AMES, Iowa (AP) — Ashley Joens poured in 29 points and grabbed 11 rebounds as No. 14 Iowa State rolled to an 88-72 victory over West Virginia on Sunday in a Big 12 Conference opener.
Joens buried 9 of 16 shots from the floor and 9 of 9 at the free-throw line for the Cyclones (12-1), who have won five straight games. It was Joens seventh double-double of the season and the 38th of her career.
Emily Ryan finished with 10 points and a personal best 16 assists for her second straight double-double for Iowa State. Ryan’s assist total matched the school record set by Lyndsey Medders in 2005 against IPFW. Beatriz Jordão and Lexi Donarski scored 14 apiece. Morgan Kane added 10 points off the bench.
The Cyclones hit four 3-pointers and led 22-10 after one quarter. Kane scored six in the second quarter as Iowa State took a 48-30 lead into intermission and never looked back.
Kirsten Deans scored 17 points to top the Mountaineers (7-4), but she made just 4 of 16 shots including 1 of 7 from 3-point range. A’riana Gray finished with season highs of 14 points and 11 rebounds for her first double-double of the season. Yemiyah Morris scored 14 on 5-of-7 shooting.
Iowa State returns to action on Wednesday at Oklahoma. West Virginia’s next game with Kansas was postponed because of COVID-19 protocols, so the Mountaineers won’t play again until they host Kansas State in their Big 12 home opener on Jan. 8.
_____
More AP women’s college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/womens-college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-womens-college-basketball-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25
Copyright © 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
