STILLWATER, Okla. – Oklahoma State’s women’s basketball team ran its winning streak to six in a row with a 73-68 win over No. 20 Iowa State on Wednesday night in front of 2,768 fans inside Gallagher-Iba Arena.
With the victory, OSU secured the 17th 20-win campaign in program history and Jacie Hoyt became just the second head coach in program history to reach 20 wins in their first season. Additionally, the win streak is OSU’s first six-game string in league play since 2016.
The Cowgirls hit their first four shots to race out to a 9-3 lead and would extend the margin to eight three minutes into the game. The Cyclones would answer with a 5-0 run to get within a possession.
The Cyclones reeled off a 6-0 run to tie the game at 16 apiece at the 2:23 mark before OSU moved back in front with an old-fashioned 3-point play from Taylen Collins with 90 seconds to go. The two teams traded 3-pointers, sending the Cowgirls into the quarter break with a 22-19 lead.
OSU used a 6-0 run capped by a 3-pointer from Lior Garzon to extend their margin to 28-21 early in the second. The Cowgirls would lead, 32-25, at the halfway point of the quarter and would extend the lead to nine after a stretch of five made field goals in six attempts.
Garzon drained a long trey at the three-minute mark to push the margin to 12 at 37-25 and would strike again 45 seconds later to make it a 40-27 lead. However, the Cyclones would answer with consecutive treys of their own to get back within seven.
The Cowgirls would take a 42-33 lead into the intermission.
Iowa State would score 11 of the first 13 to start the third and force an OSU timeout with the score knotted at 44 apiece. Iowa State would score the first basket after the break to take the lead before the Cowgirls answered on their next three possessions with a pair of layups and two free throws from Taylen Collins.
A 5-0 Cyclone run would give them the lead before Anna Gret Asi answered from deep to put OSU back in front, 53-51.
Heading into the final 10 minutes, the Cowgirls led, 57-53.
The Cyclones would knock down a trey with seven minutes to go to tie the game at 61 before Chastain buried one of her own to put OSU back in front.
With the score tied at 64, the Cowgirls got back-to-back layups from Terryn Milton and Chastain to force Iowa State to take a timeout with three minutes remaining in the contest.
With 50 seconds remaining and the shot clock expiring, Asi drilled another a 3-pointer to extend the margin to 71-66.
After a pair of Cyclone free throws, the Cowgirls couldn’t convert on their next possession with Iowa State calling timeout with 10 seconds to go to set up the final sequence. After a Cyclone miss from beyond the arc. OSU regained possession with four ticks left.
Keys added two free throws with less than a second left to seal the outcome.
Milton led OSU with 15 points, while Collins added 14 and Asi finished with 10.