Iowa State edges Oklahoma in Big 12 semifinal

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Iowa State is getting its shot at another conference tournament title and another crack at Kansas.

The 15th-ranked Cyclones advanced to the Big 12 Conference tournament title game with a 67-65 victory over No. 14 Oklahoma in the semifinals at the Sprint Center on Friday night.

Ahead by one point, 66-65, with 9.7 seconds to play, Georges Niang converted one out of two free throws. Oklahoma found Ryan Spangler all alone underneath the basket to tie the game, but the forward missed and the Sooners couldn't put up another shot attempt.

Iowa State's victory sets the stage for the rematch many fans have been wanting for between the two teams who split their series during the regular season and fought for the top spot for the Big 12's regular season title.

They'll get it when the Cyclones and Jayhawks take the court at 5 p.m. Saturday in Kansas City.

Kansas, which won the regular-season title, now has a chance to grab the postseason title away from the Cyclones. It was Iowa State that knocked Kansas out of last season's tournament with a victory in the semifinals on its way to the title.

Iowa State, which split with Oklahoma during the regular season, too, got the best of the Sooners this time around, overcoming another one of its now-token slow starts.

Oklahoma went on an 11-0 run to build up a 17-8 lead. Iowa State's offense disappeared as the Cyclones went over four minutes without a basket.

But, slow starts are nothing new for Iowa State, which battled back from a late deficit against Texas in the quarterfinals before winning the game on a shot by Monte Morris at the buzzer.

In fact, Oklahoma saw first-hand what the Cyclones could do when they're down when Iowa State came back from a 37-18 deficit at the half against the Cowboys earlier in the season to win.

The Cyclones' rally took place a little earlier this time, with Iowa State going on a 10-0 run in the first half to take a 29-27 lead en route to a 29-all deadlock at the break.

The two traded blows to start the second half, but Iowa State began to pull away when it went on a 9-0 run and built it up to 40-33 when Dustin Hogue drained a 3-pointer.

The lead wouldn't last, and Oklahoma had a comeback of its own, highlighted by a 6-0 run to take a 58-56 lead in the second half.

But the Cyclones again surged back, with Morris and Long hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to reclaim the lead.

Oklahoma missed a shot at tying the game down 66-63 when Buddy Hield's 3-pointer went off the mark. But TaShawn Thomas' basket cut the lead to 66-65, setting up the final sequence.

Tommy Birch writes for the Des Moines (Iowa) Register.