The big picture The Iowa State Cyclones were on both ends of an upset last week, inexplicably dropping a game at Texas Tech before rebounding with a win over Kansas State at Hilton Coliseum on Saturday. Of course, astute sports fans will point out that Iowa State’s win over the Wildcats was only an upset if you pay attention to pollsters, as the Cyclones were four-point favorites despite being unranked. The loss at Hilton was the second for Kansas State last week, as the Wildcats fell short against KU at home on Tuesday night. They slid from a first-place tie into a three-way tie for third, with a big game coming up at Oklahoma on Saturday. Both teams are 4-2, and although we are not even halfway through the conference schedule, it’s hard to imagine that the loser still has a hope to even tie for the league title. The Jayhawks are favored to win in every game they have left, according to Ken Pomeroy. With odds like that, it’s hard to believe that KU could drop three games down the stretch. The only team that is still a game behind the unblemished Jayhawks are the Baylor Bears, but it’s hard to tell how much of their record is a result of their easy opening schedule. Baylor has four wins against the bottom three teams in the conference, with two of those victories coming against cellar-dwelling TCU. Baylor’s other win came at home against an Oklahoma State team that has won only one Big 12 road game in its last 22 trips. This week’s games against Oklahoma and at Iowa State should clarify where the Bears truly belong in the league pecking order. Weekday games Kansas at West Virginia; Monday, 8 P.M. CT (ESPN) West Virginia makes its first Big Monday appearance as a member of the Big 12, and will also be facing Kansas for the first time in school history. The Jayhawks are riding a 17-game winning streak and ascended to the top spot in this week’s USA Today Coaches Poll, having dispatched both Kansas State and Oklahoma last week. Kansas has been easily handling most opponents, leading by double-digits at some point in every game except for the loss to Michigan State and the comeback win at Texas. It’s likely they will do the same against West Virginia tonight, as the Mountaineers make less than 30% of their threes and will also have a tough time scoring inside against block-machine Jeff Withey. Oklahoma at Baylor; Wednesday, 6 P.M. CT (ESPNU) Oklahoma has been a pleasant surprise in Lon Kruger‘s second season at the helm. Senior Romero Osby is peaking at just the right time, averaging 18 points and seven boards in Big 12 play. The frontcourt battle between OU’s Osby and Amath M’Baye and Baylor’s Isaiah Austin and Cory Jefferson should be a blast to watch. All four love to stretch the floor and should open things up for their shot-creating guards. The other interesting matchup will be on the perimeter, where Oklahoma is limiting opponents to just 31% accuracy on three-point attempts. The Bears are one of the nation’s better long-range teams, knocking down 35.5% of their threes against D-I opponents. If Oklahoma can manage that kind of defensive success against the likes of Pierre Jackson and Brady Heslip, the Sooners have to like their chances with a much more experienced frontcourt. Texas at Kansas State; Wednesday, 7 P.M. CT (ESPN2) The Texas/Kansas State preview will be available on Wednesday. Iowa State at Oklahoma State; Wednesday, 7 P.M. CT (Big 12 Network/ESPN3.com) Without looking it up, can you guess what year it was when the Cyclones last won at Gallagher-Iba Arena? If you picked sometime this century, you need to go a little further back. Don’t name a year during the Clinton administration, either. As hard as it is to believe, Iowa State has not won a game at Oklahoma State since March of 1988. Although Iowa State only traveled to Stillwater every other season during the 12-team era of the Big 12 Conference, they did make annual trips during the Big 8 days. All told, that’s 17 consecutive road losses over 24 years for ISU at Gallagher-Iba. To put it another way, Fred Hoiberg was still just a pimply-faced teenager at Ames High School when the Cyclones last tasted victory in Stillwater. Historical context aside, this is a huge game for both teams. Oklahoma State has continued their struggles on the road in conference play, making their defense of home-court advantage even more important if they want to finish near the top of the standings. Iowa State, on the other hand, sacrificed what should have been essentially a gimme-game at Texas Tech. To make up that lost ground, they now have to steal a road game or two against tougher competition. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
