AMES — Audi Crooks has faced every junk defense an opponent can conjure up. Forget double teams. Try triple teams, often fueled by athletic front-facing defenders — but the Iowa State star center’s found a way to pierce most of those wide-ranging schemes.
No. 4 UConn chose to defend the 6-3 sophomore with a standard double team, and Crooks handled it well, scoring 22 points while grabbing six rebounds in an otherwise dispiriting 101-68 loss Tuesday night in the Basketball Hall of Fame Invesco QQ Women’s Showcase in Uncasville, Conn.
“It was kind of a welcome sight, to be honest,” said Crooks, who’s averaging 21.6 points, 7.9 rebounds and two assists this season for the Cyclones (9-4), who open Big 12 play Saturday at 4 p.m. (ESPN2) against Oklahoma State (10-1) in Stillwater. “There weren’t three people on me, so that was good, and obviously they have some physical post players, but I was able to piece together a decent performance.
“Obviously that wasn’t enough. We’ve got to be a lot more consistent across the board. It can’t just be a couple players scoring. I think we’re at our best when everybody’s pitching in.”
That happened at times against the Huskies, but not enough when the most storied program in women’s basketball history set a school record with 20 made 3-pointers. ISU has seen some third and fourth-best scoring options emerge beyond Crooks and fellow sophomore standout Addy Brown recently, however — and transfer guard/forward Sydney Harris may be the leader in that regard.
Harris scored 17 points on 5-for-7 shooting from beyond the 3-point arc in Tuesday’s loss, and could help take pressure off Crooks, Brown and senior point guard Emily Ryan as the Cyclones chase a top-tier finish in conference play.
“That’s in her DNA to score,” said ISU head coach Bill Fennelly, whose team is the only one in the country to face two top-four opponents this season. “And a lot of our (players) have had some struggles with that, and basketball players, as I’ve said many times, they are defined by their jump shot a lot. And if their shot’s not going in, it’s hard to defend, it’s hard to rebound, it’s hard to of the other stuff, because no one cares, but it does impact success.”
The Cyclones care, of course, and now they can turn the page from one of the most rugged nonconference schedules in the country to Big 12 play, where they’ve finished among the top four in each of the past six seasons.
“I think (the tough schedule) set us up perfectly, just seeing some top-tier competition (and) some of the best athletes in the country we’ve played against,” Crooks said. “And to now take that momentum and take that strategy into Big 12 (play) is gonna be really beneficial for us in the long run.”
So bring on Oklahoma State — another top 3-point shooting team that’s trounced most of its nonconference foes.
“Hopefully we can guard it a little better than the last game,” Fennelly said.
