Niang, Morris Rally Cyclones To Victory Over OSU

STILLWATER, Okla. – No. 13 Iowa State (17-6, 6-4 Big 12) had a huge second half in its 64-59 win over Oklahoma State (11-12, 2-8 Big 12) Saturday afternoon in Stillwater, Okla.

The Cyclones had just 22 points at intermission, but rallied for 42 points in the second half, 16 of them coming from Georges Niang, who posted his 32nd consecutive double figure scoring game with 18 points.

ISU, which shot 57.1 percent from the field in the second half, made 10 3-pointers in the win, its third-straight in Stillwater. Monte' Morris was also outstanding, recording 16 points, eight assists, six rebounds and no turnovers. Matt Thomas had 16 points and Deonte Burton had 11 points in his first start as a Cyclone.

The win was ISU's third-straight Big 12 road victory, the best streak for the Cyclones since 2004-05.

How it Happened
A rough start put the Cyclones in a major hole. At the second media timeout (11:15), ISU was down 12-3 after committing seven turnovers and making just 1-of-8 shots from the field.

Despite the poor start, somehow the Cyclones took a 15-12 lead with a 12-0 run when the Cowboys went cold. Burton hit a pair of 3-pointers in the run.

OSU led at the half, 24-22. Both teams shot under 40 percent, but the Cyclones were able to stay in the game by going 6-of-11 from downtown.

Iowa State started fast in the second half, going up 40-33 with 11:40 remaining in the game. Thomas hit a pair of treys, as ISU started the second half 8-of-12 from the field. Soon the Cyclone lead stretched to 13 points, as Niang scored a pair of buckets to make it 48-35 with under 10 minutes remaining.

OSU fought right back, going on 11-1 run to cut the ISU lead to 49-46 with seven minutes left. Niang ended the run on a bucket, but Jeffrey Carroll answered with a deep 3-pointer to trim the Cyclone lead to 51-49.

Tavarius Shine then gave OSU the lead at 55-54 with a long 3-pointer, as the Cowboys led for the first time since the beginning of the second half.

However, the Cyclones answered with two-straight buckets from Morris followed by a pair of baskets from Niang to push ISU back up 62-59 with under a minute left.

Cyclone of Note: Monte' Morris. Morris was on his game again, recording 16 points, eight assists, six rebounds and zero turnovers in the key road victory. After OSU erased a 13-point ISU lead with under three minutes left, Morris hit two-straight baskets to push ISU back up by three points. He also made two free-throws with :13 seconds left to seal the win. It was Morris' 35th game in his career without a turnover.

Cyclone Quick Hits
*After losing 18-straight games to OSU in Stillwater from 1988-2013, the Cyclones have won three-straight over the Cowboys on the road (2014-16).
*ISU has won three-straight road Big 12 games for the first time since the 2004-05 season.
*Georges Niang posted his 32nd consecutive game with 10+ points with 18 points.
*Niang grabbed nine boards to give him 640 in his career, the 19th-best total in school history.
*With 736 career field goals made, Niang ranks fourth all-time in Big 12 history.
*Matt Thomas hit four 3-pointers, the sixth-straight game with three or more treys.
*ISU made 10 3-pointers, the seventh time with 10+ treys this season.
Up Next
Iowa State travels to Texas Tech (Feb. 10) on Wednesday. Tipoff is set for 8 p.m. on ESPNU.

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Team Stats

Georges Niang

Monte Morris

Matt Thomas

Deonte Burton

Players Mentioned

Deonte Burton

Georges Niang

Sponsors

Iowa State University Athletics