MORGANTOWN, West Virginia – No. 21 Iowa State (15-7, 7-5 Big 12) fell to West Virginia (15-8, 6-6 Big 12) Saturday night by a score of 73-60.
Iowa State had three in double figures, led by Ashley Joens with 17. Emily Ryan totaled 13 while Denae Fritz notched 11. Joens came one rebound shy of a double-double.
The Cyclones led at the half, but the Mountaineers fought back in the second half to build a lead ISU could not overcome.
How it Happened
Iowa State went out to a lead of 5-2 before WVU took off on an eight-point run. Morgan Kane drove up to the basket to end the Mountaineer run while Joens tied things up at 10 with a triple. After one quarter played, West Virginia held the three-point advantage at 18-15.
ISU opened the second retaking the lead 19-18, but West Virginia pushed forward to a lead of five. Joens then drew the foul and capitalized on two made free throws to enter double figures prior to the midway point of the quarter. In the final minute, the Cyclones hit a 6-0 run after Ryan muscled in the layup to head into the intermission ahead 35-34.
The second half began with back-and-forth action of five lead changes before a tie of 41-41 was seen halfway through the third. West Virginia saw their largest lead grow to eight as the quarter closed with a score of 56-48 after the Mountaineers sunk a 3-pointer with one second on the clock.
West Virginia built their lead out to 13 with six minutes remaining. Fritz then made her seventh free throw on eight attempts before Nyamer Diew tallied a shot beyond the arc to cut into the lead at 63-55. WVU pulled away with the win to put the final score at 73-60.
Player of the Game
Ashley Joens posted 17 points while coming one rebound shy of a double-double. It was her 21st 10-plus game of the season and 131st of her career.
Up Next
No. 21 ISU heads home to host Texas Monday at 6 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN2 and tickets are through the Iowa State Ticket Office.
