Fred Hoiberg’s bunch can’t seem to get over the hump.

Iowa State fought off a sluggish start and an 8-point halftime deficit to force overtime Saturday night against a struggling Oklahoma squad.

But, OU guard Steven Pledger was too much in the overtime period as he scored 10 of his 38 points in the final five minutes to propel the Sooners (11-9, 3-3 in Big 12) to a 77-72 win over the Cyclones (14-8, 1-6).

“We didn’t get off to a very good start,” said ISU coach Fred Hoiberg. “They hit some tough shots. I felt we put our head down a little bit.”

Oklahoma started the game hot, hitting eight of its first 10 tries from the field and eventually pushing out to a 14-3 lead.

Down as many as 15 points mid-way through the first half, the Cyclones slowly battled back, getting within eight at the intermission. A five-minute scoreless drought for the Sooners helped the Cyclones climb back even further, eventually culminating in Iowa State’s first lead at 54-53.

“We knew they were going to make a run and grab the momentum and get the crowd into it,” said OU forward Cade Davis. “Lucky for us, Steven was on fire tonight. He kept us in the game the whole time.”

The Cyclones pushed their lead to as many as six, but another Pledger three-pointer tied the game at 67 and, after a wild ending, sent the game to overtime.

“He’s a good player,” said ISU forward Melvin Ejim. “When good players get hot it’s hard to stop. I think we were playing good D and he was just making a lot of tough shots.”

This was the Cyclones’ second overtime loss in 10 days after they fell 96-87 to Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla. on Jan. 19.

It was also Iowa State’s fourth straight loss and sixth loss in its last seven games.

The Cyclones are now alone in last place in the Big 12 at 1-5.

“Once we got it going, we played with passion and energy that you have to bring for 40 minutes,” Hoiberg said. “You can’t play a Big 12 game for 30 minutes and expect to win.”

Despite the fact that only two Sooner scorers reached double digits, Pledger’s 38 were more than enough to push the Sooners over the top.

Four ISU scorers reached double figures, led by freshman forward Melvin Ejim who scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds off the bench for the Cyclones.

“It took a great performance by Steven Pledger here tonight,” said OU coach Jeff Capel. “Steven was great.”

ISU starters Jamie Vanderbeken and Diante Garrett struggled in the first half, combining for just two points and four rebounds. Garrett found his touch in the second half, though, and was able to finish with 18 points to go along with four assists and five rebounds.

Vanderbeken’s struggles continued in the game’s second half, though. The 6-foot-11 Canadian finished with just two points – both from the free throw line – and only five rebounds.

“We didn’t want to give [Vanderbeken] any open looks,” Caple said. “If he posted, that was fine, because that’s not something that they do.”

Jake Anderson (18 points) and Scott Christopherson (14) were the other Cyclones to finish in double figures.

Anderson also notched his second-consecutive double double, grabbing 10 rebounds to go with his 18 points.

Iowa State now moves on to face one of the Big 12’s surprises, Colorado (14-8, 3-4) in Boulder, Colo. on Tuesday, leaving the team just two days to turn around and prepare.

“It’s going to be my job to challenge these guys, but do it in a way that these guys keep their confidence, ” Hoiberg said. “We need a win in the worst way, and hopefully we’ll come out ready on Tuesday.”