Halfway through the Big 12 season and having played five of eight league games on the road, Iowa State is 6-2 and in third place.

All things considered, that’s not bad, not bad at all.

The 11th-ranked Cyclones completed a two-game road sweep with a 71-57 victory over Texas A&M on Saturday. That followed a 77-67 victory at Nebraska. This leaves Iowa State 15-3 overall.

”I love the way we played (last) week as a team,” Iowa State coach Tim Floyd said. ”This team is really starting to come together and play well. I feel like this (past) week is the best week of basketball we’ve had.”

One reason the Cyclones are coming together is that they’ve had their starting lineup intact for the last four games — all of them victories.

Point guard Jacy Holloway and forward Shawn Bankhead are the only starters who have played in every game.

Leading scorer Dedric Willoughby has missed 4 1/2 games because of injuries, forward Kenny Pratt was ineligible for six games and suspended for another and center Kelvin Cato was held out of two games for a lack of effort.

”We should be getting better,” Floyd said. ”This is the longest stretch we’ve had them together, even though Dedric has not been able to practice with us.”

Willoughby has sore hamstrings in both legs and now Bankhead is on the injured list. He hurt his back seven minutes into Saturday night’s game and did not return.

The 6-foot-7 senior, Iowa State’s best 1-on-1 defender, thinks he’ll be able to play against Baylor on Wednesday, the first of three straight home games for the Cyclones. Both teams that beat Iowa State, No. 1 Kansas and No. 18 Colorado, have to play at Hilton Coliseum. Kansas visits next Sunday.

”We can’t assume things,” Floyd said. ”We’re trying to get Willoughby healthy, Shawn Bankhead healthy.

But I’d much prefer doing that at home as opposed to doing it on the road at Kansas or Colorado, which we had to go through early in the year.”

The 6-foot-11 Cato made all eight of his shots, including five dunks, and sank both free throws in scoring 18 points. He also grabbed 10 rebounds and blocked six shots. Pratt had 17 points and 12 rebounds.

”I was as impressed with Iowa State as I was with Kansas,” A&M coach Tony Barone said.

”I was most impressed with Cato because when a player plays with as much enthusiasm and bounce as he did, they are tough to play.”

Cato’s blocks gave him 74 for the season, breaking the school record of 71 he set last season.

Willoughby hit three critical 3-pointers and scored 12 points while playing in front of a personal cheering section of about 40 relatives, many who live in Texas and Louisiana.

”It feels great,” Willoughby said. ”I love these people to death.”

Iowa State will continue the Texas circuit against Baylor on Wednesday.

Bear Brian Skinner will be the defensive focus for the Cyclones. The 6-foot-10 Skinner is Baylor’s big man inside, averaging 17.6 points and 9.3 rebounds last season.

This challenge translates into a huge challenge for ISU’s Cato.

But Cato has played against great big men before.

Against Texas Tech, Cato held Tony Battie, who is considered an NBA prospect, to three points before he fouled out.

If Bankhead returns, his job will be to stop senior 6-foot-10 forward Doug Brandt who averages nearly 13 points per game while grabbing an average of nearly seven rebounds.

The Baylor game is also a must win game for the Cyclones who will be finishing their future three game homestand with a rematch of the nation’s No.1-ranked team in Kansas on February 12.

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— The Associated Press contributed to this story.