AMES – The dynamic duo of sophomores Audi Crooks and Addy Brown provided an offensive boost for the Cyclones, but ultimately lost in the final stretch, 82-69, against No. 9 TCU on Sunday.

During an unfortunate turn of events, Iowa State dropped to a ranked team during its annual pink-out Play4Kay game. The Cyclones were held together by an active pair that led the team with their scoring abilities as many other players did not step up to finish the job.

Brown and Crooks ended the game with a combined score of 60 points, whereas the rest of the Cyclones combined had just nine points.

“I mean, we don’t really care how many we have,” Crooks said. “Obviously, 60 is kind of a crazy number for two people to contribute. But, if that’s what is asked of us on a given night, then that’s what we are going to do.”

Crooks was matched with tough competitors that not only surpassed her in height, but also in skill. Crooks’ toughest matchup for the game was 6-foot 7-inch graduate center Sedona Prince, who despite putting away zero points, played a strong defensive game as she forced turnovers and prevented Crooks from going to the basket. 

“Crooks and Brown are so good,” TCU head coach Mark Campbell said. “They have been so talented offensively, so we tried to limit and do the best we can against those kids.”

Despite going head-to-head with Prince and graduate forward Deasia Merrill at the low post, Crooks ended the game with 29 points, going 12-for-26 from field goal range and had two assists.

During her court time of 35 minutes, Crooks also succeeded in gaining a team-high of two blocks and one steal.

“Obviously our offense was an inside out today. Like I said, [Crooks] and [Brown] are really good,” Iowa State head coach Bill Fennelly said. “But you know, [Crooks], still 12-for-26, and we got to finish that better.”

Completing the dynamic duo, Brown stepped in and became the leading scorer with 31 points.

Brown’s potential found herself more comfortable from within the paint as she went 11-for-16 from field goal range, contributing to the team’s overall 40 points found from 2-pointers, and their 34 points from within the paint.

“I felt like I played pretty well, just trying to stay aggressive when I could, take the shots that were given to me,” Brown said. “But we didn’t get the win at the end of the day. So that’s really what it comes down to. I could care less about how many points I put up.”

Brown’s skill founded the Cyclones’ ability to tie up the game and come back strong after their successful second quarter, which brought the team to a one-point difference at halftime after they scored 21 points in that 10-minute span.

Along with her paint success, Brown found herself with the capability to shoot strong from behind the 3-point arc. Brown made the first 3-point shot of the night, leading her to make three of her four attempted shots.

“We definitely saw glimpses where we also couldn’t miss and we had some things rolling and that was really big for us, going into the half,” Crooks said. “To be honest we thought we were going to take this one, but obviously that’s not what happened.”



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