The ISU men’s basketball team sputtered along like a rusty old truck at times during the first 23 games of the season, but worked like a well-oiled machine Tuesday as the Cyclones blasted Colorado 81-55.

Jake Sullivan helped the Cyclones avenge a 15-point loss to the Buffaloes on Feb. 8 as he led four ISU players in double figures with 18 points.

But point guard Tim Barnes was the story of the night. The junior had 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting and six assists.

“We didn’t catch their A-game tonight,” ISU head coach Larry Eustachy said. “They might have taken us a little lightly, because of what happened out there, and our team is much better than it was.”

The Cyclones put the pedal to the metal to start the second stanza when Sullivan sneaked along the baseline for a lay-in despite a foul. Three minutes after he completed the three-point play, Barnes found Adam Haluska ahead of the pack and he slammed it through to send the crowd of 10,812 into a frenzy.

“That’s as hard as we’ve played all year long for long periods of time,” Eustachy said. “It just goes to show you what hard play does.”

The Cyclones steadily increased the lead after that, going on top by 32 points at the five-minute mark.

Eustachy said his team has always tried to fast-break like it did against Colorado, but the speed and agility of Barnes made the difference. He said Barnes has picked his play up so much recently that a referee asked him if Barnes had just become eligible.

“He goes as our team goes,” Eustachy said. “It’s everything. He feels very comfortable right now.”

Sullivan agreed.

“Tim’s doing such a good job pushing the ball up and down the floor that we’re just following his lead,” said Sullivan, who matched Barnes with three treys. “He’s just a jet right up the floor and it puts a lot of people in a lot of bad positions.”

Barnes said it’s all about the confidence. After a rough start to the Big 12 season, he’s finding his roots again. “The confidence is soaring right now,” Barnes said. “I give all the credit to the coaches and my team.”

Marcus Jefferson got the wheels rolling early on for Iowa State, slicing between CU defenders for six early points. Then Barnes and Sullivan caught fire. Barnes nailed a fall-away trey to put the Cyclones up 16-15 with 13:45 left in the first half.

Barnes and Sullivan nailed consecutive three-pointers three minutes later — part of a 15-2 run that would ultimately put the game out of reach for Colorado.

Eustachy said Jackson Vroman, who had 12 of his 16 points after halftime and snatched 15 rebounds, was a big factor in the win.

“He was much more active,” Eustachy said.

“He was clearly the dominant rebounder on the court against a bunch of great players.”

Sullivan and Haluska teamed up to shut down Big 12 Player of the Week Blair Wilson, who was held scoreless on eight missed shots.

Barnes just hope the momentum continues. The Cyclones have a road test against Nebraska Saturday.

“We’re on cloud nine right now,” Barnes said. “We’re just going to try to keep it that way.”