This weekend’s polar vortex has dumped heaps of snow, wind and madness across the women’s college basketball landscape, with top-15 squads Baylor, Virginia Tech, Texas, LSU and UCLA falling in conference play.
Here’s a look back at the biggest storylines from the weekend.
“Hilton Magic” topples No. 4 Baylor
Even with the typically deafening Ames crowd diluted by inclement weather, Hilton Coliseum still worked its magic against No. 4 Baylor on Saturday afternoon. Audi Crooks scored a game-winning layup with 26 seconds remaining, Hannah Belanger converted a clutch pair at the line and Iowa State stormed back late to defeat the Bears 66-63, its third-straight win over Baylor.
A top-5 upset hardly appeared possible early on as the Cyclones carried a nearly six-minute scoring drought into the second quarter to go with a 13-point deficit. Crooks, who excelled Saturday with 26 points, snapped the dry spell with a jumper as the Cyclones started to manufacture better looks against America’s 13th-best defense, but a late 7-0 spurt from Baylor extended its lead back to double-digits moments before halftime.
Casting away a sloppy first half…
