How do you explain a freshman playing in her first NCAA Tournament game posting a stat line authored by only one other player in the history of the game, men or women?
Specifically, we’re talking about Iowa State freshman Audi Crooks, who dropped 40 points while shooting 90% and grabbing 12 rebounds to lift the Cyclones to a 93-86 win over a Maryland Terrapins squad that had led by 20 in the second quarter. And the player she joined is none other than UCLA legend Bill Walton.
Again, how do you explain it? Crooks will tell you.
“Before every game I just try to take a moment and I pray. I’m kind of seeking guidance from my father,” she said after the win. “He passed away when I was 16 in 2021. I just kind of take a second and ground myself, tap in to my spiritual side, and just know that everything is going to be ok and he’s got the best seat in the house.”
Prior to Friday’s game, no freshman — woman or man — had ever scored 40 points in an NCAA Tournament game. Sacramento Kings guard De’Aaron Fox scored 39 points in No. 2 seed Kentucky’s 86-75 Sweet 16 win over No. 3 seed UCLA in 2017.
And No. 7 seed Iowa State needed just about every one of Crooks’ 40 points. The Cyclones’ comeback was the…
