Tjaša Turnšek scored 20 points to lead Iowa State to a 77-61 victory over Eastern Illinois at Hilton Coliseum Sunday afternoon. The Cyclones pulled away in the second half, outscoring the Panthers 44-30 over the final two quarters after taking a narrow 33-31 lead into halftime.
Xiao Zhang added 14 points for Iowa State, which overcame a sluggish start to dominate the interior in the second half. Clara Glad paced Eastern Illinois early, scoring five of her points in the opening frame.
Eastern Illinois
built a 17-16 lead at the end of the first quarter behind 6-of-11 shooting from the field, while holding Iowa State to 7 of 20. A tight opening 10 minutes featured five lead changes and four ties, with neither team leading by more than three points. Glad opened the scoring with a 3-pointer off an assist from Nevaeh Dickman, while Janyah Bohanon, Abbie Boutilier, and Meioshe Mason added field goals to keep the Panthers ahead.
Dickman scored on back-to-back layups early in the second period to maintain Eastern Illinois’ advantage. Iowa State remained close through inside scoring from Turnšek and Alex Anne Bessette. Zhang sank a jumper with 3:04 left before halftime to give Iowa State a 29-28 advantage — its first lead since late in the first quarter. After a 3-pointer by EIU’s Nyah Hardy, Sienna Harvey hit a mid-range jumper to send the Cyclones into the locker room ahead 33-31.
Iowa State seized control to start the third quarter, executing a 6-0 run over a 2:17 span powered by consecutive layups from Turnšek and Zhang. Gift Ezekiel provided key scoring off the bench with free throws and paint layups as the Cyclones extended their lead to 47-35.
Mid-range shots from Dickman and Hardy kept Eastern Illinois within reach, but Iowa State maintained a 55-44 advantage entering the fourth quarter.
Eastern Illinois mounted a final surge early in the fourth quarter with baskets from Dickman and Bohanon alongside a 3-pointer by Glad. Iowa State answered with perimeter shots from Mya Babbitt, who hit timely 3-pointers down the stretch. The Cyclones sealed the win by closing the game on a 7-0 run over the final 1:54.
Iowa State hosts Howard (1-1) for the third time in series history on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. CST. In the Bison’s season opener, they led for 37 of 45 minutes at Missouri but ultimately fell 91-88 in overtime.
