Oklahoma State Out Grinds and Outshoots Iowa State in Battle for Third

STILLWATER – The section on the end just to the left of the Oklahoma State bench filled up with some big guys. The Oklahoma State football team as part of their team building went to Gallagher-Iba Arena to back the surprising Oklahoma State Cowgirls under Jacie Hoyt. Many of the Cowgirls transfers Hoyt brought in and the football team could appreciate with 13 portal transfers of their own. The battle for third place in the Big 12 was just that – a battle. The football team saw a group of Cowgirls that weren’t going to give in. They had built a lead and lost it, but when it counted got it back and finished a 73-68 win to go to 20-7 on the season and most important, 10-5 in the Big 12 and third-place behind Texas and Oklahoma, tied for first.

Watch: Jacie Hoyt discusses 73-68 win over No. 20 Iowa State

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The Cowboys football team took up ann entire section plau on the end of the floor.

“It’s great seeing other sports support other sports, honestly,” Cowgirls tough forward Taylen Collins said. Collins would have 14 points and six rebounds. “For them to come out and show out for us, that means a lot.” 

“I hope they come back,” said guard Terryn Milton of here fan club. The players were yelling at her to shoot when she touched the ball.

It was Milton that got the Cowgirls the lead with less than four minutes left with a spin move in front of the basket and a scoop lay-up underneath for a 66-64 lead. Claire Chastain doubled the lead on a power drive from the left side, put the ball up and got the roll with 2:59 left and it was 68-64.

With the score 68-66 came the game winning moment as after losing the ball on a steal the possession before Anna Gret Asi drove inside, missed the shot and watched trying to get to the ball as Iowa State’s Emily Ryan touched the ball last. After a time out, Asi got the pass from Milton on the wing and nailed a three-pointer as the shot clock buzzer went off and the Cowgirls led 71-66.

“They defended the initial screen really well,” Milton explained. It was Milton with the assist. “I didn’t really have anything, and I saw G (Gret Asi), but G doesn’t need to be open to knock down a three ever. I passed it to her, and she knew time was going down. She has ice in her veins, and she knocked it down.”

“They were (all) big girl shots and we had to put our big girl pants on today,” said head coach Jacie Hoyt when asked to comment on all three big offensive plays in the winning sequence. “That is what they did and the fun thing is this team is fearless. I mean we’ve been able to see that with the wins that we’ve had over teams, you look at the names on their jerseys and for women’s basketball … we haven’t won those games in the past.”

They certainly are winning them now.

A couple of Ashley Joens’ free throws closed it to 71-68, but after an airball by the Cyclones Lexi Donarski it was Lexi Keys of the Cowgirls that hit a pair of free throws and that finished it.  

The team picked to finish ninth by the Big 12 coaches back in October was sitting in third-place. They have two road games, Sunday at Kansas and then March 1 at West Virginia before finishing the regular season with Bedlam in Gallagher-Iba on March 4.

“I hope that we turn more heads after this win, surely we will,” Hoyt said after basically saying she felt her team had not got enough attention and had been ignored. “We just have to keep our head down and keep doing what we are doing. Tonight was a huge step for us.”

The Cowgirls started off hot as off the opening tip guard Lexi Keys found Taylen Collins on the lob inside with nobody between her and the basket for the easy two points to start the scoring. After Iowa State hit a three for their first bucket then Keys nailed a three-pointer from the corner for a 5-3 Oklahoma State advantage.

Oklahoma State distributed the ball well and about everybody got into the act as Naomie Alnatas hit a floater going down the middle of the lane. Claire Chastain drove inside for a bucket off the glass, Collins back inside on a nice feed by Anna Gret Asi. Post Kassidy DeLapp off the bench played strong defense inside and scored an early basket.

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Asi played defense too, but her three was biggest basket as she had 10 points.

The Cowgirls led by as much as 11-3, but Iowa State threes kept the Cyclones close. The trademark play of the first frame was Collins coming over with help defense on the Iowa State end and she shut off Lexi Donarski inside got the rebound and kicked it out to Chastain. She hustled the ball into the front court and drove toward the basket giving it up to Collins, who had caught up on the play for a layup and drew the foul for a three-point play to make it 19-16.

Oklahoma State led at the end of the first 10 minutes 22-19.

In the second quarter the Cowgirls pulled away some and two players powered the period on offense as Terryn Milton opened the period with a baseline jumper and then after Lior Garzon hit her first three of the contests, the next time down the floor it was Milton again with a drive through the lane for a bank shot and a 30-23 lead for OSU.

The Cowgirls kicked the offense into another gear when Garzon got hot. The Villanova transfer and native or Israel took a pass from Keys and hit a three from the top of the key to make it 37-25. Then the next time back on offense a three from the wing and a 40-27 lead. Garzon had nine points with the three treys and Milton had seven points for the Cowgirls. Collins had eight points, most of those in the first quarter.

The Cowgirls had worked hard and earned that 42-33 lead at intermission.

Iowa State started the third quarter chipping away at the Cowgirls lead and when Nyamer Diew hit a three from the wing it was 44-44. Their next possession Ashley Joens drove past the defender and got a lay in for a 46-44 lead, Iowa State’s first of the game coming just inside the six-minute mark.

After a steal by the Cowgirls in front of the Iowa State bench Milton made a nifty pass inside to Collins for the lay in, but the game stayed even with one team getting a one point lead and then it went the other way. Anna Gret Asi nailed a three from just off the key and made it 53-51. Then a couple of foul calls on the Cyclones Donarski helped the Cowgirls to a 57-53 lead to set up the second half and the finish.