AUSTIN, TEXAS – Iowa State (14-10, 8-6 Big 12) fell to No. 5 Texas (24-3, 11-3 Big 12) on the road by score of 81-60 Saturday.
Iowa State led with less than five minutes remaining in the second quarter, but Texas followed with a 15-2 run to end the half up by 10. The Cyclones pulled back within five late in the third quarter, but Texas followed to pull away by a margin ISU could not come back from.
Audi Crooks took hold of the most field goals made in a season by a freshman, now totaling 171 to pass the previous best of 163 set by Colleen Peterson in 1975-76. Crooks entered double figures in the early goings of the second quarter, going on to total 24 points for the rookie’s 11th total and second-straight 20-point game.
Emily Ryan hit career assist No. 700 to become the third Cyclone in program history to hit the mark, now totaling 702 after her seven assists today.
Addy Brown also notched double-figure points with 11, also totaling five rebounds and four assists.
How it Happened
Texas got off to a 12-5 start, missing just one of its first six shots, before Ryan brought ISU within four with a 3-pointer at the 5:45 mark. Out of the media timeout, Crooks delivered the bucket to make it a two-point game at 12-10. The Longhorns then brought their lead to eight, but Kelsey Joens and Hannah Belanger responded with 3-pointers to keep ISU in it at 22-18 after the first.
The Cyclones opened the second taking their first lead of 25-23 on an Arianna Jackson deep shot, while the lead followed to flip four times. Texas then used a run of nine to go up 37-31 late in the first half. UT continued to score, building up to their then-largest lead of the game of 43-33 after two.
Texas carried their double-digit lead to the midway point of the third, but Iowa State came back within five (49-44) with 4:38 on the clock. The final minutes proved to be a battle, with the Cyclones again trimming their deficit to five while Texas followed to end the third ahead 58-50.
The home team started the final frame hot, again building a 10-point lead as ISU called a timeout with 8:20 left to play. Iowa State hit a cold streak as Texas continued to pull away, leading by 19 with just over five minutes on the clock. Texas kept control of its lead to seal the win.
Notes
Iowa State women’s basketball’s all-time record moved to 841-663 (.559) and 328-351 (.483) all-time in conference games.
Head coach Bill Fennelly’s career record moved to 770-364 (.679). His Iowa State record is now 604-311 (.660) overall.
ISU’s all-time series record against Texas moves to 23-27 and 7-14 in Austin.
With Emily Ryan’s 3-pointer in the first quarter, Iowa State has now recorded a triple in an NCAA women’s basketball record 918 consecutive games.
Emily Ryan has recorded an assist in every collegiate game she has played in. Today, she finished with seven assists, moving her career total to 702. She has posted five or more assists in a single game nine times this season and 77 times in her career.
Ryan became the third Cyclone and ninth active NCAA women’s basketball player to reach 700 career assists. She is 17 assists from tying Lyndsey Medders’ total for second-most career assists in program history and 44 from the school record.
Audi Crooks recorded her 11th 20-point game of the season with 24 points to lead ISU. Crooks finished 10-of-19 from the floor and 4-of-6 form the free throw line.
With 24 points, Crooks’ season total moves to 433 points, the second-most by a freshman in program history. Crooks sits 27 points behind Megan Taylor’s 460 in 1997-98.
Making her third field goal today, Crooks holds the program record for most field goals in a season by a freshman. Her 171 makes are 30 from breaking into the program single-season top 10 regardless of class.
With five rebounds, Addy Brown recorded her 200th career rebound.
Up Next
Iowa State continues its stint through Texas, next meeting Houston Wednesday, Feb. 21 at 7 p.m. The game will be streamed on Big 12 Now on ESPN+.
