Iowa State's Audi Crooks scores program-record 43 points in rout of Valparaiso

AMES — Audi Crooks doesn’t always wear a cape.

Just know that it’s tucked away in the Iowa State star center’s virtual closet — and she donned it with gusto Wednesday night against Valparaiso.

The 6-3 junior scored 43 points in just under 20 minutes, draining an astonishing 18 of 23 shots from the field as the No. 16 Cyclones shook off a sluggish start to trounce the overmatched Crusaders, 97-50, before a crowd of 8.954 at Hilton Coliseum.

“First off, I think it’s more important to congratulate (teammate) Addy Brown on 1,000 career points,” said Crooks, who eclipsed Tonya Burns’ single-game standard of 42 points set in January of 1984. “So that needs to be acknowledged first and foremost. But it’s not really about the accolades and the records. Of course, it’s an honor to be etched in school history, but it’s about, like, ‘Who did it with you?’ It’s not about the destination, more the journey, so (I’m) just incredibly grateful to be surrounded by such great people.”

The Cyclones (4-0) struggled to fully put away Valparaiso (0-3) and at one point were 0-for-9 from 3-point range and 5-for-11 from the free throw line. But the one constant was defense, and ISU held the Crusaders to 29 percent shooting despite allowing them to make five of their first eight shots.

“We stayed with the plan and we ended up just fine,” said Brown, who scored 18 points, grabbed seven rebounds and dished out four assists. “So it all worked out.”

That’s partly because the offense worked through Crooks almost every possession. Valparaiso chose to guard her one-on-one in the paint — something she hadn’t experienced more than once in a college game — and eventually that proved to be overwhelming, despite the Cyclones’ struggles at times in terms of energy.

“I was so mad in the first half that I literally just sat in my locker room (at halftime) because I was afraid I would say something I would regret,” said Fennelly, whose team finished with a 19-to-2 edge in points off turnovers. “We were not — and it’s no disrespect to Valparaiso, they played hard, they did some good things, but we did not do the things that we’re capable of doing, and had done up to this point. We did in the second quarter, we did in the fourth quarter, but the start of the game, I don’t know what we were.”

So feed Crooks. Early and often, and without hesitation. Even though she skipped the pregame meal because she wasn’t feeling well during her historic night.

“This was like the (Michael) Jordan flu game for me,” said Crooks, whose previous career high of 40 points came in a 2024 NCAA Tournament win over Maryland. “I was not feeling well at all. So this was a shock. I was not anticipating it, but we just took what they were giving us.”

That’s one-on-one coverage all night — much to the shock and delight of Fennelly.

“Someone on the bench said, for her, it probably felt like one of her high school games (at Algona Bishop Garrigan),” Fennelly said. “Like, they just kept throwing her the ball and she kept making layups.”

Again, and again, and yet again.

“Crazy,” said Brown, who went 7-for-10 from the field. “It’s the only word I have. … I think if she would have played all 40, she would have scored 100. So, maybe next time.”

Fennelly joked that associate head coach Jodi Steyer was “really happy” Crooks cemented the record by draining two free throws with 8:42 left. Steyer’s been working with Crooks to improve in that area and while that remains a work in progress, she is shooting a career-best 70 percent from the line through the first four games of a long and possibly special season for the Cyclones.

“(Brown was) the one who actually told me (about the record) when we were on defense and the ball was out for bounds,” Crooks said. “(She) said, ‘This next layup, you’ve got to make it for the school record. I said, ‘OK,’ (and) she gave me the ball and I got fouled. I said, ‘Dang it, now I’ve got to make them both. But, yeah, coach Steyer and I work very hard on free throws, so it was just the perfect bow in the present.”

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