Iowa State women's basketball: Kenzie Hare expected to be ready for summer workouts

Iowa State womens basketball coach Bill Fennelly believes that one of the most important additions to the Cyclones this upcoming season will be a player who has already been on the teams roster.Fennelly said that guard Kenzie Hare, who missed most of last season with a hip injury, is expected to be ready to go when Iowa State starts summer workouts on June 16.Her return could be a gigantic boost for the Cyclones.Getting Kenzie Hare back is a bonus, Fennelly said during Iowa States Tailgate Tour stop in Ankeny on May 19.

Thats one of the people that you kind of forget about.Its certainly easy to see why Hare might be an afterthought of sorts when it comes to this upcoming season.

The 5-foot-9 guard missed most of her first season at Iowa State after transferring to Marquette, where she had suffered a torn hip labrum.Hare toughed through her final season at Marquette, averaging 14 points, 2.4 assists and 2.1 rebounds per game while starting 31 of 32 games for the school.

She planned to fight through the pain during her first season at Iowa State.More: Iowa State women's basketball coach Bill Fennelly proud of Cyclones' offseason additionsFennelly said the Cyclones knew about Hares injury before she got to Iowa State but didnt realize how bad it was until she arrived.

Hare played in 10 games for Iowa State, making eight starts and averaging 8.3 points, 2.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game.She was ultimately shut down and decided to medically redshirt her first season at Iowa State.She just fought through it and fought through it to the point where it was like, This is stupid, were going to shut you down, Fennelly said.Hare missed the remainder of the season to undergo surgery and rehab from the injury.

Her presence was sorely missed by the Cyclones, who could have used her experience on the court and her ability to defend.Fennelly spent much of last season looking for other options in the starting lineup to fill Hares void.

Hes said that Iowa States season, which still resulted in a trip to the NCAA Tournament, could have been more successful if Hare had been available.Now that shes healthy, theyll be able to utilize her skills in 2025-26.She loves to compete, Fennelly said.

She loves to do the stuff that other kids dont like to do.

She wants to be in the gym.Fennelly compared Hare's return to the transfer-portal pickups Iowa State added in the offseason.

The Cyclones signed guard Jada Williams and guard/forward Evangelia Paulk.

Bringing back Hare after she missed so much time is almost like adding a new player."Getting Kenzie healthy was probably one of the bigger things," Fennelly said.Fennelly said Hare will give the Cyclones another scorer and, perhaps more important, another willing defender.

With fans hopefully getting a full season to see what Hare can do, Fennelly anticipates her being a popular player.Shes a kid that our fans are going to like because she really competes and shell do the hard stuff, Fennelly said.This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State women's basketball: Kenzie Hare nearing return to Cyclones.

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