Spring Break
Women's basketball team loses by 17 points to Iowa State
By: Michael Teague
Issue date: 2/5/09 Section: Sports
The No. 4 Texas A&M women's basketball team's three-game win streak came to an end Wednesday in a 67-50 loss at No. 23 Iowa State.
The Aggies' loss drops them behind Iowa State to fifth place in the Big 12 standings with eight conference games remaining in the season. The Cyclones improved to fourth place in the conference with a half-game lead over the Aggies. A&M trails first-place Oklahoma by three-games.
A&M put up their worst offensive effort of 2008-2009 with a season-low 50 points. Senior Takia Starks scored a team-high 18 points including six from beyond the arc. Starks is now Texas A&M's all-time leader in 3-point baskets.
"I was very surprised on how we played as a whole tonight," Starks told AggieAthletics.com. "Like [A&M Head Coach Gary Blair] said in the locker room, we just quit and I've never played with a team like that. Our young players made mistakes and we made mistakes in our defensive assignments. It was not our best effort tonight."
Other than Starks, no Aggie player scored more than six points. Junior Tanisha Smith and freshman Adaora Elonu both struggled from the field, shooting 1-for-7.
Iowa State finished the game with three players scoring in double-digits. Cyclones leading-scorer Heather Ezell put up a team-high 25 points while senior Amanda Nisleit put up 10 points. Sophomore Kelsey Bolte added 17 points off the bench.
Before the game, the Aggies' defense had the Big 12's top 3-pointer defense. Iowa State, the conference's top 3-pointer shooting team, was 10-for-22 from beyond the 3-point line. Ezell led the team with seven 3-pointers including five in the first half.
"You can't let her hit threes," Starks said. "She is really a great player and it's hard to keep track of her on the court."
The Cylcones, who lead the Big 12 in defensive rebounds, pulled down 20 of the game's first 26 boards and out-rebounded the Aggies 39-27. A&M was out-rebounded in offensive rebounds 14-4 and failed to pull down an offensive rebound in the first half.
The Aggies' loss drops them behind Iowa State to fifth place in the Big 12 standings with eight conference games remaining in the season. The Cyclones improved to fourth place in the conference with a half-game lead over the Aggies. A&M trails first-place Oklahoma by three-games.
A&M put up their worst offensive effort of 2008-2009 with a season-low 50 points. Senior Takia Starks scored a team-high 18 points including six from beyond the arc. Starks is now Texas A&M's all-time leader in 3-point baskets.
"I was very surprised on how we played as a whole tonight," Starks told AggieAthletics.com. "Like [A&M Head Coach Gary Blair] said in the locker room, we just quit and I've never played with a team like that. Our young players made mistakes and we made mistakes in our defensive assignments. It was not our best effort tonight."
Other than Starks, no Aggie player scored more than six points. Junior Tanisha Smith and freshman Adaora Elonu both struggled from the field, shooting 1-for-7.
Iowa State finished the game with three players scoring in double-digits. Cyclones leading-scorer Heather Ezell put up a team-high 25 points while senior Amanda Nisleit put up 10 points. Sophomore Kelsey Bolte added 17 points off the bench.
Before the game, the Aggies' defense had the Big 12's top 3-pointer defense. Iowa State, the conference's top 3-pointer shooting team, was 10-for-22 from beyond the 3-point line. Ezell led the team with seven 3-pointers including five in the first half.
"You can't let her hit threes," Starks said. "She is really a great player and it's hard to keep track of her on the court."
The Cylcones, who lead the Big 12 in defensive rebounds, pulled down 20 of the game's first 26 boards and out-rebounded the Aggies 39-27. A&M was out-rebounded in offensive rebounds 14-4 and failed to pull down an offensive rebound in the first half.
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