AMES – As the Iowa State women’s basketball team rolled through the first 10 games of the season, there was only one thing missing from the strong start. The Cyclones had yet to truly be tested with a tough non-conference opponent.
On Wednesday, Dec. 10, they finally got their first test and passed it with flying colors.
Iowa State picked up its first marquee victory of the season and ended a three-game losing streak against in-state rival Iowa as the 10th-ranked Cyclones beat the 12th-ranked Hawkeyes, 74-69, at Hilton Coliseum.
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“I feel like now we’re battle tested,” said Iowa State star Audi Crooks. “People were commenting on our schedule. So, now there’s not much else to say.”
Crooks scored 30 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Teammate Addy Brown finished with 20 points, 12 rebounds and five assists. Jada Williams chipped in with 11 points, 12 assists and five rebounds.
Crooks, Brown and Williams combined to score 61 of Iowa State’s 74 points to improve to 11-0. It’s the strongest start for the program since the 2013-14 season when the Cyclones opened the year with 14-straight wins.
The victory over the Hawkeyes was the first for the Cyclones since a 77-70 Cy-Hawk win back on Dec. 8, 2021. It had been so long since Iowa State had picked up a win in the series that none of the players on the team’s roster had ever defeated Iowa.
“The casual fan that’s an Iowa State fan and doesn’t even like women’s basketball is excited right now,” said Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly. “It’s no accident I have 203 text messages already. On Sunday, I had one from my wife that said, ‘Bring something home for supper.’ It’s different. And we don’t take this for granted.”
Neither team did in what turned out to be an epic back-and-forth battle that included five ties and 10 lead changes. Most of them came in the first half.
Iowa closed out the first quarter with an 11-2 run and took a 23-19 lead into the second after former Cyclones starter Kylie Feuberbach buried a 3-pointer just before the buzzer.
Iowa State battled back by scoring the first seven points of the second quarter and take a 26-23 lead on a fadeaway from Crooks.
But the Hawkeyes responded with a 9-0 run to take a 35-33 lead. Iowa State got a jumper from Kenzie Hare before the quarter to go into halftime tied, 35-35.
In the third quarter, it was all Iowa State. The Cyclones scored the first six points of the third and took a 41-35 lead, which grew even bigger after an 8-0 run. Hare connected on another 3-pointer to push the advantage to 51-40.
Iowa State went into the fourth with a commanding 61-48 lead after outscoring Iowa 26-13 in the quarter. The Cyclones were able to take advantage of Iowa post players Ava Heiden and Hannah Stuelke battling foul trouble.
“Asserting myself early in the game and getting them in foul trouble, really, really allowed us to flow a lot more smoothly into what we wanted to do offensively,” Crooks said.
Iowa quickly turned things around in the fourth quarter with a 10-0 run to pull within five. The Cyclone lead even dwindled to just three multiple times in the fourth quarter.
But Iowa never could tie things up. Iowa State continually left the door open for the Hawkeyes, though, as the Cyclones struggled from the free throw line, connecting on just 9-of-20 attempts.
Williams missed a pair of free throws late in the fourth with Iowa State up just three. Iowa’s Taylor McCabe had her shot blocked on the next possession.
“A lot of people stepped up in a lot of different ways,” Brown said.
Crooks put things away by hitting 1-of-2 free throws to take a four-point lead. Iowa had its share of issues from the charity stripe, making just 6-of-12 attempts, but the Cyclones survived.
Iowa State was without backup point guard Reese Beaty for the second straight game. The school announced before the game that Beaty would be out for two weeks due to a lingering foot injury.
Beaty has already played a valuable part for Iowa State this season. She averaged 5.9 points, 3.4 assists and 2.3 rebounds in Iowa State’s first nine games. Beaty missed Iowa State’s game against Northern Illinois as well.
The freshman watched from the bench as Iowa State survived the second-half surge by the Hawkeyes. Iowa State players celebrated on the court by dancing and taking pictures.
“I think it’ll be a big one,” Brown said. “I mean, we have a lot of confidence from this game, our first ranked win. It’s always great to get a ranked win, no matter who it is.”
Another big test is coming Iowa State’s way. The Cyclones face their final in-state rival when they take on Northern Iowa on Dec. 14 at Hilton Coliseum. The game marks the end of the non-conference schedule for the Cyclones.
While Wednesday’s win was a big one for Iowa State, they’re hoping it’s just the start of many more to come this season.
“The last thing I told them in the locker room was, if this is the best moment of our season, then they and I did not do our jobs,” Fennelly said. “It should be something that we celebrate, enjoy.”
Tommy Birch, the Register’s sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He’s the 2018, 2020 and 2023 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at [email protected] or 515-284-8468.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa State women’s basketball beats Iowa, ends Cy-Hawk losing streak
