MANHATTAN, Kan. (AP) — Iowa State was drilled at home by TCU a week ago, then had to sit around without another game until Saturday, left to brood over its uphill climb to get back into the Big 12 race.
The Cyclones finally released that pent-up angst against No. 18 Kansas State. Lindell Wigginton hit five 3-pointers and scored 23 points, Talen Horton-Tucker buried six 3s and had 20, and the No. 23 Cyclones pulled away late for a 78-64 victory over the Big 12-leading Wildcats on Saturday to answer a chorus of critics that had been surfaced over the past seven days. The Cyclone had three double-figure scorers with Marial Shayok contributing 13 points and 13 boards. They went 14 of 24 from beyond the 3-point line, shooting right over Kansas State’s vaunted defense. And they dished out 19 assists while turning it over just 10 times.

Iowa State is right back in the Big 12 title picture after avenging its loss to the Wildcats at Hilton Coliseum. The Cyclones were coming off a surprising home loss to TCU, but otherwise they’ve won seven of their last nine games — including four of their last five on the road. Iowa State returns home to face Baylor on Tuesday night.