AMES − The hope in Ames was that the Iowa State women’s basketball team, which had suffered through a tough stretch at the end of the calendar year, had figured things out during its win over Kansas on Wednesday.

But any momentum the Cyclones picked up from their first Big 12 Conference victory of the season quickly dissipated Sunday when Iowa State suffered another Big 12 loss, falling to Utah 75-67 at Hilton Coliseum Sunday.

Iowa State, one of the favorites to win the league at the start of the season, has lost three of its last four games and fell to 10-6 overall and 1-2 in Big 12 play.

“I thought our kids competed but at the end of the day, sometimes basketball’s really simple and it’s a make-shot, miss-shot game and (Utah) made some tough ones,” said Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly. “We couldn’t make anything.”

Audi Crooks scored 29 points and grabbed eight rebounds for the Cyclones. Emily Ryan added 18 points, five rebounds and six assists for Iowa State. Addy Brown chipped in with 10 points and eight assists.

Those three players helped Iowa State battle back from being down for most of the day. But the Cyclones couldn’t quite finish the job. The Cyclones shot just 25% (5-for-20) from 3-point range and 42% from the field overall.

Eight other players took the court for Iowa State. They combined for just 10 points.

“We can’t expect to win like that, not in this league when there are other teams who have five people that are consistently contributing night in and night out,” Crooks said.

Still, Iowa State was able to stay within striking distance during a game that featured four ties and nine lead changes. Iowa State dug an early hole as the Utes connected on their first seven shots from the field and their first five 3-point attempts.

An 8-0 run gave Utah a 21-10 lead. But Iowa State was able to cut into the deficit. Back-to-back layups by Crooks and Arianna Jackson pulled the Cyclones to within 23-21 in the second quarter. Iowa State briefly took the lead in the third quarter with baskets from Alisa Williams and Brown that put the Cyclones ahead 44-41.

But Utah took control with an 8-0 that put the Utes up 49-44.

“They play the game the right way − skilled, very seasoned, very tough-minded, very well-coached,” Fennelly said.

Utah shot 47% from the field and did most of its damage from 3-point range (13-of-26). After Iowa State tied the score at 58-58 on a pair of free throws from Brown, the Utes hit back-to-back 3-pointers.

The Cyclones cut the lead to two on a layup by Crooks with 47 seconds remaining. Utah’s Ines Vieira responded by connecting on a 3-point shot.

The Cyclones now get ready for a challenging road trip. Iowa State plays at Arizona State on Wednesday and Arizona on Sunday.

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