KANSAS CITY, Mo. — How’s this for an encore?

Following the best regular season in school history, the Iowa State women’s basketball team outdid themselves this weekend by winning the Big 12 tournament in Kansas City.

The Cyclones rolled over their three opponents en route to their first conference tournament title in school history. Iowa State beat Texas 75-65 Saturday night at Municipal Auditorium in the championship game.

“Obviously we’re ecstatic about winning another championship. It makes it even more special knowing that we beat one of the top programs and one of the greatest coaches in NCAA history,” Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said.

In many ways, it was a typically solid performance for Iowa State. The win featured balanced scoring (four Cyclones scored between nine and 19 points), solid three-point shooting (Iowa State was nine for 19 from behind the arc) and a game-breaking run (a 10-0 burst midway through the second half).

The Cyclones were led by Desir‚e Francis, who scored 19 points on 8-13 shooting from the floor. The senior forward connected on three of four shots from three-point range.

All of this was accomplished with an upset stomach.

Right before the second half was to begin, Francis vomited in the free throw lane. There was a delay for about 15 minutes while the damage was cleared.

“I guess my food didn’t settle from lunch. But after I threw up I felt a lot better, and it was all good,” Francis said.

“We were all kind of squeamish at that point. It certainly wasn’t the most inviting place in the world to be, but we adjusted,” Texas coach Judy Conrad said.

The Cyclones got off to a characteristically fast start to the game, jumping out to a 19-9 lead halfway through the first half. The rest of the initial stanza was played to a standstill, and the Cyclones held a 10-point lead at the break, 31-21.

After the Francis incident, the second half began much the same way the first one concluded, with both teams trading baskets.

“We really weren’t playing defense at all to start the second half, but once we realized that we needed to to win, we started playing better and rebounding better,” said Megan Taylor, who finished with 16 points.

The score was 40-31 before Iowa State went on its first scoring binge of the night.

Taylor and Tracy Gahan both nailed jumpers, and Angie Welle made a nice post move that resulted in a bucket. Gahan then drove to the basket, hit the shot and was fouled. She swished the free throw to make it a three-point play.

When Taylor knocked down another jumper, it was a 50-31 game with 11:46 to play, and the only thing in doubt became the final margin.

Iowa State hoisted the lead to 24 points before sending in the second unit. The Longhorns poured in 15 of the game’s final 16 points to provide the misleading final tally.

The Cyclone defense on Texas All-American Edwina Brown was often suffocating. The senior forward finished with 23 points, but she was limited to only 9 of 25 shooting from the floor. Brown made six of her last seven shots well after the game had been decided.

“I thought we did a great job on her when it counted. We tried to make her take tough shots and not put her at the foul line, and I think we did that for the most part,” Fennelly said.

Three Cyclones — point guard Stacy Frese, Welle and Francis — were named to the all-tournament team along with Brown and Nebraska’s Nicole Kubik.

Brown earned tournament MVP honors, much to the dismay of the ISU fans, but Fennelly took the slight in stride.

“I think it’s a big complement to us. It means we play well as a team, and that no one really stands out. Brown is a great player, and I have no problems with her getting the award,” Fennelly said.

The attendance of 9,130, most of whom sported cardinal and gold, set a Big 12 Tournament record.

“It was like a home game out there, it really was. We have the best fans in America, and I think that tonight proved it,” Fennelly said.

“Hilton South, that’s what everybody was calling it,” Frese said. “They were incredible tonight, and they’ve been incredible all year.”