Iowa State returns to Hilton Coliseum on Saturday, but an unfriendly test awaits them — the No. 13 Oklahoma Sooners.

The two teams are on opposite ends of the Big 12 spectrum. The Cyclones (8-8, 0-5 Big 12) are the only team in the Big 12 without a win in conference play, and Oklahoma (16-2, 5-0) is one of only two teams without a conference loss.

“I knew Oklahoma would be very good from what they had last year,” said head coach Wayne Morgan.

“You add Taj Gray, who I knew was the number one junior college player in the country, and then you put [Gray and Kevin Bookout] together all of the sudden, and you bring back all those young guards, and they’re very good.”

Gray and Bookout, both juniors, are the biggest reason that Oklahoma is back to the form it showed in 2003. That year they advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament before bowing out to Syracuse, the eventual champion.

Also adding to the Sooners’ arsenal are three guards — Drew Lavender, Terrell Everett and Lawrence McKenzie — who are all averaging over nine points per game and shooting a combined 40 percent on their 3-point tries.

The 3-pointer is something that has killed Iowa State all season, both defending and shooting it.

“I don’t know that we’re a team of great shooters, but we’re certainly not a team of all bad shooters,” Morgan said. “I think that we have some guys that are better shooters than we’re shooting right now.”

Iowa State was 2 of 14 from behind the arc against Kansas State. “Teams understand now how we score,” Morgan said. “Kansas State’s a man-to-man team. They played us man-to-man the first 10 minutes and they were down.”

The Wildcats switched to a zone after that and didn’t trail in the second half.

The Cyclones will have to find consistent scoring and avoid foul trouble at all costs on Saturday, as Morgan said they have one of the shortest benches in the conference.

The lack of numbers was especially evident on Wednesday against Kansas State when senior forward Damion Staple fouled out.

“We don’t have the numbers we need,” Morgan said. “Damion fouled out, and there weren’t a lot of options.

“We’ve got to be worried about foul trouble with everybody. We’ve got to try and play good defense and avoid fouling as much as possible.”

Another worry is the health of sophomore guard Curtis Stinson. According to Morgan, he has a ligament in his left hand that is completely torn from the bone.