“Hilton Magic” appears to be alive and kicking in Ames.

The moniker, which is several years old and is usually used when referring to the men’s team, can now be applied to both ISU squads as the women won their 30th straight regular season game at home, thrashing Colorado 86-70.

The Cyclones hit a school-record 16 three-pointers en route to their 17th win of the year against only five defeats.

The game was played in front of a regular-season record crowd of 7991, which eclipsed the old mark by a little over 1,000 fans.

“I’m very happy with the way we played, obviously. The crowd was incredible, Megan (Taylor) played the way everyone expects her to play and I thought Stacy (Frese) was great,” coach Bill Fennelly said.

Taylor lead the Cyclone attack with 25 points, her most in a game since tallying 27 against Sam Houston in early December.

“After my first couple of shots, I really felt confident. It seemed like everybody was feeling it today. I mean, Stacy feels it everyday, but it was nice to have everybody on,” Taylor said.

Three other Cyclones reached double figures, including Desiree Francis with 17, Frese with 15 and Tracy Gahan with 10.

After Iowa native Linda Lappe, playing for Colorado, knocked down a three-pointer to start the scoring, the Cyclones, behind Taylor, took control.

The sophomore from Roseau, Minn., hit her first three shots, including one from beyond the arc, as ISU jumped out to an 11-6 lead less than six minutes into the contest.

The rest of the half saw the Cyclones threaten to break away a number of times, only to have the Buffs answer with a hoop to quell the tide.

Taylor scored five points in the last 1:15 to extend the Cyclone lead to 36-30 as the teams headed into intermission.

Frese set the tone for the rest of the contest by nailing a three on the first possession of the half. After Colorado cut the lead to seven at 55-48, the Cyclones made the run that would lead them to victory.

The ensuing 13-0 run that spanned 5:13 included seven points by Francis and three of the record 16 treys.

The last three points of the run that sealed the deal came when Frese knocked down her 57th three of the year while being fouled by CU’s Michelle Hasheider.

Although Frese could not convert on the four-point play, it was clear that this would be the Cyclones’ day.

The return of the solid play of Megan Taylor and the aggressiveness shown by Francis keyed the win.

“I think before it was just a case of Megan trying too hard. But today she made a couple early, and you could tell that she really wanted the ball,” Fennelly said.

As for Francis, her impact on the squad is unquestioned.

“Des just makes plays. She is somebody who there is no doubt that we need if we want to do anything long-term,” Fennelly said.

The Buffs were led by Melody Johnson, who anchored the pivot effectively with 19 points and 10 rebounds.

Also having a solid game for Colorado was Lappe, who in her first return to her home state added 16 points, which included a 4-5 performance from beyond the arc.

“It was good to be near home and hear the cheers from some of the crowd,” Lappe said.

The Cyclones will now face yet another stern test in a season full of them when they travel to Kansas to take on the Jayhawks.

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IOWA STATE 86

COLORADO 70

COLORADO (12-10, 5-7)

Dilworth 0-4 0-0 0, Garcia 2-2 0-0 4, Hartshorn 1-3 0-0 2, Nightingale 2-3 0-0 6, Lappe 5-7 2-2 16, Roulier 2-7 0-0 4, Johnson 7-10 5-10 19, Hasheider 0-2 0-0 0, Bohman 6-9 2-2 16, Swagger 1-3 0-2 3. Totals 26-50 9-16 70.

IOWA ST. (17-5, 9-3)

Huelman 0-1 0-0 0, Taylor 10-16 0-0 25, Welle 4-6 1-3 9, Frese 5-11 1-3 15, Gahan 4-6 0-0 10, Haugen 2-5 0-0 5, Homeyer 1-1 0-0 3, Shriver 0-0 0-0 0, Cizek 1-2 0-0 2, Francis 7-10 0-0 17. Totals 34-58 2-6 86.

Halftime—Iowa St. 36, Colorado 30. 3-Point goals—Colorado 9-15 (Lappe 4-5, Nightingale 2-2, Bohman 2-3, Swagger 1-1, Roulier 0-4), Iowa St. 16-26 (Taylor 5-7, Frese 4-7, Francis 3-4, Gahan 2-2, Haugen 1-4, Homeyer 1-1, Huelman 0-1). Fouled out—Welle. Rebounds—Colorado 27 (Johnson 5), Iowa St. 26 (Taylor 8). Assists—Colorado 22 (Nightingale 8), Iowa St. 27 (Frese 9). Total fouls—Colorado 13, Iowa St. 15. A—7,991.