Audi Crooks during Iowa State’s 69-63 loss to Baylor on Friday at the Big 12 Tournament in Kansas City. Photo Courtesy Iowa State Athletics Communications // Luke Lu
KANSAS CITY – Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly called a timeout after just two minutes and 10 seconds of Friday’s Big 12 Tournament quarterfinal against No. 17 Baylor had elapsed.
The score: Bears 10, Cyclones 0. The situation seemed grim. A comeback seemed unlikely. But that didn’t keep Iowa State from taking Baylor to the brink in a 69-63 loss at the T-Mobile Center.
“Obviously, I’m disappointed in the result of the game, but I am not disappointed at all in the people wearing an Iowa State uniform,” said Fennelly, who saw sophomore center Audi Crooks score 32 points to break the program’s single-season scoring mark (763). “We played as hard as we could play against a very good team, and I love coaching our team. I’m blessed to do it. I’m looking forward to the next time we go to practice as we prepare for our next game.”
Iowa State played parts of the fourth quarter without either Emily Ryan or Addy Brown on the floor.
Both sat on the bench for an extended period of time with four fouls in the final quarter before ultimately fouling out. Ryan finished with nine points and five assists. Brown — who scored 41 points in the second-round win over Arizona State — totaled six points, four rebounds and seven assists.
“We showed a lot of grit and tenacity,” Crooks said. “We know that Baylor has the tendency to get into hot streaks, but to our credit, we took a lot of pride in that and didn’t fall down. We continued to fight back and eventually took the lead.”
The Cyclones went ahead 61-60 on a 3-pointer from Arianna Jackson, but they couldn’t finish it off.
Crooks scores 22 of her 32 points in the first and fourth quarters, and also grabbed six boards while going 14-18 from the field.
She missed her first two shot attempts and nearly ended the game without another miss.
“We’d be here a long time,” Fennelly said when asked about the value that Crooks brings to the team. “I think the value that you see on the court is one thing, but the value she brings to our university and program is exponentially bigger than anything she does on the basketball court.
“I think the way she handles herself, the demeanor that she carries herself with, and the joy that she plays with, I think is infectious. It’s been something that’s really impacted our team over the last two years and impacted me. She’s a great person and a great player. It’s hard to believe she’s accomplished so much as a sophomore.”
Iowa State now gets nine days of rest before finding out it’s NCAA Tournament fate.
It’s not a certainty that the Cyclones will be selected, but the resume they’ve built should have them dancing for the 23rd time in the Fennelly era.
“There’s no question our team belongs in the NCAA Tournament,” Fennelly said. “I’ll debate anyone on that one if you want to. The way we play, how we play, the schedule we play, the people we have on our team if you’re trying to showcase the sport… we play in one of the best leagues in the country. Again, I’m not in the room, but some of these teams I hear that they’re talking about… tell me when and where and we’ll show up and play you.”
