Iowa State Basketball Lands Audi Crooks Replacement in Portal

Iowa State Cyclones' center Audi Crooks (55) receives the ball from head coach Bill Fennelly in honor her 2000- career point before Iowa State and UFC women’s basketball on Jan. 31, 2026, at Hilton Coliseum in Ames, Iowa. Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Iowa State Basketball Lands Audi Crooks Replacement in Portal

Originally posted on Iowa State Cyclones on SI
By Kenneth Teape | Last updated Apr 14, 2026 5:30 PM ET

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The Iowa State Cyclones women’s basketball team is going to look much different when they take the court for the first time in the 2026-27 season compared to how the roster looked at the end of the 2025-26 campaign.

Nine out of 12 women on the team are not coming back, opting to enter the transfer portal and seek out opportunities elsewhere. That includes their star center, Audi Crooks, who is leaving after three seasons in Ames.

Replacing the leading scorer in the Big 12 the last two seasons is no small task. Crooks is arguably the most dominant offensive player in the country, but head coach Bill Fennelly will have to find a new starter in the middle.

The player who could get first crack at replacing Crooks as the starting center is Gift Ezekiel. The Edo, Nigeria native shared on her Instagram account that she has committed to Iowa State in the transfer portal.

Iowa State secures commitment from Gift Ezekiel

Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images

Ezekiel comes to Ames from the Florida Gators, where she spent one season. Despite being categorized as a freshman this past season, Cyclone Fanatic has shared that she will only have one year of eligibility remaining.

Florida junior center Gift Ezekiel announces her commitment to Iowa State on Instagram.

In 2025-26, the 6-foot-1 center averaged 2.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in 8.1 minutes per game.

Ezekiel is expected to have one year of eligibility remaining. pic.twitter.com/vU8H8Sun1G
— Cyclone Fanatic (@cyclonefanatic) April 14, 2026

In 31 appearances with the Gators, Ezekiel averaged 2.4 points and 1.9 rebounds in only 8.1 minutes per game. She was much more impactful on the defensive end than on offense with Florida.

She produced an Offensive Box Plus/Minus of -2.2, but made a positive impact on the other end with a Defensive Box Plus/Minus of 1.1.

Having Power Conference experience is certainly a good thing, as Ezekiel should be able to step in and play a role right away for Iowa State. She provides some good size at 6-foot-1 to anchor the lineup in the middle.

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Alas, it is going to take a lot more than one player to replace what Crooks brought to the court. Her scoring prowess is unmatched by many women’s players in the country and will take a complete team effort to replicate.

Ezekiel is the second player to commit to Fennelly and the Cyclones in the transfer portal. The first player they landed was guard Mya Babbitt, formerly of the Kent State Golden Flashes. They are also in the running for Ashleigh Connor.

Iowa State now has five players on the roster, with those two transfer portal commits joining Arianna Jackson, Evangelina Paulk and Freya Jensen. The team’s top four leading scorers and nine of the top 10 will not be coming back to the program.

This article first appeared on Iowa State Cyclones on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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