Micah Gray Scores 24 as Cowgirls Win Big 12 Opener Against Cyclones
Oklahoma State (11-1, 1-0 Big 12) took care of business against Iowa State (9-5, 0-1 Big 12) in the team’s Big 12 Conference opener by a score of 81-75. The Cowgirls jumped out to a comfortable 10-2 lead early in the first quarter and rolled into the second with a 22-15 advantage over the Cyclones of Iowa State.
Oklahoma State was able to maintain the momentum in the second quarter as they were able to outscore the Cyclones by a score of 19-14. With one half of basketball action in the books, the Cowgirls headed into the halftime locker room with a 41-29 halftime lead over Iowa State.
MICAH. GRAY.#GoPokes | @MicahGray2022 | 📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/dSwZgTvPGz
— OSU Cowgirl Basketball (@OSUWBB) December 21, 2024
The Cyclones used 17 third-quarter points from Audi Crooks to extinguish the Oklahoma State lead. Iowa State’s massive 28-point third period set the table for an explosive fourth quarter of basketball action.
Iowa State tied the game at 67 on another Sydney Harris 3-pointer, but the Cowgirls had one more trick up their sleeve. Following a Cowgirl miss, Stailee Heard soared through the paint to pull down the offensive rebound. Heard’s momentum carried her out of bounds, and she shot a pass to the wing. The ball eventually landed in the hands of Micah Gray, who nailed 3-pointer No. 6 on the night to put the Cowgirls back in front.
ELECTRIC.#GoPokes | 📺 ESPN2 pic.twitter.com/zvRDEModWc
— OSU Cowgirl Basketball (@OSUWBB) December 21, 2024
Oklahoma State center Tenin Magassa produced a huge, blocked shot late in the fourth quarter and Anna Gret Asi polished off the defensive play with her third 3-pointer of the night to put the game out of reach.
Micah Gray led the way for the Cowgirls with a team-high 24 points. Asi continued her solid season for Oklahoma State with 21 points, five rebounds and five assists. She was a perfect 10-of-10 from the charity stripe. Alexia Smith was the only other Cowgirl in double figures as she finished the night with 10 points and a team-high seven rebounds. Stailee Heard may have only had seven points at the end of the game but her rebounding late in the fourth quarter was key to the Oklahoma State victory.
The win over Iowa State was the last basketball game of the year for the Cowgirls. They will next hit the road to Baylor on New Years Day.
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Taylor Skieens has been an avid sports journalist with the McCurtain Gazette in Idabel, Oklahoma for seven years. He holds the title of Sports Editor for one of the oldest remaining print publications in the state of Oklahoma. Taylor grew up in the small lumber town of Wright City Oklahoma where he played baseball and basketball for the Lumberjax.