Nikki Moody’s best effort wasn’t quite enough for Iowa State to upset Oklahoma, the team that currently sits at second place in the Big 12 conference standings

The senior poured in a career-high 30 points and five assists, but the Cyclones (14-7, 5-5 Big 12) still fell to the Sooners (14-7, 8-2 Big 12).

“Nikki [Moody] was great. She kept us in the game but got zero help, which was disappointing,” said ISU coach Bill Fennelly in his post-game press conference.

The Sooners used a 17-4 run to push their lead to 24-10 and eventually 38-25 at the half.

In the second half, the Cyclones struggled to get the deficit to single digits. Each time they would make a mini run and cut it to 12, the Sooners would respond and bolster their lead a bit more.

“Every time we kind of got into a working margin we would miss a shot or they would hit a shot at the end of the shot clock, or something like that,” Fennelly said.

With 3:30 to go, a Moody 3-pointer cut the Sooner lead to single digits at 67-58, but the Sooner’s Peyton Little responded with a 3-pointer of her own to push the lead back to double-digits.

The Sooners were able to find success scoring inside and out, as they hit nine 3-pointers in the win. Oklahoma also held a clear rebounding advantage as the team out-rebounded the Cyclones 45-30.

Besides Moody’s 30 points on 11-of-18 shooting, the rest of the Cyclones never got into a solid offensive rhythm.

“It is tough to beat any team playing one-on-five,” Fennelly said. “We only had one kid show up and I don’t care who you play, especially if it is an OU team on the road, it is tough to win when you have one player who decided to play the game the way you are supposed to.”

Moody was the only Cyclone with double-figure scoring. Bryanna Fernstrom and Brynn Williamson each had eight points, while Seanna Johnson and Emily Durr added seven points apiece.

The loss was Iowa State’s third straight defeat. The team will look to rebound when West Virginia rolls into Ames. Tip is slated for 6 p.m. Feb. 7 at Hilton Coliseum.