Twister Sisters win Third Straight, Thump Horned Frogs 75-35

What a statement from the Cyclones on the road in Fort Worth, Texas. The Horned Frogs have really struggled so far in conference play as they have yet to pick up a win, and the Cyclones made sure that was going to be the case after their trip down. It was a hot start and a hotter finish from the Twister Sisters who got the job done from top to bottom and from the opening tip to the final buzzer.

It’s never a bad thing when you can hold your opponent scoreless through the first 4 minutes of a game and that’s exactly what Iowa State was able to do. Starting the game on a 10-0 run was more than a fair indicator of how this one would play out. Ashley Joens got the electric offense going early with 7 of those first 10 points, including a triple on the opening possession. The Cyclones would go cold toward the end of the first quarter, as TCU would find a 6-0 run over the course of just over 3 minutes of time. Thankfully for the Cyclones, they’d already built a 15-2 lead before the run, so while the cold shooting was less than ideal, the defense played well enough to hold the lead.

The 2nd quarter was more of the Cyclones’ stellar defense as the cold shooting would linger through the frame. The Cyclones would only find 13 points in the 2nd quarter, but the stifling defense held the Horned Frogs to just 7 as the Cyclones nearly doubled up TCU at the intermission, 33-17.

Then the 3rd quarter happened.

I don’t know if Iowa State has played a flawless quarter this year, but the 3rd quarter of this game is going to be about as close to one as you can get. Iowa State piled it on coming out of the half going on a 13-1 run by the 5:00 mark of the 3rd. It was all Cyclones as they won the quarter 29-5, thoroughly putting this one on ice.

With the game well out of hand going into the 4th, it was a great opportunity for Bill Fennelly to get the bench players some great minutes. Players like Mary Kate King, Shantavia Dawkins, Izzi Zingaro, and Maggie Vick who don’t normally get minutes (at least this extended of minutes) in conference play got to show what they’re capable of and they closed it out with a nice even 10 minutes of play to close it out, 75-35.

The Cyclones got another spectacular night from Ashley Joens who went for 19 points and 14 rebounds to lead both statistical categories for the game, while Morgan Kane, Denae Fritz, and Lexi Donarski all also added double-digit points.

With the win, Iowa State moves to 6-2 in the Big 12 and will look to take over the top spot in the Big 12 as they’ll return to Hilton for a date with the Oklahoma Sooners on January 28 at 3:00 p.m. as Aubrey Joens returns to Ames.