Minus McKay, Cyclones snap 2-game skid

STILLWATER, Okla. — Minus suspended big man Jameel McKay on Saturday, No. 13-ranked Iowa State focused its attack elsewhere.

Finely focused, that is ... on four players.

The Cyclones got all but three points from their remaining core players, leaning heavily on forward Georges Niang and guards Monte Morris, Matt Thomas and Deonte Burton in a 64-59 win over Oklahoma State.

Niang led Iowa State with 18 points, going for 16 of those in the second half. Morris and Thomas each added 16, while Burton had 11.

And when the Cowboys wiped out a 13-point second-half deficit to go ahead 55-54 on guard Jeffrey Carroll's 3-pointer at the 3:22 mark, it was Iowa State's veterans — Niang and Morris — who carried the Cyclones through, accounting for all of their team's final 10 points.

'We needed to go get a bucket, our numbers get called and we have to get a bucket,' Niang said.

Immediately after Carroll's 3-pointer to send Oklahoma State in front, Morris quickly hushed the crowd with a coast-to-coast layup.

'The real unsung play of the game,' Niang said. 'Monte went the length of the floor and went up through traffic to score, and I think to be that alert and to be able to do that with toughness speaks volumes about him.'

The Cyclones (17-6, 6-4 Big 12) shook off a rugged start to end a two-game losing streak.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma State (11-12, 2-8) lost its second straight. The Cowboys have now lost eight games — five in the Big 12 — decided by five points or less.

'It's frustrating, because we chip and claw all the way back from down in the second half,' Carroll said. 'It's tough. But we've got to mentally stay locked in for 40 minutes.'

McKay was suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules and did not make the trip. He is averaging 12.4 points and nine rebounds per game.

The Cowboys were also playing short-handed with starting point guard Jawun Evans out with an injured shoulder. Evans, the team's leading scorer in conference play, was missed as Oklahoma State's offense ran ragged.

Carroll scored a team-high 18 points for the Cowboys, while forward Leyton Hammonds added 12.

Iowa State survived a miserable start, making just 1 of 9 shots from the floor with seven turnovers more than 10 minutes into the game. The Cyclones did not score their first points until Burton drilled a 3-pointer at the 14:13 mark and eventually trailed 12-3.

'The ref came up to me and asked me if we were awake, like if we got out of the bed on the right side,' Morris said. 'I think it was flow. Trusting each other and ball movement. With ball movement we're the toughest team in the country to play with the offensive playmakers we have, so I think that was a major key.'

'It was an ugly first 10 minutes,' Iowa State Coach Steve Prohm said. 'The tempo of the game wasn't really good for us, but thank goodness we only gave up 12 points, so we were able to get back.'