AMES, Iowa – The Iowa State women’s basketball program and head coach Bill Fennelly announced Wednesday that two prep standouts have signed their letters of intent, completing the Cyclones 2019 recruiting class. The duo, who all hail from Texas and Iowa, have signed to play for the Cyclones starting in 2019-20 season.

Maggie McGraw, a 5-10 guard from Indianola, Iowa, is a three-time First-Team All-Conference performer for Southeast Polk. McGraw has averaged double figures each of the last three seasons, with her banner season coming in 2017-18, where she averaged 18.6 points, 3.4 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.4 steals per contest. McGraw led Southeast Polk to their third-straight conference championship and made it to the semifinals of the State tournament. Last season she also joined the 1,000-point club after just 61 games. McGraw is also a five-star prospect on ESPN.com, rated 45th nationally.

“Maggie has Cardinal and Gold in her blood and we are excited to add her officially to the Cyclone women’s basketball family,” Fennelly said. “Maggie is a skilled offensive player that can play anywhere on the perimeter.   She is a great fit for Iowa State on and off the court.”

Gabby McBride, a 6-2 forward from Roanoke, Texas, is a four year starter on the varsity squad. As a sophomore, she averaged 8.5 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. McBride was also an All-District honoree as well as an Adidas All-American.

“Gabby is a player who has a good upside on the court and will add great personality to our program as well,” Fennelly said. “She is athletic and physical around the rim and as we lose players in the post through graduation this was a position of need for our program.”

2018-19 Iowa State Signees

Maggie McGraw, G, 5-10, Indianola, Iowa, Southeast Polk High School

Gabby McBride, F, 6-2, Roanoke, Texas, Liberty Christian High School

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State (3-0) rallied from a 15-point deficit to defeat Auburn (3-1), 67-64, and advance to the championship of the Preseason WNIT. Freshman Ashley Joens put up a team-high 18 points, while senior Bridget Carleton scored the game-winning basket with nine seconds remaining to lift the Cyclones to victory.

Carleton stuffed the stat sheet in Tuesday’s win, putting up 15 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists. She was followed in the scoring column by Madison Wise (13) and Meredith Burkhall (10).

How It Happened
The Cyclone offense struggled to find its rhythm from the outset against a scrappy Auburn defense. Despite generating a number of open looks, Iowa State opened the game 1-of-13 from the field, missing its first eight shots from beyond the 3-point line. Carleton helped right the ship after the slow start, scoring seven points in the opening quarter to help close the gap to 18-13 after 10 minutes.

Iowa State clawed to within 24-21 on a Madison Wise layup midway through the second quarter, but a 12-0 Auburn run ensued, book-ended by triples from Janiah McKay and Emari Jones. Joens and Wise responded with treys of their own to stop the run, but Auburn still led 38-29 at the intermission.

A 10-0 Cyclone run early in the third quarter brought the Hilton Coliseum crowd to its feet. Joens and Wise each knocked down triples to narrow the deficit to just 41-39 with 6:34 to play in the period. Wise would later tie the game at 45-45 with a buzzer-beating 3-pointer at the end of the quarter.

It was the beginning of a 13-0 spurt, with Iowa State taking his first lead of the night on yet another Joens triple just nine seconds into the fourth quarter. The Tigers climbed back to within two at 56-54 with 4:28 to play, but Carleton and Alexa Middleton combined to score 10 straight to extend the lead

Late-game heroics from Auburn’s Janiah McKay ensued, as the Tiger guard hit three triples in 47 seconds, the last of which tied the game at 64-64 with 41 seconds to play. However, Carleton had the last word, with a game-winning drive to the basket for a lay-in with nine seconds remaining. She also swatted McKay’s final shot attempt out of bounds in the closing moments to secure the 67-64 win.

Up Next
Iowa State will take on the winner of Thursday’s Marquette vs. Miami semifinal game. The Preseason WNIT championship game will be played Sunday at 3:30 p.m. at Hilton Coliseum. The game will be televised live by CBS Sports Network.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.6MB)

Subscribe: Android | RSS

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Maybe this was only fitting: Two players named Wright got Colorado’s season started on the right foot. Namon Wright scored 25 points and McKinley Wright IV added 17, helping the Buffaloes pull away in the second half to beat Drake 100-71 on Tuesday night in their season opener.

Coming off the bench, Namon Wright — a senior guard — hit 8 of 12 shots to establish a new high while at Colorado. His overall career-best is 28 set on Feb. 24, 2015, while playing for Missouri. At more than 29 minutes, he saw more court time than any other Colorado player.

Tyler Bey had nine points and 14 rebounds as the Buffaloes (1-0) moved to 9-0 in home openers under Boyle. McKinley Wright picked up where he left off in the assist department with six. He broke Chauncey Billups’ freshman record for assists a season ago with 175.

The Buffaloes showed some early rust, but relied on their stingy defense until the offense found some rhythm. They out-rebounded Drake by a 44-29 margin and kept the turnovers to a minimum — until garbage time. The Bulldogs kept up with Colorado when the 3-pointers were falling. They were 7 of 18 in the first half from long range, and 4 of 19 in the second.

It was a Drake-themed night with the school from Iowa in town, filled with plenty of music from the rapper/song writer. There was a Drake trivia contest and a name-that-tune challenge. Even the Buffaloes’ mascot got into the act by dressing in Drake-style clothing.
UP NEXT
Drake faces Texas State on Saturday in the first of three straight games at home.

BOWLING GREEN, Ky. (AP) — Megan Gustafson scored 29 points, making all 13 of her shots, Makenzie Meyer made five 3-pointers and scored a career-high 21 points and No. 13 Iowa beat Western Kentucky 104-67 on Tuesday night.

Gustafson became the second player in program history to surpass 1,000 career rebounds with six boards in the first half. She scored 12 straight Iowa points spanning the third-quarter break.

Hannah Stewart added 14 points for Iowa (3-0), which has its highest ranking since the Feb. 16, 2016.
Iowa led 50-36 at halftime behind Gustafson’s 13 points and six rebounds. Meyer and Alexis Sevillian each scored 11 points. The Hawkeyes had 18 assists on 22 field goals, and shot 64.7 percent from the field. The Hilltoppers were held to just 10 points in the third quarter, and trailed 79-46.

Raneem Elgedawy and Alexis Brewer each scored 14 points — with 26 coming in the first half — for Western Kentucky (0-3), which faced ranked Louisville in its opener and later Oklahoma.

Here is the latest Mid-America sports news from The Associated Press

UNDATED (AP) — Iowa tight end Noah Fant has 18 career touchdowns, the best in school history. Yet the Hawkeyes are mired in a three-game losing streak and Fant hasn’t caught a touchdown in four straight games. Coach Kirk Ferentz says Iowa is better if it can get the ball to Fant, a junior who is likely an NFL draft pick when he decides to leave school. Iowa is a 16-point favorite in Saturday’s game at Illinois.

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Namon Wright scored 25 points and McKinley Wright IV added 17, helping Colorado pull away in the second half to beat Drake 100-71. Tyler Bey added nine points and 14 rebounds as the Buffaloes (1-0) moved to 9-0 in home openers under coach Tad Boyle.

PISCATAWAY, N.J. (AP) — Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer became the fifth Division I women’s basketball coach to win 1,000 games when the Scarlet Knights beat Central Connecticut State 73-44. Stringer joined Pat Summitt, Geno Auriemma, Tara VanDerveer and Sylvia Hatchell in the 1,000-victory club.

AMES, Iowa (AP) — No. 18 Iowa State will be without junior David Montgomery, one of its best players, for the first half of one of the bigger games in recent school history. How the Cyclones fare for 30 minutes without their star running back could decide whether they can stay alive for a spot in the Big 12 title game. Montgomery will miss the first two quarters of a showdown at No. 13 Texas on Saturday after being ejected for throwing a punch during last week’s win over Baylor.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes walked off the field at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday with another record on his resume and the Kansas City Chiefs another win toward earning the No. 1 seed in the AFC playoffs. He didn’t have much chance to enjoy any of it. Mahomes quickly learned that the stepfather of his longtime girlfriend, Brittany Matthews, had died after a medical emergency during the game.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NFL has moved the Los Angeles Rams’ Monday night showdown with the Kansas City Chiefs from Mexico City to Los Angeles due to the poor condition of the field at Azteca Stadium. The league made its decision just six days before one of the most-anticipated regular-season games of the year. Recent rains and several big events at Azteca combined to damage the field, and the league determined it was unplayable.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The NFL moved the Rams’ Monday night showdown with the Kansas City Chiefs from Mexico City to Los Angeles on Tuesday due to the poor condition of the field at Azteca Stadium.

The league announced the extraordinary decision six days before one of the most-anticipated regular-season games of the year.

In a news release, the league said it determined that the recently re-sodded field at Mexico City’s historic stadium “does not meet NFL standards for playability and consistency, and will not meet those standards by next Monday.”

The Rams (9-1) will host the Chiefs (9-1) at the Coliseum instead.

The decision creates a morass of logistical concerns for the teams and for fans traveling to Mexico, and it disappoints thousands of fans eager to see a marquee matchup. But the league consulted with the players’ association and local officials before deciding it couldn’t risk the players’ health on a damaged field.

“The combination of a difficult rainy season and a heavy multi-event calendar of events at the stadium have resulted in significant damage to the field that presents unnecessary risks to player safety and makes it unsuitable to host an NFL game,” said Mark Waller, the NFL’s executive vice president of international. “As a result, we have determined that moving the game is the right decision, and one that we needed to announce now in order to allow our teams and fans to make alternate arrangements.”

Azteca officials changed the playing surface from natural grass to a hybrid in May, but the turf hasn’t been ideal for several months. Concern about the field grew in recent days when aerial photos of the stadium showed serious damage to the grass, particularly on the end of the stadium recently used for a major concert.

Cruz Azul, the Liga MX soccer club that shares the stadium with Club America, played a tournament game on the field last Saturday in noticeably poor conditions. Coach Pedro Caixinha expressed concern, and the NFL continued working with groundskeepers to improve the field.

Azteca hosted the first regular-season game ever held outside the U.S. in 2005 when Arizona beat San Francisco. The stadium has hosted several NFL exhibitions, and the Oakland Raiders, Houston Texans and New England Patriots all played regular-season games there over the past two seasons.

The 7:20-a.m. Sportscast with Jim Field.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (6.8MB)

Subscribe: Android | RSS

Iowa State running back David Montgomery and Baylor defensive end Greg Roberts will miss the first half of their teams’ games this week after the scuffle that led to their ejections in the second half of a testy game between the Cyclones and Bears. Cyclones coach Matt Campbell said Monday that his team wouldn’t appeal the penalty against Montgomery, who retaliated with a swing after Roberts reached over an official to throw a punch at the running back in 18th-ranked Iowa State’s 28-14 win Saturday. “The reality is, it’s an unfortunate situation,” Campbell said. “David is one of the great leaders of all time, and he responded to a negative situation. … Nobody’s more disappointed than David, but nobody has owned it as David.”

Montgomery, the second-leading rusher in the Big 12 at 96 yards per game, will miss the first half at No. 13 Texas in matchup of the two teams tied for third place in the Big 12, both a game behind co-leaders No. 6 Oklahoma and No. 7 West Virginia. Roberts will sit out the first half of Baylor’s home finale Saturday against rival TCU. Baylor coach Matt Rhule said he had apologized to Campbell and Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby. Rhule described Roberts as “extremely apologetic” for what happened. “The minute we decide to throw a punch it affects so many other people,” Rhule said. “That’s what I told Greg.”

While the first-half suspensions for Montgomery and Roberts were automatic for fighting, Bears starting quarterback Charlie Brewer won’t have to serve any further penalty after being ejected in the fourth quarter Saturday because of his unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. Brewer drew a flag when he said something to an official after being marked short of a first down at the end of a running play. His ejection was automatic because it was his second unsportsmanlike penalty — each player on both teams had been assessed one following the earlier melee.

“Charlie is a competitor and he is trying to get a first down and he has to watch the rest of the game from the locker room. That was tough enough for him,” Rhule said. “I think we have learned a lot of lessons from Saturday night and we will have to remember that going forward.” The game Saturday took an ugly turn when Montgomery and Roberts briefly fought after things nearly came to blows when a previous play ended up spilling over onto Iowa State’s bench. The teams nearly staged a full-on brawl during a wild incident that included Roberts slapping Montgomery on the helmet, and Montgomery responded with swings of his own. “Certainly disappointed because that’s not football,” Campbell said. “Who started it, who didn’t start it, what the situation was, that’s irrelevant at this point. … There were some unfortunate times during that game where I think both teams, the cooler heads didn’t prevail.”

AMES, Iowa (AP) — Iowa State’s thin roster survived its opening home stand with three straight wins. Next up for the Cyclones, down four regulars because of injuries and suspensions, is a trip to Hawaii that should really test their mettle. Marial Shayok scored a career-high 26 points, freshman Talen Horton-Tucker had 26 as well and Iowa State held off Texas Southern 85-73 on Monday night. Nick Weiler-Babb posted 13 points with 13 rebounds for the Cyclones (3-0), who have Maui Invitational games next week against Arizona, either third-ranked Gonzaga or Illinois and then an opponent yet to be determined.

Shayok transferred from Virginia to play in a more free-flowing offense. Through three games, it looks like he made the right call. Shayok has been a focal point of Iowa State’s much improved attack, scoring at least 14 points in every contest. Shayok is averaging a team-high 20 points a game. The most hyped recruit in Iowa State’s latest class, Horton-Tucker had by far his best game in a Cyclones uniform. Horton-Tucker kept the Tigers at bay by hitting five 3s in the first half, and he finished 8 of 14 from the floor. Horton-Tucker also had five rebounds. “He’s a good player,” Prohm said. “He’s young. He’s going to have good games and he’s going to have bad games. He’s going to be up and down at times.”

Sophomore guard Lindell Wigginton, Iowa State’s top returning scorer, spoke with reporters before the game on Monday for the first time since straining his left foot — an injury that forced him into a hard cast. Wigginton said he hurt the foot late in Iowa State’s 79-53 win over Alabama State last week. “I really just landed wrong on my foot, and then I just felt a pop,” Wigginton said. “I tried to play through it, but I really couldn’t.” Wigginton said his foot had been bothering him but that he thought it was just sore. He’ll soon have his cast replaced by a boot, and Wigginton hopes to return sometime in December. But he’s not going to rush it, especially given his pro prospects. “He wants me to come back when I’m fully healed, 100 percent,” Wigginton said of Prohm.