BYU faces Iowa State Wednesday at Hilton Coliseum

PROVO, Utah — BYU travels to take on the Iowa State Cyclones at Hilton Coliseum on Wednesday, Jan. 22 for the third all-time meeting in Ames. Tip-off is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT with the game streamed on ESPN+ and broadcast on BYU Radio, byuradio.org and the BYU Radio app with Jason Shepherd on the call.

Matchup Breakdown
BYU and Iowa State have met four times in series history with the series split at two games apiece. The last meeting came on Feb. 24, 2024, as the Cyclones beat the Cougars 74-49 at Hilton.

BYU's last win over Iowa State came in the 2002 NCAA Tournament Round of 32 in Ames. The Cougars won the game by a score of 75-69 to advance to the program's first Sweet 16. 

All-Time: 2-2

At Iowa State: 1-1

Whiting vs. Iowa State: 0-2

BYU Cougars  ||  10-7, 1-5  ||  Big 12 Conference

WHAT'S AT STAKE  ||  With a win, the Cougars would take a 3-2 lead in the all-time series and secure the first win over Iowa State under Coach Whiting. BYU would also knock off the Cyclones for the first time since the 2002 NCAA Tournament.

DELANEY'S DREAM START  ||  Delaney Gibb has been named the Big 12 Freshman of the Week five times – Nov. 11, Dec. 16 & 23, Jan. 13 & 20 – so far this season. The Canada native is scoring 16.9 points per game on 47.9 percent shooting and 40.2 percent from deep. Gibb averages 4.9 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.5 steals. The freshman has scored over 14 points in 14 of 17 games this year including six games of 20 or more.

Gibb's 16.9 points per game ranks fourth in the country for freshmen and leads the Big 12. The freshman also holds the fourth-highest field goal percentage in the country among first-year players. 

SECOND-HALF WOES  ||  BYU started the year dominating the third quarter, but have struggled coming out of the half in Big 12 play. In six conference games, the Cougars are being outscored 19.3-15.8 in the third and 19.5-16.5 in the fourth while surrendering over 42 percent shooting in both frames.

VALUING THE BASKETBALL  ||  Ball security is crucial for BYU. In their six Big 12 games this season, the Cougars have committed 20.8 turnovers and opponents are scoring 19.4 points off giveaways per game. In wins this season, the Cougars average 13.6 giveaways, 7.4 less than in losses, and give up 11 points off turnovers.

FINISHING POSSESSIONS  ||  Grabbing defensive boards to finish possessions has been a point of emphasis for Whiting’s squad. BYU is giving up 11.3 offensive boards and surrendering 14.2 second-chance points in six Big 12 games thus far. In their win over Houston, the Cougars only gave up eight offensive boards and seven second-chance points.

Head Coach – Amber Whiting

• Alma Mater: BYU, 2001
• Division I Career Record: 42-41  ||  3rd Season
• Record at BYU: 42-41  ||  3rd Season

Iowa State Cyclones  ||  13-7, 4-3  ||  Big 12 Conference

CONTAINING CROOKS  ||  The two-time Big 12 Player of the Week, Audi Crooks is leading the conference in scoring at 22.2 points per game on the fifth-highest field goal percentage in the league at 59.5 percent.

Through 20 games, Crooks has turned in four 30-point performances and has 12 games of 20 points or more. The Cougars will have to control Crooks on the boards as she averages 7.4 rebounds, the second most of any Cyclone player. The sophomore has also recorded 48 offensive boards, 2.4 per game, an area of emphasis for BYU. 

BATTLING BROWN  ||  Addy Brown, the sophomore counterpart of Crooks, is the second-leading scorer for Iowa State at 14.1 points per game on 50 percent shooting and a 36.1 percent clip from behind the 3-point line. Brown also averages 7.5 rebounds to lead the Cyclones along with 4.1 assists, the second-most on the squad. 

RYAN'S DROPPING DIMES  ||  The Cyclones’ floor general ranks sixth in the country in assists per game at 6.4 while also averaging two steals per game. Ryan is the third-leading scorer for ISU at 9.6 per game on a 46.4 percent clip from the floor and 39.5 percent from downtown.

HILTON MAGIC  ||  The Cyclones hold a 23-3 record in games played at Hilton Coliseum over the past two seasons. Iowa State is 10-1 at home and scores 80.1 points on 47.5 percent shooting while holding opponents to 56.5 points on a 33.9 percent clip. On the road, the Cyclones give up 77.7 points and 42.7 percent shooting while only scoring 76 points.

Head Coach – Bill Fennelly

• Alma Mater: William Penn, 1979
• Career Record: 790-373  ||  37th Season
• Record at Iowa State: 624-320  ||  30th Season