The atmosphere inside Hilton Coliseum was electric on Sunday afternoon, as the No. 10 Iowa State women’s basketball team put their perfect season on the line against the No. 22 Baylor Bears. With the Cyclones’ 14-0 record hanging in the balance—a mark that matched their best-ever start from the 2013-14 campaign—the stakes couldn’t have been higher. Fans packed the arena, eager to see if Iowa State could make history with a fifteenth consecutive win. But in a dramatic finish that left hearts pounding, it was Baylor who stole the show, handing Iowa State its first loss of the season with a thrilling 72-70 victory.
The contest, broadcast nationally on ESPN and streamed via Fubo, drew extra attention as it followed an overtime thriller between Stanford and North Carolina. Despite the delayed start, viewers were treated to a matchup worthy of the national spotlight. Both teams entered with impressive résumés: Iowa State boasting a 14-0 record (2-0 in Big 12 play) and Baylor standing at 12-3 (1-1 in conference) before tipoff. The Cyclones were coming off a convincing 80-62 win at Houston just days earlier, while Baylor had already proven their mettle by knocking off then-No. 7 Duke in their season opener.
From the opening tip, the game lived up to its billing. Baylor’s Darianna Littlepage-Buggs set the tone early, pouring in 12 of her 13 points in a dominant first quarter and matching her career high with an eye-popping 20 rebounds. Her relentless work on the glass kept the Bears in the hunt, even as Iowa State’s star center Audi Crooks seemed unstoppable in the first half. Crooks racked up 22 points before halftime, muscling her way through Baylor’s defense and threatening to notch her sixth straight 30-point game.
But basketball is a game of adjustments, and Baylor’s coaching staff made theirs at the break. In the second half, the Bears packed the lane, collapsing on Crooks and daring Iowa State’s perimeter shooters to beat them. The strategy paid off handsomely. Crooks was held to just four points after intermission, her touches limited and her impact diminished. Baylor’s defense forced the Cyclones to look elsewhere for offense—and that’s when Jada Williams stepped up in a big way.
Williams, who entered the game shooting 39.7% from the field and just 26.7% from three-point range, delivered a career performance. The sophomore guard poured in a stunning 28 points, including a pair of clutch three-pointers in the game’s final moments that brought Iowa State roaring back from an eight-point deficit. Her fearless shooting and timely drives kept the Cyclones within striking distance, even as the Bears threatened to pull away.
With just seconds remaining, and Iowa State trailing by three, Williams calmly sank a deep triple to tie the game at 70 apiece. The Hilton crowd erupted, sensing overtime—or perhaps a miracle finish—was within reach. But Baylor had other ideas. With the clock winding down, the ball found its way to Taliah Scott, who had been relatively quiet in the first half but caught fire after the break.
Scott, a dynamic sophomore guard, scored all 21 of her points in the second half, including 11 straight during a crucial stretch that put Baylor in control. With 2.9 seconds left, she took a screen from Kiersten Johnson, found a sliver of daylight at the left elbow, and coolly drained the go-ahead jumper. “I just wanted to stay aggressive and trust my teammates,” Scott said after the game, her voice barely audible over the roar of celebrating Baylor fans. “They set me up in a great spot, and I was able to knock it down.”
Iowa State had one last gasp. With time running out, the Cyclones tried to feed Crooks in the post, but Baylor’s defense swarmed, knocking the ball away and sealing the win. The final horn sounded, and the Bears erupted in celebration, having notched their second victory of the season over a top-10 opponent. “This team believes in itself, no matter who we’re playing,” Baylor coach Nicki Collen told reporters. “We’ve shown we can compete with anyone in the country.”
Yuting Deng provided a spark off the bench for Baylor, chipping in 12 points, while Jana Van Gytenbeek added 11, giving the Bears a balanced attack that proved too much for Iowa State to overcome. On the other side, Crooks finished with 26 points—still an impressive tally, but not quite enough to carry the Cyclones to another win. “Audi gave us everything she had,” Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly said. “But credit to Baylor. They made the right adjustments, and we just couldn’t get her the ball in the spots we wanted down the stretch.”
For Baylor, the victory was not only a statement win but a much-needed boost in the Big 12 standings. Now 13-3 overall and 2-1 in conference play, the Bears look poised to make noise as the season heats up. They’ll return home to face Colorado on Thursday, January 8, a matchup that suddenly carries even more weight. Iowa State, meanwhile, drops to 14-1 (2-1 Big 12) but remains among the league’s elite. The Cyclones will look to regroup quickly as they hit the road to face Cincinnati on Wednesday, January 7.
The loss stings for Iowa State, who saw their dreams of a historic start dashed in the cruelest of fashions—a last-second shot that will be replayed for weeks to come. Yet, there’s little time for disappointment in the grind of conference play. “We’ve got to learn from this and move forward,” Williams said. “It’s a long season, and we know what we’re capable of.”
For fans, Sunday’s showdown was a reminder of why college basketball captivates us: the drama, the unpredictability, and the moments that leave us breathless. As the Big 12 race tightens, both Baylor and Iowa State have shown they’re contenders, and if this game was any indication, the best may be yet to come.
With the dust settling in Ames, all eyes now turn to the next chapter. Will Baylor’s momentum carry them through another tough test? Can Iowa State bounce back and reclaim their place atop the standings? One thing’s certain—after a game like this, nobody’s taking their eyes off the Big 12 women’s basketball race.
