Iowa

Basketball legend Rebecca Lobo raves about Iowa State star Audi Crooks

Published

6 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Basketball legend Rebecca Lobo raves about Iowa State star Audi Crooks

AMES – As ESPN women’s basketball analyst and Hall of Famer Rebecca Lobo watched the Iowa State women’s basketball shootaround prior to the team’s Dec. 10 game against the Iowa Hawkeyes, several things stood out to her about Cyclones star Audi Crooks. Lobo was impressed by Crooks’ ability, her hard work and her personality.

“She’s such a smart, thoughtful, kind and funny human being,” Lobo said in an interview with the Des Moines Register prior to Wednesday night’s Cy-Hawk game. “And that just oozes out of her even when you spend just a short amount of time around her.”

Count Lobo as a fan of Crooks. The former college and WNBA star raved about the Cyclones star before calling the 10th-ranked Cyclones’ 74-69 win over the 12th-ranked Hawkeyes at Hilton Coliseum. Crooks poured in a game-high 30 points and grabbed 12 rebounds as Iowa State improved to 11-0.

“I love it,” Lobo said of watching Crooks. “She’s such a good kid. You see the joy. I like watching joyful players. She is a joyful player. When you talk to her, she is somebody who looks like, when she’s on the basketball court, there’s no other place she’d rather be and I love that about her. She just has an infectious way about her that makes you want to continue watching her.”

College basketball fans across the country are quickly gravitating toward Crooks, who has become one of the best players in the nation. The 6-foot-3 center leads the country in scoring, averaging 27.6 points per game. Crooks has already broken Iowa State’s single-game scoring record twice this season, dropping 43 points in a game and then 47 in another contest.

Lobo, the Associated Press player of the year in 1995 and a WNBA All-Star in 1999, has been covering college basketball for a long time. She can see why Crooks, a native of Algona, has become one of the most dominant college post players. Lobo covered the Cy-Hawk game in 2023 when Crooks was a freshman. She’s made massive strides since.

“The first time you put eyes on her, you’re absolutely struck by the unique frame and how quick her hands and feet are — how good her hands and feet are at her size and then her increased ability to finish around the rim,” Lobo said. “And everybody is game-planning around Audi and yet she’s still leading the nation in scoring and has become incredibly efficient.”

Crooks has been a big reason why the Cyclones are enjoying their best start in more than a decade. Iowa State’s 11-0 start marks the best start to the season since the 2013-14 campaign when the Cyclones opened the year with 14 straight wins. The attention Crooks receives on the court has been instrumental in the success of her teammates as well. What’s she’s done has impressed Lobo thoroughly.

“Audi is just such a unique talent in the women’s game,” Lobo said. “There’s really no other player quite like her and doing what she can do. She’s been a phenomenal anchor for them so far this season.”

If Iowa State continues its successful season and Crooks keeps putting up massive numbers, the Cyclones star will find herself in the national player of the year conversation, just like Lobo was when she was a star at UConn.

“Certainly right now, when you look at an undefeated team that’s a top-10 team, you’re like, ‘All right, who’s their best player and should she be in the conversation,’” Lobo said. “A lot of it will depend on if she’s going to be able to keep this level of scoring and this level of efficiency while leading a team that’s winning games.”

Tommy Birch, the Register’s sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He’s the 2018, 2020 and 2023 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468.

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Iowa

Preseason Iowa Boys High School Basketball Players Of The Year Announced

Published

18 hours ago

December 11, 2025

Press Room

Preseason Iowa Boys High School Basketball Players Of The Year Announced

Thank you to the readers of High School on SI for helping us determine the Iowa boys high school basketball preseason players of the year in all four classifications.

Over 20,000 votes were tabulated between the four polls on the website.

Taking home top honors in Class 4A was Tevin Schultz from Dubuque Senior, as he received nearly 55 percent of the votes cast in that poll. Will Gerdes of Cedar Falls was a close second with 38 percent of the votes.

Cael LaFrentz, the son of former Kansas star and NBA veteran Raef LaFrentz, claimed the top 3A honor, taking almost 36 percent of the votes. Brady Harr of Hampton-Dumont/CAL was second and James Madison commit AJ Evans of Cedar Rapids Xavier was third. Harr received 26 percent of the votes, Evans had 22 and Jaxon Clark from Keokuk was fourth with over 10 percent.

In 2A, Albia’s Gage Chance pulled away from the field, as he secured over 3,100 votes to finish ahead of Red Oak’s Reese Montgomery, who came in with just under 2,000 total votes cast for him.

GTRA’s Teagan Hanson, a standout quarterback this past fall for the Titans, picked up nearly 61 percent of the 12,000-plus votes cast to claim 1A over Eli Dee of Baxter and Tanner Bergmann from Wapsie Valley.

1. Tevin Schultz, Dubuque Senior

2. Will Gerdes, Cedar Falls

3. Jerimiah Washpun, Iowa City Liberty

Winner: Tevin Schultz, Dubuque Senior

Schultz was the leader for the Rams, posting 18 points, seven rebounds, two assists and over a steal per game.

1. Cael LaFrentz, Decorah

2. Brady Harr, Hampton-Dumont/CAL

3. AJ Evans, Cedar Rapids Xavier

Winner: Cael LaFrentz, Decorah

“Older” followers of basketball will recognize the last name, as LaFrentz averaged 29.2 points per game and 13 rebounds last year for the Vikings.

1. Gage Chance, Albia

2. Reese Montgomery, Red Oak

3. Bryer Putman, Wilton

Winner: Gage Chance, Albia

Chance dominated inside the paint as a sophomore, scoring 19 points with over seven rebounds per game.

1. Teagan Hanson, GTRA

2. Eli Dee, Baxter

3. Tanner Bergman, Wapsie Valley

Winner: Teagan Hanson GTRA

Hanson filled the box score as a junior, scoring 18.5 points a night with nearly six assists, almost six rebounds and four steals.

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Republican Wendy Larson wins Iowa House special election

Published

2 days ago

December 10, 2025

Press Room

Republican Wendy Larson wins Iowa House special election

Republican Wendy Larson has won a special election in northeast Iowa’s House District 7, retaining House Republicans’ supermajority in the state Legislature.

Larson, of Odebolt, will fill the seat of former Rep. Mike Sexton, R-Rockwell City, who resigned Sept. 19 to take a job as Iowa state director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s rural development office.

Larson won with 70% of the vote, defeating Democrat Rachel Burns, who received 30%, according to unofficial results from the Iowa Secretary of State’s office.

“I’m very blessed to have the opportunity to serve House District 7,” Larson said in a statement. “Throughout this campaign, I vowed to be a common-sense, conservative leader for rural Iowa in the Statehouse. I look forward to delivering on promises that I campaigned on, including protecting landowner rights, providing property tax relief and protecting our children. I’m eager to carry the voices of House District 7 to Des Moines and deliver results for rural Iowa.”

House District 7 includes Sac, Pocahontas and Calhoun counties, as well as portions of western Webster County.

Larson is a deaconess at Kiron Baptist Church and a volunteer at the Mobile Food Pantry. She and her husband, Chad, have three children. Larson holds a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Colorado State University.

Larson campaigned on protecting landowner rights from eminent domain, opposing vaccine mandates, strengthening Second Amendment rights, fighting illegal immigration and “protecting our children from political indoctrination” in school, according to a news release from House Republicans.

With Larson’s win, Republicans retain their 67-seat supermajority in the Iowa House.

House Speaker Pat Grassley, R-New Hartford, praised Larson’s 40-point victory in a statement.

“Unsurprisingly, House District 7 awarded Wendy Larson a resounding victory today,” he said. “Iowans continue to reject out-of-touch liberal agendas and opt instead for more of the common sense, freedom-loving approach you’ve come to know from Iowa House Republicans. We are proud to have a strong leader for House District 7 in Wendy Larson and we look forward to her joining us in the Iowa House.”

Larson previously ran against Sexton in a Republican primary in 2024, losing that race 51% to 49%.

Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart thanked Bruns for running and praised her campaign.

“Rachel Burns ran a gutsy and inspiring campaign, and the results of her hard work were clear tonight — overperforming by 11 points and forcing Republicans to spend over $35,000 in a district that Donald Trump won by 52,” Hart said in a statement.

Iowa has seen half a dozen special elections for the Legislature in 2025

Larson’s win marks the fifth special election for the Iowa Legislature in 2025.

In January, Democrat Mike Zimmer pulled off a surprise victory over Republican Kate Whittington in an eastern Iowa Senate seat that Chris Cournoyer vacated when she became lieutenant governor.

Republicans narrowly held a House seat that became vacant after former Rep. Martin Graber died unexpectedly of a heart attack. Republican Blaine Watkins defeated Democrat Nannette Griffin in March.

And in April, Democrat Angelina Ramirez won a special election to the Iowa House to replace Sami Scheetz, who resigned after being appointed to fill a vacancy on the Linn County Board of Supervisors. Ramirez defeated Republican Bernie Hayes.

Democrat Catelin Drey in August won a special election for the Iowa Senate seat previously held by Rocky De Witt, who died of pancreatic cancer. She defeated Republican Christopher Prosch, breaking Senate Republicans’ supermajority in the 50-member chamber.

Polk County residents will head to the polls for one final election on Dec. 30 to fill the Senate District 16 seat left vacant by the death of Sen. Claire Celsi in October.

Stephen Gruber-Miller covers the Iowa Statehouse and politics for the Register. He can be reached by email at sgrubermil@registermedia.com or by phone at 515-284-8169. Follow him on X at @sgrubermiller.

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See where Iowa women’s basketball is ranked in the latest Coaches poll

Published

2 days ago

December 9, 2025

Press Room

See where Iowa women’s basketball is ranked in the latest Coaches poll

After thumping Rutgers in its Big Ten opener, Iowa women’s basketball remained at No. 12 in the latest USA TODAY Coaches poll released Dec. 9.

The Hawkeyes (9-0, 1-0 Big Ten Conference) picked up a 79-36 win over the Scarlet Knights on Dec. 6 to remain unbeaten. Iowa has held opponents under 60 points six times already this season.

This week brings Iowa’s toughest challenge yet. The Hawkeyes head to No. 10 Iowa State (10-0) for their Dec. 10 challenge at Hilton Coliseum. Iowa then returns home to face Lindenwood on Dec. 13.

Dec. 9 women’s basketball Coaches poll

UConn
Texas
South Carolina
UCLA
LSU
Maryland
TCU
Michigan
Oklahoma
Iowa State
North Carolina
Iowa
Vanderbilt
Baylor
Kentucky
OIe Miss
USC
Tennessee
Notre Dame
Louisville
Ohio State
Oklahoma State
Washington
Michigan State
Alabama

Dargan Southard is a sports trending reporter and covers Iowa athletics for the Des Moines Register and HawkCentral.com. Email him at msouthard@gannett.com or follow him on Twitter at @Dargan_Southard.

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