, Welle will face a second-team pick,
6-foot-6 Chantelle Anderson, when Iowa State plays Vanderbilt in
the Midwest Regional semifinals in Denver on Saturday night.
If the Cyclones get by that one, an even bigger challenge could
loom for Welle: a game with Notre Dame and its first-team
All-American, 6-5 Ruth Riley.
|  | | Iowa State's Angie Welle averages over 18 points a game. |
What more could a competitor ask?
"It's really fun," Welle said. "Obviously, Chantelle will be
the best player I've ever played against. But I don't want it to
be, 'Oh, it's Angie vs. Chantelle' or anything like that.
"I think it's a challenge and if Notre Dame wins, then it's who
gets to take on the top dog, I guess."
Notre Dame, the No. 1 seed in the region, plays fifth-seeded
Utah in the first game at Denver. Second-seeded Iowa State and
third-seeded Vanderbilt will follow.
Riley was a unanimous All-American and already is winning some
player of the year awards. She's the center by whom all others are
measured.
But Welle insists she hasn't thought at all about facing Riley.
She figures Anderson, averaging 21.1 points and leading the nation
in field goal percentage (.730), will be enough of a challenge for
now.
"She gets great position before she gets the ball," Welle
said. "That's the hard part, getting position. The easy part's
making the basket. A lot of credit goes to her. She's getting
herself in good enough position to be able to make a high
percentage of her shots."
Welle's percentage isn't bad. The 6-4 junior is second in the
country at 66.2 percent and is averaging 18.3 points a game. Welle
had 49 points and 23 rebounds in Iowa State's first two NCAA
tournament games, so her positioning must be OK, too, right?
"Yeah, but she makes it look so easy when she gets the ball,"
Welle said. "She just catches and shoots. I must be doing
something wrong because I'm having to make lots more moves to get
to the basket."
Some of those moves come in the open court. Anyone trying to
guard Welle has to catch her first.
Though she doesn't look like someone you would ask to anchor a
relay team, Welle beats opposing centers down the floor time after
time for layups.
"The fast break in college basketball is driven by post players
that can run the floor," Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said.
"Angie knows if she runs, that we're going to get her the ball and
she can score."
Fennelly said Welle's ability to run the floor is a tribute to
the work she does in the offseason. He said people often tell him
of seeing Welle running hills or running in the street during the
summer.
"It's amazing how fast she can get from one end to the other,"
he said.
Welle said it's more in the head than in the legs or lungs.
"I think you have to have the mentality that you're not going
to let your person beat you up the court and that's what I have,"
Welle said. "It's not that far of a run to run down the court. So
I don't think it's so much being in shape. It's more of the
mentality that you just want to do it."
Welle does it so well that point guard Lindsey Wilson considers
her the first option on the break.
"I'm used to seeing her out there," Wilson said. "Sometimes
it's surprising how much she can beat somebody. There's times
she'll be wide open."
At times like that, a sure-shot like Welle becomes a guard's
best friend.
"When I throw it in there," Wilson said, "I know I'm getting
an assist."
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Lindsey Wilson finds Angie Welle in transition for the easy layup.