Izzi Zingaro delivers her best game at Iowa State with family in town from Canada
AMES – Iowa State redshirt sophomore forward Izzi Zingaro had a special audience for Saturday’s game against Kansas. Zingaro’s parents and cousin made a rare trek all the way from Canada to support her in person.
She gave them plenty to cheer about.
Zingaro scored a career-high 11 points during 17th-ranked Iowa State’s 64-50 win over the Jayhawks at Hilton Coliseum. Iowa State improved to 13-4 overall and 5-2 in Big 12 Conference play thanks to Zingaro’s big game.
“It’s definitely a great feeling to have some family (here),” Zingaro said. “But family’s always here because Hilton magic is so great. I love everybody.”
Zingaro logged 13 minutes, shot 4-of-12 from the field and grabbed six rebounds in her breakout game.
The 6-foot-4 post player wasn’t expected to get many minutes this season. She was buried on Iowa State’s bench behind graduate transfer Stephanie Soares, veteran Beatriz Jordao and Morgan Kane. Then Soares suffered a torn ACL, ending her season, and Jordao retired due to injuries. Suddenly Zingaro was thrust into the spotlight.
“Izzi’s getting the opportunity that every kid says they want,” said Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly.
Zingaro scored six points and grabbed four rebounds on the road at Texas and then tallied four points again off the bench against Oklahoma State on Wednesday. On Saturday she shot 4-of-12 from the field and grabbed six rebounds.
“I’m happy that I’m able to contribute to the team and remain competitive throughout the game,” Zingaro said.
The timing of her performance couldn’t have been better with her family in town this week. They've managed to make only a few trips to Iowa to see her play. More opportunities could be coming for Zingaro, who seems to be winning over her coach and teammates.
“Her teammates trust her,” Fennelly said. “They’re rooting for her. They want her to have success.”
Ashley Joens had a big bounce-back game
Ashley Joens was coming off a rare off night earlier in the week. Joens struggled in Iowa State’s win over Oklahoma State, shooting just 3-of-17 from the field. But she bounced back nicely on Saturday with her best game in conference play this season.
Joens scored 26 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field, including 5-of-11 from 3-point range. Her second 3-pointer gave her 300 in her career. Joens had a double-double by halftime and finished with 15 rebounds.
“You never know who’s going to be hot one night,” Joens said. “Tonight, I was hitting them and Wednesday I wasn’t. But someone always steps up and I think Izzi did a great job today.”
Iowa State's defense was phenomenal
Iowa State limited Kansas to a season-low 50 points. The Jayhawks shot just 12.5% (2-of-16) from 3-oint range and tallied just nine points during a dreadful second quarter in which Iowa State took control of the game.
Fennelly is a friend of Jon Heacock, the Iowa State football defensive coordinator, and expected to get a text from him about how the Cyclones played.
“We could not have defended any better than we defended,” Fennelly said. “Coach Heacock would be very proud.”
Fennelly returned to the bench to cap off an emotional week
The Cyclones finished their emotional week with a 2-0 mark. They got a big boost by having Fennelly back on the bench Saturday. Fennelly missed Wednesday’s game while he was in Davenport for his mother’s funeral earlier in the day.
Iowa State associate head coach Jodi Steyer filled in for Fennelly that night.
“I couldn’t be more proud of our team,” Fennelly said. “What they did this week was incredible.”
Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He's the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468. Follow him on Twitter @TommyBirch.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Izzi Zingaro helps Iowa State women's basketball team to a victory
