AMES – Former Mason City Mohawk standout Jadda Buckley scored 12 points as the Iowa State Cyclones women’s basketball team to a 77-60 victory over UCSB.
Buckley’s 12 points helped her notch her 42nd career game in double figures. The Redshirt Junior notched 2 rebounds, a blocked shot and a steal.
Iowa State is now 22-0 all-time in season openers under head coach Bill Fennelly.
The contest broke in favor of the home Cyclones early, as ISU went on a 10-1 run, which included 3-pointers from Jadda Buckley and Emily Durr to move ahead 16-6 in the first. Iowa State had an outstanding shooting effort in the first, hitting 12-of-17 shots at 70.6 percent and all three free throw attempts.
While the ISU offensive output was not the same in the second quarter, the defensive intensity continued. In her Cyclone debut, Heather Bowe was a pest on defense. The Vanderbilt graduate transfer recorded six steals in the first half, while also being an asset on the glass for the Cyclones.
Iowa State’s shots started falling again in the third, as the home squad hit six of its first eight shots to begin the period. Meredith Burkhall in particular enjoyed a good third quarter, hitting all three of her shot attempts as ISU was able to expand its lead to as many as 29 points.
Iowa State returns to Hilton Coliseum on Tuesday to take on UNI. Tip between the Cyclones and Panthers will be at 7 p.m., with the game televised on Cyclones.TV Powered by Mediacom.
