AMES – No. 14 Iowa State (4-0) picked up its third win in seven days with a 96-55 win over Southern (0-4) Sunday afternoon at Hilton Coliseum. It was a wire-to-wire victory for the Cyclones, who took the lead on the first possession of the game and did not look back.
Leading the way was Aubrey Joens, who just three days after setting a new career-high of 18 at Drake upped it with 21 against the Jaguars on Sunday on 7-of-11 shooting, which included five 3-pointers. She also grabbed a game-high nine rebounds, tying her career-best of nine against South Dakota State on Monday. Joining her in double figures was Ashley Joens (16), Lexi Donarski and Nyamer Diew (career-high 13). Emily Ryan dished out a career-best 13 assists, tied for the sixth-most in a single game in ISU history.
How It Happened
The first six points of the contest went to the home team, four via Izzi Zingaro from the free throw line. The Cyclones were able to get to the charity stripe early and often while putting away their chances, going 9-of-10 from the line in the first quarter en route to at 24-10 lead.
In a physical contest, the Cyclones continued to take advantage of the Jaguars’ aggression, getting 16 free throw attempts in the first half and converting on 14 of them (88.8 percent). Iowa State’s defense held SU to 26.5 percent shooting and forced seven turnovers.
Opening the second half with a 23-point edge, Iowa State continued to press its advantage, moving ahead by as many as 38 points, with Aubrey Joens leading the way in the third period with eight points for ISU, who went 7-of-12 (58.3 percent) from the field, including 5-of-9 (55.5 percent) from 3-point range in the third.
Up 33 to start the fourth and with the result not in doubt, the Cyclones were able to shuffle the deck, giving its starters some rest while also getting other players into the fold. Beatriz Jordão made her ISU debut on Sunday, getting four points, three rebounds, a block and a steal in 10 minutes of action.
Player of the Game
Aubrey Joens. The younger of the Joens sisters continued her strong start to the season with a new career-high of 21 points while also matching her career-best with a game-high nine rebounds.
Up Next
Iowa State travels to Florida for the Gulf Coast Showcase, with three games starting on Friday with Charlotte at 4 p.m. Central Time. All the games will be streamed on FloHoops.
