Audi Crooks Makes Shocking Decision on Iowa State Basketball Future

The Iowa State Cyclones women’s basketball team came into the 2025-26 season with some sizable expectations as a top 15 team in the preseason.

Unfortunately, they were unable to live up to those expectations. After starting the season 14-0 and reaching as high as No. 10 in the AP Poll, they limped to the finish line. Iowa State went 8-10 over its final 18 games, being eliminated in the Round of 64 by the Syracuse Orange in the NCAA tournament.

Now, there is going to be a massive overhaul of the roster, with the Cyclones' star, Audi Crooks, announcing her intention to enter the transfer portal.

She took to Instagram to share a heartfelt post about the decision, as she intends to spend her senior year with another program, and is currently the biggest name available in the transfer portal.

Audi Crooks announces she is entering transfer portal

Iowa State Cyclones' center Audi Crooks shooting over Oklahoma State Cowgirls forward Achol Akot — Iowa State Cyclones' center Audi Crooks (55) shoots the ball over Oklahoma State Cowgirls forward Achol Akot (11) during the third quarter in the senior day women basketball at Hilton Coliseum on February. 25, 2026, in Ames, Iowa. | Nirmalendu Majumdar/Ames Tribune / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

"Thank you all for embracing me and showing up to Hilton every single game day. I've met so many of you out in the community, and I will cherish all of the genuine connections that I've built during my time at Iowa State,” she wrote as part of her message on Instagram.

A junior from Algona, Iowa, Crooks has become arguably the most dominant player in women’s college basketball. She is a force on the interior, overwhelming opponents on the interior while scoring 25.8 points per game, which was second in the country.

As efficient as they come, she made 64.9% of her shot attempts and grabbed 7.7 rebounds per game as well.

That performance led to her receiving a lot of awards and accolades, including being on the Associated Press and USBWA All-America Second Teams and being selected to the Wooden Award All-America Team.

Speculation about her future in Ames began to swirl last month when she was asked about finishing her career with Iowa State and didn’t answer the question. She was eligible for the 2026 WNBA Draft, but wanted to play her final season of collegiate basketball.

"I still believe the grass is greener where you water it, and I've done that here. It's why I want you to hear from me directly that I have decided to enter the portal and explore what it means to take root again in new ground."

It will be interesting to see where Crooks lands in the transfer portal, given how impactful a player she can be.

The Cyclones, meanwhile, will be starting over basically from scratch. Their star center is the ninth player who has announced their intention to enter the transfer portal.