AMES, Iowa - February 14th, 2024
Iowa State (14-9, 8-5 Big 12) took down No. 7 Kansas State (21-4, 10-3 Big 12) in a double overtime thriller by a score of 96-93 Wednesday night. Iowa State secures the second Top-10 win and third Top-25 victory of the season.
The Cyclones took a 39-26 lead at half while holding the Wildcats to 27 percent shooting, with the second half proving to be a battle ending regulation tied at 72. Iowa State ended the game on 18-straight free throws, including going a perfect 14-of-14 in overtime to seal the victory.
The Cyclones secure the 19th Top-10 win in school history and the second over an opponent ranked No. 7. It was also the fifth double overtime victory in program history and first since Feb. 18, 2023 in the 81-77 win over Baylor.
Five Cyclones scored in double figures, but Emily Ryan was the game-changer putting up a double-double of 12 assists and 12 points, once again nearly hitting a triple-double with seven rebounds. Ryan went 10-of-10 from the free throw line, with her eight in the two overtime periods proving to be pivotal.
No stranger to 20-point games, Audi Crooks poured in 20 for her 10th game with as many while keeping her double-figure scoring streak alive at 22 games. Crooks also had nine rebounds, three steals and a block. Addy Brown matched Crooks with 20 for her fourth 20-point game, going 5-of-9 from the field and a perfect 8-of-8 from the charity stripe. Brown added seven rebounds and five assists to her stat line.
Kelsey Joens dialed in 13 points, including three 3-pointers, while totaling seven rebounds. Isnelle Natabou made her first four shots, going on to total 10 points at 83 percent shooting with just one miss.
How it Happened
Crooks gave ISU its first lead at 8-6 four minutes into the contest, while Hannah Belanger extended the advantage with a 3-pointer following a K-State turnover. Joens kept it going with another from beyond the arc, but the run did not end there. Crooks then sent in a jumper, making it a 12-0 run and 10-point game at 16-6 with 4:03 on the clock. The Cyclones' lead was brought down to three (19-16), but back-to-back layups by Brown and Natabou made it 23-16 after the first.
Natabou opened second-quarter scoring with her third make, putting ISU up 25-16 at 7:41. Joens' second deep shot then brought it back to a double-digit game (28-18), while the score stood at 30-20 midway through the frame. Brown would become the fourth Cyclone to send in a 3 after a slick defensive rebound by Nyamer Diew, taking the score to 33-20. ISU kept control of the half, taking a 13-point lead into halftime (39-26).
The Wildcats fought to come back within three at 46-43 with 5:27 to go in the third as Iowa State called a timeout. Iowa State hit a cold streak while the game was brought to a 48-48 tie with just over two minutes in the quarter. Four-straight free throws by the duo of Ryan and Joens put ISU back ahead, with Crooks ending the third with a jumper sending the game to the fourth with Iowa State up 54-50.
It was a one-point game (55-54) with 7:48 left to play when Joens delivered her third 3-pointer on four attempts to keep the advantage with Iowa State. K-State followed to grab its first lead since the first quarter, but ISU took it back at 65-64 on two Crooks shots from the charity stripe at 3:42. Lead changes continued, with Kansas State up 70-67 with under two minutes remaining. A game-tying triple by Brown came next off a Ryan assist with the clock at 52 seconds. A foul on Iowa State led to a made KSU free throw, with the Cyclones grabbing the rebound but missing the go-ahead shot. K-State would hold a 72-70 lead at :10.6, but Brown would tie it on a pair of free throws. A huge blocked shot by Crooks would deny the Wildcats the lead, sending the game to overtime.
Overtime began with a made shot by Crooks, while even scoring followed as the teams tied each other at 74s, 76s and 78s. Iowa State held the ball with eight seconds, while Brown drew the foul proceeding to make her free throws to put the Cyclones up. K-State's Ayoka Lee then converted on the buzzer-beating shot to send the game double overtime.
Crooks stole the ball for the third time, taking it down the court to deliver the layup at 3:52. Natabou would put ISU up 86-84, but KSU answered with a 3 with the clock reading 1:23. With 35 seconds to go, Belanger and Brown sent in four free throws to give ISU a three-point edge. With 11 seconds of play remaining, Ryan would send in four crucial freebies to not let the lead slip away. It again became a one-point game with a KSU layup at :04.8, but after a foul on Brown and another pair of free throws, ISU went back up by three as time expired with the Cyclones up 96-93.