AMES – No. 8 Iowa State dominated St. Thomas 80-47 in front of a loud Hilton Coliseum crowd Thursday night, led by sophomore center Audi Crooks, who had 26 points.
The Cyclones improved to 4-0 to cap off the first home stretch of the season. Crooks continued to lead the way, and junior guard/forward Sydney Harris contributed 13 points on an efficient 4-of-8 shooting night.
“The goal was to go 4-0 to start the season, proud of where we are, a lot of work to do obviously,” Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly said.
Crooks and sophomore forward Addy Brown got the night started with a strong first quarter scoring-wise. Crooks had six and Brown had eight. Fifth-year senior guard Emily Ryan dished the rock to everyone on the floor, adding six assists in the first quarter as the Cyclones led 22-10.
The second quarter was a lot of the same for Crooks as she added eight more points to her first-half total. Freshman guard Aili Tanke also knocked down her lone shot attempt of the night from behind the arc to give Iowa State a 40-22 halftime lead.
Iowa State matched its first-half total with 40 more points in the second half. Crooks continued to dominate with 12 more points, and sophomore guard Kelsey Joens capped the night off with an and-one finish in the fourth quarter.
Crooks’ best game thus far
Being the main focus for the opponent night in and night out, Crooks often deals with double teams and thus has to find her open teammates to take a big portion of the scoring.
The Cyclones’ leading scorer heading into this game, Brown, was dealing with an illness, so she was less of a factor in the scoring category compared to her 17.7 average entering the game Thursday.
Crooks took the opportunity with Brown being limited to score even more than she usually does. With some smaller defenders on her, Crooks kept putting shots up.
“It was just kinda a bigs’ night, we did well on the perimeter, and we were able to capitalize,” Crooks said. “They didn’t really send a double team, so, it was nice.”
It was a very efficient night for Crooks, who shot 12-for-17 from the field and knocked down both of her free throws for 26 total points.
“When [Crooks] committed to getting to the block, you know, she’s really hard to guard,” Fennelly said. “We consciously made the effort going into today, and they guarded her one-on-one, we got her 17 shots so that was good.”
Although the backdown and shot from the right block worked most of the time for Crooks, she has continued to develop more of her bag in the scoring department. Whether it is a fadeaway jumper or a left-handed finish, Crooks has grown her versatility.
“I was kinda trying to show off that new bag, but then I realized I just gotta go back to ol’ reliable,” Crooks said. “Keep it simple, in the paint, and those shots started falling, kinda rode that wave for the rest of the game.”
Harris continues scoring efficiency
Similar to the game Crooks played, Harris took advantage of a large portion of scoring because of Brown’s sickness. Harris finished the night with 13 points on 4-for-8 shooting and went 3-for-4 from the line.
“The point guards were able to catch me a few times in transitions, [so] that was nice,” Harris said. “They weren’t gonna match up well, so [Ryan] was able to find me. Along with my open shots, every one of my teammates found me.”
Harris has been the epitome of consistency to start the year, shooting 50% or higher in each of the Cyclones’ first four games and knocking down at least one 3-pointer as well.
Despite coming off the bench in every game, Harris is Iowa State’s third-leading scorer behind Crooks and Brown.
Cyclone guards hold St. Thomas
One of the main points of the scouting report heading into Thursday was to contain St. Thomas senior guard Jade Hill, who had averaged over 20 points per game to start the year.
Two Cyclone guards, sophomore Arianna Jackson and junior Kenzie Hare, were glad to take the challenge and held Hill to 1-for-8 shooting and only eight points. Both have proven to be great, scrappy defenders no matter who they are playing against and it showed.
“I would say this: When the game winds up, I don’t know if I would want either one of those guys [Jackson and Hare] standing next to me knowing they were gonna guard me,” Fennelly said. “They’re both committed to it, they both take pride in it.”
Jackson finished the night with one foul and elevated for two blocks. Hare finished with two fouls but added two steals to her total. The tandem of Jackson and Hare taking turns guarding their opponent’s top guard is a recipe for disaster, no matter who they are up against.
“Both of those kids can really guard, and they embrace it,” Fennelly said. “You want someone that really wants to be that person, and luckily we have two.”
Iowa State now heads on the road for the first time this season. The Cyclones will travel to take on in-state opponent Northern Iowa at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Cedar Falls.
