AMES, Iowa – Iowa State (2-1, 0-0 Big 12) took the victory over Southern (0-5, 0-0 SWAC) by a final of 78-60 Monday night.
Iowa State cruised in the first half shooting at 60.7 percent including at 57.1 percent from the 3-point line with eight made. The Cyclones controlled the game from there while totaling double digit 3-pointers with 11 made by five Cyclones. All nine Cyclones who recorded minutes put up points in the matchup.
Hannah Belanger sunk four triples in the first half alone while Audi Crooks also entered double figures shooting perfectly with five shots before the start of the third quarter. Addy Brown led the game with a career high of 18 for the freshman, while Crooks totaled 16 and Belanger 14. The trio all had their second 10-plus point outing of the season.
How it Happened
A Belanger 3-pointer kicked off scoring 15 seconds into the contest, while Brown followed to put up five straight points as ISU went up 10-4. Belanger remained hot from deep, draining two more to lead 18-9 with under five minutes to go. Iowa State ended the first on a 7-0 run to take an advantage of 25-13 to the second.
The next quarter also opened with a triple, this time by Kelsey Joens. With 4:46 on the clock, Belanger entered double figures on her fourth shot beyond the arc on just seven attempts to build a lead of 15 (35-20). Joens followed that up with her second 3-pointer on as many attempts, while Crooks muscled in a pair of layups as the Cyclones made six consecutive field goals. At the end of the first half, Iowa State led 46-24.
Iowa State reached 50 points with just over seven minutes to go in the third as Brown made the jumper to build a 24-point lead on Southern. With less than a minute to go, Belanger sent in a shot to bring the lead to 58-36 after three.
Diew became the third Cyclone to make multiple triples before Joens recorded her third to hold a lead of 65-47 with 5:38 to go. Southern continued to cut into Iowa State’s lead, coming within 13 of the Cyclones, but Iowa State pressed on to take the 18-point win.
Top Performance
Addy Brown missed only one shot shooting at 7-of-8 from the field as the freshman totaled 18 points. Brown also came close to a double-double with eight rebounds, seven being defensive and one offensive.
Up Next
Iowa State next heads to the South Point Shootout in Las Vegas, Nev. to meet Vanderbilt Nov. 24 at 3:30 p.m. and Syracuse Nov. 25 at 1 p.m.
