Audi Crooks left Iowa State for Oklahoma State after what she called honest conversations about the future of both rosters, a move that reshapes two Big 12 programs and gives the Cyclones a major new opponent to track when they meet again Jan. 9 in Ames.
Crooks, who was discussed Wednesday during Big 12 media day, said she did not make the decision to leave Ames until late April. By then, nine Iowa State players had transferred, and she was weighing whether to stay through another rebuild or move to a team that already looked strong enough to compete right away. Last season, she averaged 25.8 points and 7.7 rebounds, earned All-America second-team honors and finished as the No. 1 player in 's transfer portal rankings.
Her explanation was direct. Crooks said she had “some really honest conversations about the ability to rebuild a roster,” then looked at Oklahoma State and saw a group that was “already looking pretty dang strong.” One name mattered most in that calculation: Liv McGill. “And then when Liv McGill comes here, I want her to be my point guard,” Crooks said, making clear that the guard's arrival helped sell her on the move.
The part that makes the transfer linger is that Crooks did not sound detached from Iowa State. She said she was the last of the transfers to leave, that she had been there for three years and that she has a lot of love and care for the people there. Bill Fennelly said she played three really good years at Iowa State and added a lot to the team. Still, the move leaves her in a spot where some Iowa State fans are likely to receive her warmly and others will not when Oklahoma State comes to Ames. Fennelly said he cannot control that reception and expects it to be mixed.
Crooks also pointed to the competitive edge that pulled her toward Oklahoma State. She said she had played against Jacie Hoyt for the last three years and lost quite a few of those matchups, which made Hoyt's edge stand out to her. For now, Crooks said she is not looking too far ahead and wants to handle the business in front of her first. The next time the story gets real is Jan. 9, when Oklahoma State visits Iowa State and Crooks steps back into Ames with a different jersey and a very different place in the matchup.
