Cyclones Knock Off No. 15 OSU On the Road

Sunday, February 17

Stillwater, Okla.

2:00 PM

Iowa State

16-8, 5-6

Oklahoma State

20-4, 8-3

Iowa State

Oklahoma State

Cyclones Knock Off No. 15 OSU On the Road

02.17.2008 | Women's Basketball

Box Score

By: cyclones.com

STILLWATER, Okla. ? Iowa State came out firing early and held on late by hitting eight straight free throws to defeat the 15th-ranked Oklahoma State Cowgirls, 62-57, Sunday afternoon at Gallagher-Iba Arena.

Four players finished in double figures for the Cyclones, led by Alison Lacey with 15. Heather Ezell and Kelsey Bolte each had 12 and Amanda Nisleit finished with 11. Bolte and Nisleit each had eight rebounds for ISU. Iowa State shot 39.6 percent for the contest and 35.7 percent from three-point range. The Cyclones outrebounded the Cowgirls, 38-26. Oklahoma State also had four players in double figures, led by Andrea Riley's 18 points.

The win over OSU was Iowa State's second over a ranked team on the road this season and improved the Cyclones' record to 16-8 and 5-6 in the Big 12. The Cowgirls dropped to 20-4 overall and 8-3 in the league.

“We beat a very good team,” ISU head coach Bill Fennelly said. “We've been close a lot of times and I felt good for our kids that they could get over the hump and beat a really good team on the road.”

Iowa State led 34-23 at the break after going 9-for-19 from beyond the arc. Four different Cyclones hit multiple treys in the half, including three from Nisleit. ISU shot 40.7 percent from the field in the opening period and 47.4 percent from long range.

The Cyclones bolted out to an 8-0 lead behind early threes by Lacey and Ezell. Oklahoma State went 0-for-6 from the field to start the game, while ISU started out 3-for-5. Iowa State continued to score, going up 15-5, before OSU made a run and cut the deficit to three, 15-12, on back-to-back baskets by Maria Cordero.

Iowa State answered by hitting five consecutive treys for a for a 30-16 advantage. Riley hit a trey and the Cowgirls got another bucket to cut the lead to nine, 30-21. The teams traded scores the rest of the half and Kelsey Bolte finished the period by draining another three-pointer.

Iowa State went inside to Jocelyn Anderson to open the second half, taking a 38-25 lead before Oklahoma State scored nine unanswered points to cut the lead to four, 38-34. The Cowgirls were able to slice the lead to one, 42-41, on a field goal by Cordero. Denae Stuckey drove to the basket and got a layup to once again give the Cyclones a three-point cushion.

Oklahoma State again cut it to one, 46-45, but Iowa State responded with a basket from Anderson and a free throw from Lacey to extend it back to four, 49-45. But OSU went on a 7-3 run to tie the game for the first time at 52-all with just under four minutes to play. Cordero got a shot under the basket to give the Cowgirls their first lead, 54-52.

Lacey hit a free throw and then with 41 seconds left Ezell stepped up to the line and knocked down a pair to give the Cyclones a 55-54 advantage. The Cowgirls missed a shot on the other end and fouled Bolte, who drained another pair of free throws for a 57-54 lead with 21 seconds left. Riley took a long three for OSU that missed and ISU once again grabbed the rebound and sent Lacey to the charity stripe, where she hit another two shots. After Riley knocked down a deep three-pointer, Lacey hit a free throw and Denae Stuckey got a rebound on the second miss and a put back to seal the win.

Iowa State will remain on the road, traveling to No. 20 Texas A&M Wednesday. The game will tip at 7 p.m.