Courtesy of Iowa State Athletic Communications AMES, Iowa – Junior Kelsey Bolte reached the 1,000-point career scoring mark, but freshman Chelsea Poppens stole the show leading Iowa State to a 48-39 win over Kansas State Saturday night at Hilton Coliseum. With the win, ISU improved to 22-5 overall and 10-4 in the Big 12, while remaining in a tie for second place in the league standings. Bolte scored the first five points of the game to reach the 1,000-point mark for her career. She drained ISU’s only three-pointer to become the 22nd player in ISU history to reach that monumental mark. Poppens, however, scored 18 points and was the only Cyclone in double figures. She was 6-for-8 from the charity stripe and pulled down a team-high seven rebounds. ISU senior Alison Lacey was held in single figures, with just eight points, for just the second time this season. “Good teams find a way to win those game,” ISU head coach Bill Fennelly said. “When Aus (Lacey) had the one bad night of the year someone else helped her and got us through it. Chelsea Poppens was dynamic in her energy level. We always struggle to score against Kansas State. When you aren’t making shots you’ve got to find another way to win games. We defended great, took care of the ball and got to the free throw line.” After a solid shooting performance in the first half, Iowa State struggled offensively in the second, finishing the game shooting 32.7 percent from the field. The Cyclones hit just one three-pointer the entire contest, and just four field goals in the second half. Kansas State was led by Ashley Sweat’s 13 points. KSU shot 34 percent from the field and 23.8 percent from outside the arc, as it fell to 12-16 overall and 4-10 in the league. The Cyclones got out to a 10-2 lead just four minutes into the game with Bolte’s five points in addition to field goals by Lacey and Poppens. Sweat got the Wildcats going, however, scoring the next eight points to tie the game at 10-all. Iowa State pressed ahead by seven, 20-13, when Poppens got a layup and a putback on consecutive possessions. “The physical nature of the game is not an issue for Chelsea Poppens,” Fennelly said. “I think she likes it. That’s in her DNA. At the same time, I think she is learning to do other things too. She is 6-for-8 from the field, hit free throws and defended their best player in Ashley Sweat.” Kansas State again found answers, closing the gap back to three points, 20-17, before Iowa State went on an 8-0 run to end the half and extend the lead back to 11 points, 28-17, at the break. Chassidy Cole and Jessica Schroll each scored to end ISU’s scoring for the half. ISU shot 42.9 percent in the opening half. The Cyclones, however, held the Wildcats to 30.4 percent shooting over the first 20 minutes. Iowa State also outrebounded Kansas State, 21-12. Coming out of the locker room, Kansas State held ISU without a field goal for first 11 minutes. The Cyclones’ only three points came at the charity stripe by Poppens. Kansas State drew within four, 31-27, getting scoring from four different players in the midst of a 10-3 Wildcat run. The Cyclones finally got some life when Denae Stuckey made a steal and got the ball into Poppens who made a strong move to the basket and scored for their first field goal of the half to put ISU up 33-27. The Wildcats again trimmed the lead to three, 35-32, but that was as close as Kansas State got the rest of the way. Poppens scored a putback to give Iowa State a 45-36 edge. Brittany Chambers hit a three-pointer for KSU’s final score of the game with just under a minute remaining, while Iowa State hit a trio of free throws. Iowa State will hit the road for the final time during the regular season when it travels to face No. 23 Oklahoma State at 7 p.m. Wednesday night in Stillwater, Okla. The Cyclones will play their final regular-season home contest at Hilton Coliseum next Saturday at 2 p.m. The five ISU seniors will be recognized in a postgame ceremony.
Bolte Hits 1,000; Poppens Leads ISU to Win Over KSU
