Behind a historic performance by senior Bridget Carleton, No. 20 Iowa State was able to take down No. 18 Texas on the road 82-73.

With the win, the Cyclones were able to take control of the No. 2 spot in the Big 12 with Carleton becoming only the second ISU player ever to score 2,000 career points. Scoring wise, Carleton wasn’t the only Cyclone to light up the score board with Ashley Joens dropping the second most points in the game behind Carleton.

Entering the game, the Longhorns were the only team standing in from of the Cyclones for the No. 2 spot in the conference behind No. 1 Baylor, who ranks not only first in the conference but also the nation.

Earlier in the season, Texas defeated the Cyclones in Ames, Iowa, 64-62. During the game, Carleton had the final possession for the Cyclones to either tie the game or take a lead, but her shot to tie the game fell just short, but in the end Carleton had her revenge.

In Austin, Texas, Carleton led all scorers with 23 points while also nearly notching her first triple-double of the season with 12 rebounds and seven assists. In her scoring effort, Carleton become the second Iowa State player ever to score 2,000 points in their career.

The first to score 2,000 is Angie Welle, who finished her ISU career with 2,149 points. 

With one regular season game left versus Kansas at home on Monday, Carleton also has the Big 12 tourney and the NCAA Tournament to pass Welle as Iowa State’s all-time leading scorer.

If the Cyclones beat Kansas, ISU will lock up the No. 2 seed in the Big 12 tournament and possibly a No. 4 seed or higher in the NCAA Tournament. 

If Iowa State avoids a quick exit in both tournaments, Carleton, who averages 22 points a game, has a chance to overtake Welle for ISU’s top career scoring position.

Speaking of great careers for the Cyclones, Joens, who is a freshman, is off to a great start.

Against the Longhorns, Joens had 22 points and seven rebounds. Her point total only trailed Carleton in the game, but it still managed to pass Carleton’s first year with the Cyclones.

In her first year, Joens has scored 343 points total or 11.8 points a game. In point totals, Joens has already surpassed Carleton, who had 323 total points. Carleton slightly outscored Joens on a per game basis as Carleton averaged 12 points per game.

Behind stellar seasons from both Carleton and Joens, the Cyclones are not only set up for this season, but continued success into the future.