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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
AMES, Iowa (AP) -- Marcus Fizer scored 29 points and Michael
Nurse hit five 3-pointers in his final home game as Iowa
State (No. 18 ESPN/USA Today, No. 17 AP) beat Oklahoma State (No. 9 ESPN/USA Today, No. 10 AP) 72-61 Saturday in a battle of Big
12 leaders.
|  | | Iowa State's Marcus Fizer slams down two of his game-high 29 points. |
Iowa State (24-4, 12-2 Big 12) took sole possession of first
place in the league and needs just one victory in its last two
games -- at Texas Tech and at Baylor -- to clinch at least a share of
its first conference championship since winning the Big Six in
1945.
Oklahoma State (22-4, 11-3) was leading the conference in
scoring defense at 61 points a game. But Iowa State topped that
figure with 8:47 to play and the Cowboys couldn't handle the
combination of Fizer, Nurse and the crafty inside play of 6-foot-4
Stevie Johnson, who had 12 points and seven rebounds.
Nurse finished with 15 points and Jamaal Tinsley scored 12.
Johnson also was playing at home for the last time and it might
have been the last appearance at Hilton Coliseum for Fizer, a
junior who'll decide after the season if he'll return or enter the
NBA Draft.
Fizer made 13 of 19 shots, and he didn't just do it around the
basket. While scoring 18 first-half points, Fizer made two
3-pointers, hit a pull-up 17-footer and made another jump shot with
his toe on the 3-point arc.
In a game remarkably free of fouls -- there were only six in the
first half -- Iowa State played outstanding defense on Oklahoma
State's Desmond Mason, the Cowboys' leading scorer.
Mason, guarded by Kantrail Horton, scored just eight points on
2-for-11 shooting. He had been averaging 18.6 and was coming off a
25-point game at Missouri.
Joe Adkins led Oklahoma State with 14 points and Glendon
Alexander scored 13.
Former Iowa State coach Johnny Orr was honored before the game
and got the sellout crowd of 14,092 in a boisterous mood. It
continued that way the rest of the afternoon.
Leading 37-31 at halftime, Iowa State began the second half with
a 12-2 run that included two 3-pointers by Nurse and was in control
the rest of the way.
Tinsley's 3-pointer and Horton's two free throws gave Iowa State
a 58-37 lead with 12:25 to play, and the Cyclones ran an effective
four-corners offense down the stretch to protect their lead.
Iowa State led 72-53 with a little more than a minute remaining
before Oklahoma State scored the game's final eight points.
Oklahoma State switched from a man-to-man to zone after Fizer
scored 12 points in the first 11 minutes. It slowed the Cyclones
for a while and the Cowboys cut a 12-point lead to 33-29 with a
10-2 run.
Johnson's basket inside and Fizer's shot with his foot on the arc returned the momentum to Iowa State, which held it the rest of the way.
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ALSO SEE
Mens College Basketball Scoreboard
Oklahoma State Clubhouse
Iowa State Clubhouse
AUDIO/VIDEO
 Marcus Fizer gets the ball in the paint and throws it down.
avi: 442 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Desmond Mason fights for the offensive board and the bucket.
avi: 793 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Steve Johnson splits two defenders for a layup.
avi: 912 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
Michael Nurse sinks the 3-point bucket.
avi: 923 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1
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