AMES, Iowa – Iowa State’s Ashley Joens was deservingly rewarded for her outstanding performances with her first Big 12 Player of the Week of the season, the conference announced on Monday.

Joens picked up her 11th career Big 12 Player of the Week nod, tying her with Oklahoma’s Courtney Paris for the third-most in league history.

Joens led the Big 12 with 29.5 points per game across the Cyclones’ two contests last week. At UNI on Wednesday night, Joens put in 26 points, including a then-career-high-matching six 3-pointers) and grabbed nine rebounds as the Cyclones battled their way to an 88-85 win over the Panthers.

She followed that up on Sunday against Columbia at Hilton with a season-best 33 points, which included a career-high seven 3-pointers, for her 16th career 30-point outing. She also grabbed 10 rebounds to record her 52nd career double-double.

In addition to leading the conference in scoring last week, Joens was the Big 12 leader in 3-pointers (13) and free throw percentage (100 percent, 10-for-10) in addition to being second in 3-point percentage (56.5) and rebounds (9.5 per game) and seventh in field goal percentage (56.3).

Joens and the No. 5 Cyclones return to action on Thanksgiving Day at the Phil Knight Invitational in Portland, Oregon against Michigan State. Tip between the Cyclones and Spartans will be at 6:30 p.m. Central on ESPNU.

DALLAS – The NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Committee announced that the Big 12 Conference and the Dallas Sports Commission have been selected to host the 2031 Women’s Final Four at the American Airlines Center with competition taking place on April 4 and 6, 2031. This is the third time the Big 12 and Dallas have been selected to host a Women’s Final Four, all since 2017.

“We are pleased to once again bring the Women’s Final Four to Dallas,” said Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark. “There is no bigger stage for women’s college basketball, and we look forward to partnering with the Dallas Sports Commission to provide a best-in-class experience for this showcase event.”

The Big 12 and Dallas joined forces for the 2017 NCAA Women’s Final Four at the American Airlines Center, as 19,310 fans saw South Carolina defeat Mississippi State for the championship. The 2023 Women’s Final Four at American Airlines Center in Dallas will bring together the championship games for all three NCAA divisions.

“We’re thrilled the NCAA and Women’s Basketball Committee has again chosen Dallas as host city for the Women’s Final Four,” said Executive Director of the Dallas Sports Commission Monica Paul. “2031 will mark the third time since 2017 that the champion of women’s college basketball will be crowned in Dallas. March Madness is the pinnacle of the collegiate game, and we’re thrilled to crown the champion in our city in 2023 and 2031. We’ve proven again that we’re a strong partner for top-level women’s basketball.”

This is the ninth time the Big 12 has been selected to host games in the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, partnering with venues in Dallas, Oklahoma City and Kansas City. In addition to hosting the 2023 Women’s Final Four in Dallas, the Big 12 serves as the host institution for upcoming NCAA Men’s Basketball Regionals in 2023 (Kansas City) and 2024 (Dallas), plus NCAA Men’s Basketball First and Second Round games in 2026 (Oklahoma City).

Dallas and the North Texas region have also staged NCAA Men’s Basketball championships, hosting the 2014 Men’s Final Four at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, a 2013 Regional at AT&T Stadium, and First and Second Round games at the American Airlines Center in 2002, 2006, 2018 and 2024.

The games in Dallas will mark the ninth time that the Women’s Final Four will be played in the state of Texas. In addition to Dallas hosting in 2017 and 2023, San Antonio hosted in 2002, 2010 and 2021 and Austin hosted in 1985 and 1987. San Antonio was selected to host the 2029 event as part of this bid process. Other bids selected in this cycle include Columbus, Ohio (2027), Indianapolis (2028) and Portland, Oregon (2030).

IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa senior linebacker Jack Campbell has been named Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week following his performance in the Hawkeyes’ 13-10 win at Minnesota. The announcement was made Monday by the Big Ten Conference office.

Campbell (6-foot-5, 246-pounds) led the Iowa defense in the final minutes of the win at Minnesota as the Hawkeyes won their eighth straight with Floyd of Rosedale on the line. Campbell forced a Minnesota fumble inside the Iowa 10 with 5:07 left to play, which was recovered by teammate Deontae Craig.

On Minnesota’s next possession, Campbell intercepted a pass that was broken up by cornerback Riley Moss. Campbell returned his second interception of the season to the Minnesota 45 with 2:06 remaining. The Iowa offense turned the theft into a Drew Stevens game-winning field goal with 28 seconds to play. Campbell appeared to have a 75-yard return for a touchdown, but it was ruled that he stepped out of bounds at the 45.

For the game, the Cedar Falls, Iowa, native recorded 10 tackles, including six solo stops, as the Hawkeye defense held the Gophers to 10 points.  Iowa’s defense has held eight opponents to 10 points or less in 11 games. Campbell leads Iowa with a Big Ten-best 110 tackles, recording more than 100 tackles for the second straight season

Campbell is a finalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy and was named a semifinalist for the Bednarik Award, Rotary Lombardi Award and Butkus Award. The Big Ten honor is the second of Campbell’s career, as he was also recognized following Iowa’s win over Colorado State in 2021.

Campbell is the fifth Hawkeye to earn Big Ten recognition this season. Punter Tory Taylor earned special team honors on two occasions (South Dakota State, Rutgers), defensive back Kaevon Merriweather earned defensive honors for his play at Rutgers, Stevens earned Freshman of the Week honors for his play in the win over Northwestern and running back Kaleb Johnson was named Offensive and Freshman of the Week for his performance in Iowa’s win at Purdue.

Iowa (7-4, 5-3) closes out the regular season Friday, hosting Nebraska (3-8, 2-6) in the battle for the Heroes Trophy (3:01 p.m. CT, BTN).

AMES, Iowa – Iowa State senior wide receiver Xavier Hutchinson has been named a semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award, awarded annually to the nation’s outstanding FBS receiver regardless of position.

Hutchinson has had one of the best seasons in school history, breaking his own school record with 105 receptions and topping the previous school career record with 252 catches.

The Jacksonville, Florida, native, has topped eight catches in every game this season and 100 yards in seven of the 11 Cyclone contests.

Hutchinson leads the nation in receptions and receptions per game, while also ranking fifth nationally in receiving yards (1,160).

He has 45 more receptions than the next best Big 12 Conference pass catcher.

Biletnikoff Semifinalists

Xavier Hutchinson, Iowa State
Jordan Addison, USC
Brock Bowers, Georgia
Nathaniel Dell, Houston
Josh Downs, North Carolina
Zay Flowers, Boston College
Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
Jalin Hyatt, Tennessee
Quentin Johnston, TCU
Charlie Jones, Purdue
Rashee Rice, SMU
Keylon Stokes, Tulsa