No. 17 Iowa State is still learning how to win ugly.

Against Texas, the Cyclones struggled and played poorly for much of the contest but were able to win 65-60, pushing the team to 6-3 in Big 12 play.

Now, just two days later, Iowa State heads down to Norman, Oklahoma, to take on the Sooners at 8 p.m. on Monday. Oklahoma enters the game at 3-6 in conference play and dropping a 79-71 decision to West Virginia in its last game.

Oklahoma has floated around the bottom half of the conference in offensive production, averaging 72.6 points per game — 194th in the country and sixth in the Big 12. Oklahoma isn’t a team with a free-flowing offense, ranking last in the conference in assists per game at 12.9. The Sooners don’t have many two-shot possessions, either, ranking last in the Big 12 in offensive rebound percentage at 27.3 percent.

Senior forward Christian James is the leading scorer for the Sooners at 16 points per game on 41.6 percent shooting and 31.7 percent shooting from 3-point range. The Sooners’ only other player averaging double-digit points is sophomore Brady Manek at 11.4 points per game. 

After Iowa State’s defense has held opponents to 68 and 60 points at home, the Cyclones will have to be prepared for another low-scoring affair. 

Oklahoma’s defense, while sixth in the conference in points per game allowed at 67.6, is tough to break down. Opponents shoot just 39.6 percent from the floor against the Sooners, only bettered in the Big 12 by Texas Tech.

As of late, though, the Sooners have slipped slightly, falling by 30 at home to Baylor and giving up 74 points at home in a loss to Kansas State. Oklahoma has lost four of five conference games, including two of its last three at home.

The Cyclones have shown a tendency to have cold spells on the offensive end, despite their general proficiency. Iowa State was able to survive those spells against the Longhorns, but on the road it could be a different story. 

The Cyclones could get a bounce-back game from Marial Shayok. The redshirt senior guard had just 12 points on 3-for-14 shooting against Texas. Without Shayok’s scoring, the Cyclones would be relying on a combination of guards Talen Horton-Tucker, Nick Weiler-Babb and Lindell Wigginton to pick up the scoring burden, something that had mixed results in their last outing. 

Oklahoma represents an interesting test for Iowa State: If the Cyclones handle a struggling but defensively tough Oklahoma team on the road, they keep pace with the Big 12’s leaders. A loss, on the other hand, would be a big setback.

Just another day in the Big 12.