On the road versus No. 2 Baylor, the No. 20-ranked Cyclones fell 84-69.

During the game, Iowa State senior Bridget Carleton proved she was one of the best players on the court despite cold second-half shooting. Iowa State’s other offensive options faltered, and Baylor sealed the game with an overwhelming third quarter.

Carleton thrives

Through the first half, Carleton had already registered 24 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the floor and 2-of-3 from long range.

Freshman Ashley Joens had the second-most points of any Cyclone with four in the first half, all of which came from the free throw line. As a team, Iowa State had only 35 points through the first half while Baylor scored 41.

In the second half, Carleton had scored four points but shot 1-for-5 from the floor.

Despite the second half, Carleton still finished the game with 28 points, two rebounds, two assists, four steals and a block. Her 28 points were a game-high.

Baylor’s Lauren Cox had the second-most points in the game with 22.

Iowa State’s secondary scoring options struggle

Through the first half, Joens, Kristin Scott and Madison Wise, who rank second, third and fourth in scoring, respectively, had a combined seven points between them. Joens had four, Scott had three and Wise had zero.

As a team, Iowa State shot poorly from 3-point range. During the game, Iowa State shot 28 percent from three (7-for-25) as a team.

Wise was 0-for-5 from 3-point range and Scott was 3-of-9. Aside from her free throws, Joens had one shot from three and two shots total during the game.

The other Cyclones to reach double digits during the game aside from Carleton were Alexa Middleton and Scott. It wasn’t until late into the third quarter when Middleton had her scoring outburst.

In the first half, Middleton had two points, three rebounds and two assists on 1-for-4 shooting from the floor. Late in the third quarter, Middleton pushed her point total to 11 points. She finished the game with 18 points, five assists and five turnovers.

Scott finished the game on 4-of-12 shooting from the floor and 3-of-9 from three which totaled 12 points.

Baylor’s big third quarter

At half, Iowa State trailed 41-35, but Baylor capitalized on a poor shooting quarter by Iowa State to build a large lead. In the third quarter, Iowa State scored 12 points while Baylor scored 25 points.

Baylor was efficient on the offensive end, converting 11-of-19 shots from the floor. On the other hand, Iowa State was 4-for-11.

Baylor’s offensive effort allowed them to build a 66-47 lead over the Cyclones through the third quarter. The next quarter, Iowa State had its second-best offensive quarter of the night and outscored Baylor 22-18, but the deficit was too much to overcome and Baylor continued to keep the lead out of Iowa State’s reach.