Last Time Out

The Cyclones' last outing was a disappointing 68-53 loss to Texas in their first road test without Stephanie Soares, tonight, they returned back home to Hilton to take on the Oklahoma State Cowgirls.

1st Quarter

In a game without Bill Fennelly, Jodi Steyer took the reigns and went with a starting lineup of Lexi Donarski, Ashley Joens, Denae Fritz, Emily Ryan, and Morgan Kane. The Clones got started early with Emily Ryan hitting a shot from deep on the first possession of the game. After trading baskets and going down by as many as six, super sub Nyamer Diew hit a couple of shots to cut the lead, and the Clones ended the quarter only down 17-15.

2nd Quarter

An efficient second quarter helped the Clones take a lead into the half. The Twister Sisters opened the quarter on a 15-4 run with points coming from Donarski, Joens, Kane, and Ryan. After having a 9-point lead at the 3:30 mark, the Clones would end up taking a 32-28 point lead into the break.

3rd Quarter

The third quarter was spent trading buckets between the teams. The Cowgirls had their best offensive quarter, posting 19 points in the period; but the Clones put up 17 to maintain the lead including Izzi Zingaro’s first 2 points of the game. Emily Ryan continued her big night with a shot from behind the arc with 5 seconds left in the quarter to regain the lead heading into the final period.

4th Quarter

At the 7:40 mark, the Cowgirls tied the game up with a couple of free throws from Naomie Alnatas. On the next possession, Donarski would hit a jumper to regain the lead, and the Cyclones never looked back. They were able to extend the lead all the way to 9 when Diew hit a big 3 with under 2 minutes to play. The Clones took care of business the rest of the way and took home a 69-64 win.

Thanks to really solid scoring evenings from all the starters and a big 6th-man performance from Diew, the Clones were able to hold on in Hilton. Emily Ryan posted team highs in points (14), assists (7), and three-ball percentage (100% on 3-3 shooting). An off-night shooting the ball from Joens (3-17) called for other leaders to step up and they responded.

The Twister Sisters next take on Kansas at Hilton Coliseum on Saturday, January 21st (5 pm, ESPN+). Roll Clones!