The ISU men’s basketball team is looking for its fourth win in five games and is still searching for the first conference road win of the season, and Kansas State will be searching for revenge when the two face in Manhattan, Kan., on Saturday.

Iowa State (15-11,5-10 Big 12) had a dramatic come-from-behind win, 64-61, over the Wildcats when the two met in Ames on Feb. 22. Kansas State, (12-16, 3-12), is coming off its sixth straight loss.

Iowa State is playing some of its best ball of the season, evident in the 71-55 triumph over Missouri Wednesday night. Tim Barnes had 24 points and Jared Homan had 15 points in the game, while Jackson Vroman added 14 points and grabbed 15 rebounds.

“It was our last home game,” Homan said after the win. “We wanted to send it off with a little bang for the crowd and get us going for our next game at K-State — we’ll hopefully get a road win finally and then get a little run heading into the Big 12 tournament.”

With the Missouri win and a 84-69 win over Colorado on Feb. 25, Iowa State has figured out what it takes for the team to win big in the Big 12.

“Hopefully we can just keep playing like that,” leading scorer Jake Sullivan said after the Missouri game. “We did it for 40 minutes tonight, which is the key, which we’ve had problems doing. This is what we’re capable of doing. Now it’s just a matter of taking it on someone else’s floor and doing it.”

Kansas State continues to spread the ball from player to player with its leading scorer, Gilson DeJesus, averaging just 11 points per game. Iowa State will look to guard the perimeter as Kansas State can be an effective three-point shooting team.

With the momentum Iowa State has gained with its recent victories, the team has reached high confidence levels and is ready to keep it going.

“My confidence level, like everyone else’s, is going up as the season goes on,” Vroman said.

Barnes has come on of late at the point guard spot, shooting the ball well, defending fairly well and dispersing the ball to his teammates. He has averaged 20 points over the last four games in which the Cyclones won three and lost at Nebraska.

Iowa State’s chances of making the National Invitational Tournament are getting stronger with the wins, but Sullivan isn’t ready to start thinking about that just yet.

“We’re still focused,” he said. “We still think we can do down to the [Big 12] tournament and beat some people, especially if we play like we did tonight.”

Iowa State heads to Dallas to begin the Big 12 Conference tournament Thursday. The Cyclones are a guaranteed the ninth seed regardless of Saturday’s outcome. Iowa State will face the eighth seed in the first round, which will be either Texas Tech or Texas A&M.