By Ben Everett | Sports Writer
The No. 4 Baylor women’s basketball team picked up a 79-50 road win over Iowa State Wednesday night in Ames, Iowa.
Sophomore forward Lauren Cox posted a near triple-double, tallying 21 points, 15 rebounds and a career-high nine blocks in the win.
Freshman guard Didi Richards, making her first career start, cleaned up a miss by junior center Kalani Brown and put it back in to get the Lady Bears on the board first. Baylor jumped out to a 13-2 lead before the first media timeout.
Freshman guard Alexis Morris drained a corner 3-pointer to bring the Baylor lead to 19-2 at the end of the first quarter. Two points in the first quarter is the lowest in school history for Iowa State.
The Lady Bears extended their lead to 26-4 on five straight points from Brown, but Iowa State senior guard Bridget Carleton scored eight of the Cyclones’ next 12 points including an and-one and a three-pointer.
Cox closed the quarter with six straight points of her own as the Lady Bears took a 40-19 lead into the break.
Cox led all scorers with 16 points at the break while also compiling seven blocks. Carleton poured in 12 in the first half for the Cyclones.
In the third quarter, the Cyclones continued to battle with the Lady Bears. An and-one from freshman guard Rae Johnson and a three-pointer from Carleton marked a 6-0 run for Iowa State, but Morris attacked the rim for a layup to make it a 47-30 Baylor lead with four minutes remaining in the quarter.
Baylor senior guard Kristy Wallace drained a corner three to extend the Lady Bears’ lead to 20, but Johnson knocked down two free throws at the end of the quarter to make it 54-36 with one quarter remaining. The Cyclones outscored Baylor 17-14 in the third.
Carleton remained hot in the fourth quarter, knocking down a contested three-pointer to cut the lead to 63-43, but Baylor sophomore guard Juicy Landrum responded with a three of her own to make it a 66-43 game with five minutes left in the game.
The Lady Bears only allowed one field goal in the last five minutes of the game to win 79-50.
Brown finished with 25 points and nine rebounds for the Lady Bears while Carleton finished with 24 points and eight rebounds for the Cyclones.
Baylor looks to keep their winning streak alive as they host Kansas State at 6 p.m. Saturday at the Ferrell Center.
