The following is a press release from Iowa State Athletics Communications:
MANHATTAN, Kansas – No. 12 Iowa State (15-5, 7-3 Big 12) fell to Kansas State (14-9, 3-7 Big 12) Wednesday night 78-77. Four Cyclones scored in double-figures but the Wildcats came out victorious with the narrow one-point edge.
Iowa State was led by Lexi Donarski with 18 points. Ashley Joens totaled 17 with nine coming from the fourth quarter. Nyamer Diew had her 10th-career game in double figures with a 14-point performance and a career-high 14 rebounds while Denae Fritz had 12 points including perfect 5-of-5 shooting from the charity stripe.
Both sides went back-and-forth hitting scoring runs on the night to build up leads. The Cyclones led by as much as 11, but were unable to pull away from the Wildcats before time ran out. ADVERTISING
How it Happened
Iowa State jumped out to an early 6-2 lead before K-State scored five-straight off of ISU turnovers. The Cyclones responded, connecting on the next three shots to build a lead out to four at 11-7 with 3:53 to go. The lead again flipped back to the Wildcats as the home team claimed the advantage of 15-13 after the first quarter.
After falling behind by four points, the Cyclones opened the second hitting a 7-0 run to lead 20-17. Diew then hit her second 3-pointer on as many attempts to keep ISU ahead. Iowa State hit a hot streak from there, stretching a lead out to 11 at 34-23 while shooting above 50 percent from the field and totaling four treys. K-State followed to trim its deficit while holding ISU scoreless for the final three minutes of the quarter, but Iowa State pulled ahead 36-32 at the break.
The third period began with K-State tying it up at 36 with a triple while Donarski came right back with one of her own. KSU again hit a 3-pointer, beginning a 7-0 run to go ahead 44-39. The Wildcats went up by as many as five, but the Cyclones fought back on another scoring spree to take the lead back at 51-48. K-State closed the quarter with a shot beyond the arc to hold the narrow edge of 54-53 heading into the final frame.
Kansas State ran out to a lead of seven in the fourth, its largest of the game. Joens knocked down two free throws to begin to cut down K-State’s advantage while Donarski drove up the court for the layup on ISU’s next possession to come within three. Joens then became the fifth to drain a shot from deep to near the lead at 64-62. Joens remained with the hot hand, finding the net to tie it 64-64. With a minute to go, K-State held a five-point edge before Iowa State brought it back to a one-possession game. Maggie Espenmiller-McGraw connected on a 3-pointer at the buzzer, but the Cyclone came up one-point shy.
Player of the Game
Nyamer Diew totaled her third double-figure game of the season and the first game of her career with 10-plus rebounds, ending the night with 14 boards to lead both teams. Diew shot at 60 percent from the field while draining two 3-pointers in her first-career double-double.
Up Next
No. 12 Iowa State returns to Hilton, meeting Baylor Saturday, Feb. 4 at 5 p.m. The contest will be televised on ESPNU and tickets are available at this link.
