Audi Crooks’ talent echoed to the lengths that it drew high praise from WNBA legend and Hall of Famer Rebecca Lobo, which read, “You’re kind of fascinated because… you don’t almost ever see a player with her frame who can move like she can move who has the feet and the hands she has. She’s kind of effective using her size and embracing her size and physicality that she has.” 

During the 2023-24 NCAA season, Crooks broke the program record for most field goals made by a freshman and surpassed Colleen Peterson’s record of 163 field goals. It was Iowa State’s matchup against Texas where Crooks ended up scoring 24 points on 10-of-19 shooting from the field. This year, she is taking last-minute shots and carrying Iowa State to unprecedented victories. However, there is still so much left to explore about her. So, let’s take a closer look at her journey and her soaring athleticism.

The Athletic Journey of Audi Crooks

Boasting a height of 6-foot-3, Audi Crooks is the second-tallest player on the Cyclones roster. The Iowa native attended Bishop Garrigan High School in Algona, Iowa. Through her four years in high school, Crooks led the team to state championship titles all four years.

As a freshman, she put out a double-double average of 23.2 points and 11 rebounds per game. That season, she amassed around 626 points and 270 field goals and led the school to a 25-2 record. Besides, she also surpassed her mother’s record for single-season field-goals percentage at 70.7. Instantly, she was climbing up the ladder and capitalizing on her athletic abilities. She had a season-high 40 points of 17-for-23 shooting from the field, in a 73-33 win against Humboldt.

When the Class 1A state tournament arrived, Crooks was named the captain of the all-tournament team after she posted an average of 25.3 points and 15 rebounds per game. Although her team lost the title game, Crooks was named Class 1A Player of the Year and first-team all-state. As a sophomore, she led her team to another 25-2 record while averaging 20.7 points, 10.6 rebounds, and 4 blocks per game. Her 224 field goals were highest in the state, hence, leading her to the first-team all-state honors.

Similarly, in her junior year, Crooks led Bishop Garrigan to a 25-3 record. More so, she led the school to its first-ever Class 1A state title. She became the state tournament’s all-time leading rebounder in 9 games after grabbing 13 boards alongside 15 points. As a result, she was named the Iowa Female Athlete of the Year by the Des Moines Register. In her senior year, Crooks put out a remarkable average of 32.9 points, 13.3 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 2.8 blocks per game. She broke the state’s single-season scoring record while she shot 75.2% shots from the field.

Several accolades made their way to Crooks after she led the school to another outstanding record of 26-1 and further to its second straight state title. She was named Iowa Miss Basketball, All-Iowa Girls Basketball Player of the Year, and received first-team all-state honors for the fourth time. Through her 4 years in high school, Audi Crooks led Bishop Garrigan to a 101-8 record and gathered 2734 points, 1339 rebounds, and 1195 field goals.

However, basketball isn’t the only sport Crooks excelled in high school.

When Crooks rocked in other sports before college

She competed in the AAU. She won four state titles in track and field. Similarly, she claimed the Class 1A state title in shot put in her second season. She repeated this feat by breaking the Class 1A record with a 45 ft 1-inch shot put throw, rather she went ahead and won the discus throw state title the next day.

In her senior season, she became the first athlete in Class 1A history to win three consecutive state titles in shot put. Besides, Crooks played volleyball at Bishop Garrigan and earned first and second-team all-conference honors during her junior and senior seasons.

Completing her high school journey, Crooks was rated as a 4-star recruit and considered one of the best high school prospects of the 2023 class. Also, she was ranked #42 by Prep Girls Hoops and #57 by ESPN.

Thereafter, offers from numerous Division I programs like Illinois State, Maryland, Iowa, Iowa State, Drake, Northern Iowa, Minnesota, Kansas State, Wisconsin, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Penn State, and Oklahoma, lined up to recruit Crooks. Finally, she committed to Iowa State.

Crooks’ collegiate career took off

Starting her college basketball journey, Audi Crooks was an enthusiastic and a better-focused freshman coming off the bench as she put it, “You get to see the game before you go in, and I think that gave me a little bit of an advantage. You get to see what they are doing on defense and adjust.”

She scored 8 points and 5 rebounds in her college basketball debut and contributed towards an 82-55 victory over Butler. She instantly dominated the court as she led the team with 23 points going 7-of-9 shooting. It was the most points scored by an Iowa State player off the bench in 9 years.

Then averaging a team-high 16.8 points per game through her first four games, Crooks was made a part of the starting lineup. As a result, she posted 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists in her first career start and took an 81-69 win over Syracuse.

She then registered her career’s first double-double of 15 points and 10 rebounds, however, took a 67-58 loss from the Iowa Hawkeyes. Despite that, her display earned praise from Coach Lisa Bluder, calling Crooks a “great player,” and Rebecca Lobo, who compared her talent with that of 4x WNBA All-Star Natalie Williams.

Just like the above-mentioned feats, her inaugural season turned out to be a smooth sail that led her to several accolades and honors including Big 12 Commissioner’s Honor Roll, Academic All-Big 12 Rookie Team, Big 12 All-Freshman Team, WBCA Regional Finalist, AP All-America Honorable Mention, and Preseason All-Big 12 in 2024.