IRVING, Texas – Iowa State women’s basketball player Audi Crooks has earned Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors following a 20-point performance in a 105-68 win over Troy. It marks the first weekly award of Crooks’ career and the first award for an Iowa State player this season.

Crooks led the Cyclones with 21 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the floor in Sunday’s victory. Her field goal percentage (.900) tied the fourth-best mark by a freshman in program history. Crooks connected on her first seven attempts from the field, starting with a 3-pointer in the first three minutes of play. She narrowly missed her second double-double of the season with nine rebounds. Crooks led the Big 12 this week in field goal percentage (.900) and was second in scoring average with 21.0 points per game.

Crooks leads the team with 16.1 points per game and .670 season field goal percentage. She ranks eighth among NCAA Division I freshman for points per game and is seventh nationally and third in the Big 12 among all players for field goal percentage. She’s the only freshman in the country to average double-figure scoring and shoot over 65 percent from the field. Crooks also chips in 6.0 rebounds per game and has added 3-point shooting to her game, going 2-of-3 from beyond the arc.

Iowa State returns to Hilton Coliseum for its final non-conference game of the season, facing in-state opponent UNI on Wednesday. Tip-off is set for 6:30 p.m.

IOWA CITY, Iowa – University of Iowa forward Owen Freeman was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week, it was announced Monday by the league office. It is Freeman’s school-record fourth accolade this season.

The Moline, Illinois, native earned the distinction after notching his first career double-double in Iowa’s 88-52 neutral site victory over Florida A&M. He finished the game with a game-high 14 points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in 19 minutes, while making 6-of-9 field goals in the game.

Freeman is the first Hawkeye freshman to post a double-double since Joe Wieskamp (against Pittsburgh) in 2018.

Through his first 11 games, Freeman has a school-record four Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. He has matched Indiana’s Jalen Hood-Schifino and Ohio State’s Brice Sensabaugh, who were both recognized four times last season. Freeman is one of 16 players in conference history to earn at least four Big Ten weekly freshman honors in a single season.

Freeman is averaging 9.8 points and 4.7 rebounds in 11 games, while shooting a team-best 63.6 percent from the field. The forward also has 21 blocks and 12 steals, ranking first and second on the team, respectively.

The honor is Iowa’s fifth Big Ten weekly accolade this season. Freeman earned the honor on Nov. 13, Nov. 20 and Dec. 4, while graduate Ben Krikke was the Big Ten Player of the Week on Nov. 20.

Iowa (6-5) returns to action Wednesday, hosting UMBC at 7 p.m. (CT) on Mediacom Court inside Carver-Hawkeye Arena. Tickets are available at hawkeyesports.com/tickets.

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The University of Iowa volleyball team has added two transfers to the roster it was announced by head coach Jim Barnes on Monday.

Joining the Hawkeyes in January are junior setter Claire Ammeraal from Central Michigan University and senior libero Joy Galles from the University of Arizona.

Ammeraal (6-foot-1) appeared in 235 sets for the Chippewas over two seasons. In 2023, she tallied 168 kills, 1,080 assists, 323 digs, 55 blocks and 25 services aces.

“Claire is an exceptional student, athlete and high character talent,” said UI head coach Jim Barnes. “She fills up the stat sheet with the rare ability to get assist and also attack as a setter. She is also a great defender and she competes with a fierce determination. Claire is one of the most talented setters in the country. We look forward to having her help lead our team this 2024 season.”

The Madison, Wisconsin, native has notched five career triple-doubles. As a freshman, she registered 131 kills, 932 assists and 69 blocks.

A Lafollette High School prep, she was named Big Eight Conference Player of the Year in 2021 and was a three-time Big Eight Conference first-team all-conference selection and team captain.

Galles (5-foot-5) spent four years in Tucson before transferring to Iowa. As a senior, she started 19 matches and amassed 180 digs and nine aces.

“Joy is an experienced Libero that brings a great inspirational attitude to the court, Barnes said. “Her ability to serve receive at a very high level in the Pac-12, will make an immediate impact on our team. She is a strong leader and plays disciplined defense which will be a big factor going into 2024.”

The native of Truckee, California, was a three-year letterwinner at Truckee High School, earning all-state accolades and was a Distinguished Scholar. She was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Star guard Katie Dinnebier became the second Bulldog to earn MVC Player of the Week honors, the league announced this afternoon.

Dinnebier continued her remarkable non-conference slate with another impressive performance against a top-25 team. Dinnebier went off for a team-high 26 points and matched her season best with seven assists while snagging three steals and a rebound in a home bout against No. 20 Creighton.

Dinnebier did her damage incredibly efficiently, going 8-for-12 from the field and setting a season-high from behind the three-point arc with a 4-for-5 outing. Sunday’s game marked the fifth time this season and ninth time in her career that Dinnebier has scored 20+ points. The preseason all-league selection leads The Valley with 19.6 points per game and 5.2 assists per game.

She joins Grace Berg as the two Bulldogs to collect MVC Player of the Week honors this season.

TCU’s Micah Peavy (player) and Texas’ Max Abmas (newcomer) picked up their first Big 12 men’s basketball award after leading their team to a win over a Power Five opponent in the sixth week of the season.

Peavy recorded a triple-double with 13 points, a career-high 12 rebounds and a career-high 10 assists in TCU’s 79-59 win over Arizona State Saturday at Dickies Arena. After graduating earlier in the day with a general studies degree, he was 6-of-10 from the field and also recorded two steals. Peavy’s triple-double was the third in program history and the 10th in the NCAA this season.

During Saturday’s 96-85 win over LSU in Houston, Abmas registered a team-high 20 points to go along with a game-high seven assists and six rebounds in 35 minutes. He converted 6-of-13 field goals, including a 4-of-9 mark from three-point range, and 4-of-4 free throws. Abmas set his season high in rebounds and tied his season high in assists. He has topped the 20-point mark four times in UT’s first 10 contests and has now reached the 20-point plateau 71 times in his career (133 games). Abmas moved into the No. 23 spot on the NCAA Division I all-time career scoring list with 2,740 points. He surpassed Hank Gathers of USC/Loyola Marymount (2,273) during Saturday’s win. Abmas also moved into a tie for seventh place on the NCAA Division I all-time three-point FG made list with 450 (tied Chicago State’s David Holston). He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and is pursuing a graduate certificate in strategic communication.