Just when the Cyclones (13-3, 1-2) needed her the most, Iowa State’s senior guard Alison Lacey showed why she will be recognized as one of the best basketball players to play for Iowa State.

Lacey scored a season high 32 points and grabbed eight rebounds in Saturday’s 68-62 victory over Colorado (11-5, 1-2), with 26 of those points coming in the second half including a late game surge where she scored 16 of Iowa State’s final 18 points, paving the way for an impressive and much needed win.

“The way [Lacey] played – especially in the second half – was as good as any 20 minutes any Iowa State player has ever had,” said coach Bill Fennelly. “She had 26 in the second half, didn’t turn the ball over and then at the other end too she was our best defender on the floor. Certainly a phenomenal effort by her at a time when we really needed it.”

Lacey’s remarkable performance was not the only positive to come out of Saturday’s victory. Offensively, Iowa State bounced back after two disappointing conference games. Throughout the first 13 games of the season, scoring did not appear to be a problem for the Cyclones, led by strong guard play, Iowa State averaged nearly 75 points per game.

However, once conference play started, the Cyclones slumped to scoring an average of 47 points in two Big 12 games. The first half of Saturday’s game looked as if it may be another offensive struggle as the Cyclones shot only 29-percent from the field. Despite the slow start, the Cyclones still managed to turn things around and shot a 51.7-percent from the field, including five for nine from the three point line.

After Saturday’s 68-point performance, the Cyclones find themselves with a perfect opportunity to move forward and regain their offensive strength.

“We were obviously better [Saturday night] but if you look at our numbers in the conference, we’ve got to score more in the post, our field goal percentage needs to continue to come a little bit,” Fennelly said. “I think we’re getting the shots we want to get, we just got to finish them better.”

Now standing at 1-2 in the conference, the Cyclones remain optimistic that they will remain contenders in the Big 12. History proves that the Cyclones may be right as this season now marks the fifth consecutive time they have started Big 12 play at 1-2.

“1-2 is not where you want to be,” Fennelly said. “But it’s a very balanced league and hopefully the 1-2 start is not where we go but certainly that we should keep improving and have the kind of finishes we’ve had more often than not.”

With upcoming games against Kansas, Texas, Oklahoma and Texas Tech, the Cyclones have plenty of opportunities to improve offensively before important conference games against Baylor, Nebraska, and Oklahoma State, three of the top five teams in the Big 12.