Iowa State Beats Oklahoma in Big 12 Women’s Basketball Semifinal
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Iowa State grabbed an early double digit lead and dominated Oklahoma, 85-68, in the semifinals of the Big 12 Women’s Basketball Tournament at T-Mobile Center in Kansas City on Monday.
Oklahoma (22-9), the Tournament’s No. 1 seed, was eliminated and will wait for the selection committee to seed it for the NCAA Tournament on Sunday. It’s possible Monday’s loss may have cost the Sooners the opportunity to host a sub-regional.
Iowa State (20-10), which lost to Oklahoma by 86-72, in their only meeting In early February, turned the tables on Oklahoma with early scoring runs and another sharp outing by center Audi Crooks, who had 25 points and nine rebounds.
Iowa State, the No. 4 seed, will face either Texas or Kansas State in the Big 12 Championship game at 8 p.m. Tuesday.
Iowa State was in control from the start, as they went on a 15-2 run early in the first quarter to take a 10-point lead. That run was enough to keep the Cyclones out of Oklahoma’s grasp the entire contest.
For the Cyclones, it was all about their shooting. They were at or above 50% percent for most of the game and finished at 58%. It helped the Cyclones build a 14-point lead, 38-24, at the break, with Crooks leading the way with 11 points.
In the third quarter the result almost seemed inevitable. The Cyclones had a 19-point lead, 62-43, and the end of that quarter, had drained nine 3-pointers and held the Sooners to 30% shooting.
That was Oklahoma’s biggest issue all afternoon. It’s normally consistent offense wasn’t filling the bucket. The Sooners finished the game at 36%
Payton Verhulst kept the Sooners afloat as best she could as the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year scored 23 points, including five 3-pointers. Sahara Williams scored 16 points and Skylar Vann added 12 points.
Along with Crooks, fellow freshman Addy Brown had 16 points and four 3-pointers. Emily Ryan had 12 points and 10 assists.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
