Iowa State grabbed a 68-63 victory following a second-half comeback against Princeton to advance to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
After a suffocating first-half offensive drought that left Iowa State with a 13-point deficit, the Cyclones bounced back with full-court shooting to drive a 13-0 run into the third quarter before fighting tooth and nail in the final minutes to advance to the first round of the NCAA Tournament.
In the process of their offensive success, senior guard Emily Ryan became the Big 12 all-time assist leader, tallying up 988 assists, alongside Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly, earning his 800th career win.
Iowa State fights back in third quarter
Princeton developed a seven-point lead after a destructive second quarter that left it outshooting Iowa State 27-7 and went 61% from the field.
The Tigers’ lead quickly increased to 40-25 after a quick layup. But then, Princeton ended up facing the worst 10 minutes of the game as it faced a scoring drought and went 0-for-10 from the field.
Using their halftime wisely, the Cyclones came up with new plays to give them more scoring opportunities and went on a 13-0 run to gain their lead back.
Sophomore forward Addy Brown earned 11 points during the 10-minute stretch as she went 4-for-7 from the field.
Alongside Brown, Ryan found her rhythm as she made back-to-back shots after going scoreless in the first half. Ryan tallied up five points in the quarter, contributing to her overall total of nine points.
The Cyclones found their confidence within the period as they went 100% from the free-throw line, 57% from field goal range and 2-for-4 from behind the arc. Iowa State battled back against Princeton and outscored the Tigers 27-9.
Closing out the third quarter, Ryan made a buzzer-beater jump shot off a fast break to give Iowa State a prominent 52-47 lead heading into the fourth.
Brown and Crooks lead the Cyclones’ comeback win
With the team struggling offensively in the first half, Iowa State was able to take control of the court and dominate when in possession of the ball. Leading the team’s offensive success was Brown and sophomore center Audi Crooks, who had a combined total of 49 points.
With passes going in low and sloppy, alongside tough defensive strategies, Crooks was unable to find her footing at low post in the first 20 minutes of the game. With a quick change in pace and new strategies, the Cyclones were able to help Crooks grow her confidence as she was the main scorer in the fourth quarter, tallying up 12 points to contribute to her team-high 27 points.
Feeding Crooks the ball was no other than Brown to complete the dynamic duo. Brown found her rhythm in the third quarter, tallying up 11 points, overall contributing to her total of 22.
Brown ended the night with eight assists and seven rebounds during her 40 minutes of play. Crooks ended the game going 12-for-21 from field goal range, alongside three rebounds and one assist.
Turnovers drive a close game
Minimizing its turnovers to 12, with an average of 14.2 per game, Iowa State found itself lacking in the first half as it developed eight turnovers, three of which came in three minutes.
Princeton took advantage of its tough defensive tactics and forced turnovers to grant itself 11 points off Iowa State’s mistakes.
Similar to Iowa State, the Tigers found themselves with eight turnovers, and the Cyclones succeeded in grabbing 13 points off the team’s mistakes.
Princeton had a chance of a redemption win in the final seconds of play off of a forced turnover, as Brown lost the ball, causing the Tigers to gain possession and attempt a 3-point shot to make it a two-point game. However, the ball spun out of the basket with five seconds left on the clock for Iowa State to take home a five-point win.
Iowa State, an 11 seed, grants itself the ability to take on six-seeded Michigan in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at 10:30 a.m. CT Friday. The game will be broadcast live on ESPN 2.
