The Cyclones built up a 16-point lead, and it looked as if nothing could go wrong for them. It took nearly the entirety of the game, but Oklahoma State was able to slowly take control of the game, winning 61-59 on Saturday.

Between a hot start inside, and foul trouble starting to compound, here are the three big takeaways from the Oklahoma State comeback.

Strong first half

Osun Osunniyi put up one of the best halves of any Cyclone all season in the first half Saturday, putting up 12 points and a trio of blocks in just 11 minutes.

Osunniyi was making the Cowboys pay in the paint, leading the Cyclone to a 26-8 advantage in the paint in the first half alone. Osunniyi would end up with 15 points on the game.

Tre King was also a major contributor to this inside dominance for the Cyclones, scoring 10 physical points.

The Cyclones wrapped up the game with a 38-14 advantage in points in the paint, and won the offensive rebounding battle 15-6.

Normally, it would be expected that the Cyclones would win with numbers like this inside the paint; however, there was a glaring weakness that played a big factor in the loss.

Foul troubles

While the Cyclones were able to build up a huge lead early on, it began to melt away quickly. King, Tamin Lipsey and Demarion Watson all dealt with foul trouble throughout the game, and the free throws that came because of it cost the Cyclones what was once a 16-point lead.

The Cyclones tallied 23 fouls to just 12 from Oklahoma State. These fouls allowed Oklahoma State to shoot 16-28 from the free-throw line.

For a Cyclone defense that normally does not give up anything easy, this was something that was too much to overcome for the team.

Big 12 wide open

After the loss, the Cyclones fell to 14-4 overall, and 5-2 in Big 12 play.

TCU had no trouble taking care of business against Kansas, winning 83-60 on the road. 

This game allowed Kansas State to take sole possession of the top spot in the Big 12 at 6-1. The Wildcats are coming to Ames on Tuesday to take on the Cyclones in a matchup that could put the Cyclones back atop the conference.

The game is set to tip-off at 8 p.m. and will be one of the most important games for the Cyclones this season in terms of importance in the Big 12.