The women chalked up their two Cy-Hawk points; now it’s up to the men.

The ISU women’s basketball team defended Hilton in the first of two days of Iowa State-Iowa matches, downing Iowa 77-61. A crowd of more than 10,000 braved the snow to attend one of the state’s most heated games, and the Cyclones didn’t disappoint their home crowd.

“It was an amazing turnout despite the bad weather; I see how special our fans are and how they impacted the game,” coach Bill Fennelly said. “I’ve never coached a game of this magnitude with six players, and it was evident in their effort.”

The Cyclones overcame a persistent and stifling Hawkeye team to produce their most balanced scoring effort of the season. Five of the six ISU players came away in double figures, and four of them tallied double-doubles against a deep Iowa roster.

Nicky Wieben, starting in the first rivalry game of her career, left her aggression for Iowa on the court. The freshman totaled a career-high 19 points and pulled down 12 rebounds, including seven on the offensive side.

“Nicky was as good as advertised,” Fennelly said. “We’ve really been on her about her rebounding, and she came through tonight.”

Lyndsey Medders notched a team-high 20 points and dished out 14 assists, despite being hounded on the perimeter by the hard-nosed defense of Iowa’s Crystal Smith. The Cyclones succeeded in containing Smith, who scored 46 points in a previous game, limiting her to 13 points.

“Defensively, we were pretty solid, and we wanted Smith to work for every point she got,” Fennelly said. “She’s a great player, impossible to guard, but we stayed in front of her and made her shoot over us.”

Megan Ronhovde followed with 14 points and 11 rebounds, and Brittany Wilkins continued her successful senior campaign with 10 points and 13 boards.

“It was a physically and emotionally draining game, and the freshmen really played their hearts out tonight,” Ronhovde said. “With five players in double figures, this shows what a great team win this was.”

The game began with a quick three-pointer from Iowa forward Tiffany Reedy, but was matched on the other end by Ronhovde, setting the tempo for the game.

The Hawkeyes took an early 13-7 lead, but a succession of ISU points, including a three by center Wilkins, got the team surging. The crowd tore the game loose, however, as the Cyclones grabbed three consecutive offensive rebounds. Heather Ezell added to the fire with three of her 12 points to send Iowa State into the half with a 37-27 lead.

Iowa State broke open the second half with an 8-0 run, courtesy of threes from Medders and Ronhovde, two of nine threes the team sank on the night. The team racked up a 51-36 lead before Iowa tightened its defense and cut the lead to six with 10 minutes to go.

Ezell changed the momentum with a take-charge three and led the team to a 65-52 burst, including keeping Smith frustrated on offense. A final lay-up by Medders sealed the fate and the intrastate win for the Cyclones.

The Cyclones have one day off before taking to Hilton again against Akron at 2 p.m. Saturday.