Off to only its fifth 2-0 start in conference play since 1996, Iowa State will press on into the 18-game, round-robin slate with a pair of ranked opponents this week.

Two of the Big 12’s three top 10 teams are on the docket for the Cyclones (12-3, 2-0 Big 12) as they’ll host No. 9 Missouri on Wednesday night and travel to No. 10 Kansas on Saturday.

“We’re excited about the opportunity, we’ve got a great week ahead of us with Missouri and at Kansas, and we’ll go out there [on Wednesday] with a great crowd and hopefully we can get them into it early,” said coach Fred Hoiberg.

Only 48 hours removed from a triple-double — the fourth in program history — at Texas A&M, ISU forward Royce White has seen his name get national publicity via Twitter and other media publications for the eighth such performance of the 2011 season. White even drew a comparison from Missouri coach Frank Haith that flattered the 6-foot-8-inch forward.

“White is one of the tough matchups in our league, in terms of his size and strength, that has this ball skill that he has,” Haith said in a teleconference Monday. “He’s like Magic Johnson; he’s a point forward. He can do so many things, he gets excited about getting his guys shots.”

Both the NBA Hall of Famer and redshirt sophomore have showcased their versatility as a “point forward,” but White said the comparison ends there.

“That’s outrageous,” White said. “I’m nothing like Magic Johnson, but I can see where he made the comparison. Magic was top three greatest players of all time. I’m honored that he would say that.”

While watching film from Saturday’s game, Hoiberg saw White avoiding fancy plays and sticking to fundamentals throughout his performance.

“He played such a simple game,” Hoiberg said. “When he had the ball in the half-court set, he played as simple a game as you can play and made easy passes to our guys who were ready to shoot.”

White’s simple game and unselfishness on offense opened the door for four other Cyclones — including senior guard Chris Babb — to finish with double-digit points Saturday.

“It just kind of opens up the whole offense when he’s out there and he’s able to get past the defender pretty easily,” Babb said. “He’s a tough matchup for a lot of the fours and fives in the Big 12, which makes it easier for us.”

With their first loss on the season — 75-59 at Kansas State — behind them, Haith’s squad will bring an up-tempo playing style to Hilton Coliseum as the Tigers (14-1, 1-1) are fourth in the nation averaging 84.4 points per game.

“It’s going to be the type of game that we in theory would like,” White said. “I just think we’ve got to go out and outrebound them and play defense like we have the last few games and we’ll be fine.”

Tip time for Wednesday’s tilt is set for 7 p.m.