No. 6 Oklahoma will battle No. 21 Iowa State on Thursday night in a grudge match after splitting their regular season series. Each team won on its home court — the Sooners 87-83 in Norman and the Cyclones 82-77 in Ames — but both games were extremely close.
Our writers did their best to predict the score of Oklahoma's third matchup with Iowa State:
Spenser Davis — Iowa State 80, Oklahoma 76
The Sooners have been eliminated by Iowa State in the Big 12 Championship in two of the past three seasons. History could repeat itself as Iowa State meets an ice-cold Sooners squad on Thursday night. The Cyclones will also be backed by a strong crowd in Kansas City's Sprint Center, making it a virtual road game for Oklahoma.
Oklahoma has never been able to solve Georges Niang. The Cyclones' star forward has scored at least 20 points against the Sooners four different times in his career, including both of this season's battles. Niang, combined with a positive crowd and the brilliant defense of Matt Thomas, should be enough to lead Iowa State to victory. But don't be surprised if Buddy Hield makes this one interesting down the stretch.
John Walker — Oklahoma 84, Iowa State 82
This weekend will be Oklahoma's last evaluation before heading to the NCAA Tournament. The Sooners are looking to piece together 40 minutes of consistently good basketball. Oklahoma's pair of victories in March were soured by turnovers and late-game scoring droughts.
The Cyclones sport a high-octane offense and the conference's worst defense. Iowa State has allowed 80-plus points to its Big 12 opposition seven times this season.
This will likely be the final time to see last season's Big 12 Championship MVP Georges Niang compete against two-time Big 12 Player of the Year winner Buddy Hield. Niang has posted a career-high 19 points per game this season en route to his second consecutive All-Big 12 First Team appearance while Hield is just the third player in Big 12 history to average 25 points and five rebounds in a season.
The Sooners prevail thanks to their offensive output down the stretch against Iowa State's poor defense.
Trent Crabtree — Oklahoma 85, Iowa State 84
Get your popcorn ready, because Oklahoma and Iowa State will once again face off in the most exciting offensive game in the Big 12. The postseason atmosphere should make the game even more fun to watch, but it will make things much harder for the Sooners. Cyclone fans will show up to the Sprint Center in big numbers like they always have, essentially turning this into a road contest for OU.
I don’t expect that to bother the Sooners too much, though, mainly because of how they have proven themselves in tough arenas throughout the season. Expect OU to play well in this game. The Cyclones have fallen to the Sooners once already this season, and the game in Ames could have gone OU’s way had it caught a few late breaks. The Sooners also have the defensive edge, which will subdue ISU’s offensive fireworks down the stretch.
