AMES – The Iowa State women’s basketball team (11-7, 3-4 Big 12) fell to No. 4 Baylor (19-1, 6-1 Big 12), 77-61 on Saturday afternoon in Hilton Coliseum. Junior guard Seanna Johnson led the way for Iowa State with a game-high 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field.
It was a neck-and-neck first quarter, with the largest lead of the period coming when Baylor went up four on three different occasions. The Cyclones went on a key 7-0 run after the Lady Bears had taken a 9-5 lead. The run was jump-started by a Nicole Blaskowsky three-pointer, followed by buckets from Seanna Johnson and Madison Baier on back-to-back possessions to give Iowa State a 12-9 lead. The Bears would wrestle back control and end the first quarter with a 16-14 lead.
Following a Buckley layup to begin the second stanza, the Lady Bear offense found its rhythm and expanded the lead to double digits. Up 22-18, BU proceeded to go on a 10-2 run over the next five minutes to cease momentum. The Baylor run was sparked by six-straight points from Niya Johnson as Baylor went up 32-20. The Cyclones attempted to chip away at the deficit over the final three minutes of the quarter and went into the locker room at halftime down 37-26. Johnson led the way with 15 points on 5-of-8 shooting in the first half.
The Cyclones started cutting into the lead after the intermission, opening the half 3-of-3 from the field, including back-to-back three-pointers by Buckley and Johnson to cut the lead to 39-34. The Lady Bears responded by scoring on seven-consecutive possessions to extend the lead to 54-40 with just over three minutes remaining in the quarter. BU held a 57-45 lead after three quarters.
Baylor went on to out-score the Cyclones, 20-16 in the final stanza, as the Cyclones fell, 77-61.
Cyclone junior guard Seanna Johnson put up a valiant effort in defeat. Johnson scored 22 points on 9-of-13 shooting from the field, to go with four rebounds and two assists. It was the eighth 20-point scoring effort of her career.
Iowa State will face TCU at home on Wednesday, Jan. 27. Tip between the Cyclones and Horned Frogs will be at 7 p.m., and the game will be shown on Cyclones.TV Powered by Mediacom.