No. 3 Iowa State spoils Colorado's return to the Big 12, beats the Buffaloes 79-69

BOULDER, Colo. (AP) — Curtis Jones scored 20 points, Keshon Gilbert had 14 and No. 3 Iowa State opened Big 12 Conference play with a 79-69 win over Colorado on Monday night.

The Cyclones (11-1) have won eight in a row, two over Colorado. They beat the Buffaloes 99-71 in the fifth-place game in the Maui Invitational on Nov. 27.

Julian Hammond III had 21 points and RJ Smith scored 14 for Colorado, which returned to the Big 12 after 13 seasons in the Pac-12 Conference.

It was the Buffaloes' first Big 12 game since beating Nebraska 67-57 in Boulder on March 5, 2011.

Colorado (9-3) rallied to get within 64-63 on two free throws by Trevor Baskin with 4:59 left, but Iowa State scored the next six points to lead 70-64. The Buffaloes went nearly three minutes without a point until Hammond’s layup with 15 seconds left, which allowed the Cyclones to pull away.

Takeaways

Iowa State: Survived in a tough environment to win its eighth in a row. The Cyclones have won eight games by double digits.

Colorado: Played a much tougher game against Iowa State than they did in Maui in late November. The Buffaloes responded to the Cyclones’ push at the start of the second half, keeping the game within range.

Key moment

After Colorado rallied to take a 55-50 lead with 12:01 remaining, Iowa State clamped down on defense. The Buffaloes scored just two points over the next 6:04, and the Cyclones grabbed control.

Key stat

Colorado lost for the first time in nine home games this season. The Buffaloes had won 11 straight dating to last season and 24 of 25 before Monday night.

Up next

Iowa State hosts No. 25 Baylor on Saturday afternoon. Colorado travels to Arizona State, also on Saturday.

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