Iowa State Cyclones’ forward Addy Brown (24), guard Arianna Jackson (2) center Audi Crooks (55), and guard Kenzie Hare (12) celebrate as head coach Bill Fennelly watches from the bench during the fourth quarter in the Big-12 women’s basketball at Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 18, 2026, in Ames, Iowa. © Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
AMES — Iowa State star Addy Brown’s tears began flowing when she considered what it had been like to miss the past 11 games because of a lower-body injury.
Tears of joy merged with pain.
Tears that conveyed the helplessness she felt during that six-week stretch on the sidelines, while also exemplifying the fiery competitiveness the versatile Brown exudes when she’s on the court.
“Hard,” she said in the emotional moment that followed her triumphant return in the Cyclones’ 90-64 rout of Arizona State Wednesday night before a crowd of 9,232 at Hilton Coliseum.
Fellow star Audi Crooks — who notched 28 points and 12 rebounds — briefly consoled her.
“It’s OK,” said Crooks, who recorded her 29th career double-double for ISU (21-6, 9-6 Big 12). “Take your time.”
So Brown, who scored six points, grabbed seven rebounds, and dished out six assists in just under her 20-minute allotment, took a deep breath and continued.
“It’s definitely been hard,” she reiterated. “I just really love the game. I’m a competitor. I’ve been lucky, I’ve been blessed with not a lot of injuries, so I haven’t had to miss a lot of time from the game. So this was just the first time I kind of had to sit back and just watch.”
Brown wasted little time in showcasing her wide-ranging skills as the Cyclones eventually pulled away from the Sun Devils (21-7, 8-7) with a 19-2 run to close a dominant third quarter that essentially put the game out of reach. She hit her first basket two and a half minutes into the game, and notched her first assist less than 40 seconds later, deftly firing a no-look pass to sharpshooter Arianna Jackson for a corner 3-pointer.
And when Brown made that play, ISU’s veteran head coach Bill Fennelly thought, “She’s back.”
“I just said that on the (Cyclone) Radio (Network),” Fennelly said. “That’s exactly what I said. Every team is built in a certain way, and we’ve built our team — as you guys know, I’m a baseball guy, and we built it up the middle with (point guard) Jada (Williams), Addy, and Audi. And when Addy’s not in there, a lot of our offensive flow is not very good. … She’s ultra-skilled, but she’s one of the smartest basketball players I’ve ever been around. There (are) not a lot of players that I’ve been around that see the play before it happens. Not in the women’s game. The great ones do. There (are) not as many as you think. She’s one of them.”
Williams added 26 points and eight assists for the Cyclones, who notched their seventh win in the past eight games. She also set an early tone by scoring 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting while helping ISU build a 21-15 first quarter lead.
“I think she’s one of the best point guards in the country, and the way she’s playing for our team is amazing,” Fennelly said of Williams, who has recorded single-game career highs in points (44), rebounds (10), and assists (14) in her first season as a Cyclone. “She had another great night tonight.”
So did Brown, who had announced on social media on Tuesday that it was time to put the notebook she used to study the game from a different perspective during her long absence away, and get back on the court.
Finally.
That notebook helped tether her to the game as an extra coach, but as the weeks of missed games piled it, she started to despise what it represented — her momentary, but lengthy inability to play the sport she loves.
“I’m definitely about to put that away and never see it again — at least, not for a long time,” a smiling Brown said. “But it was good. It was a different perspective and something I’ll remember forever, and be able to take with me in the future.”
