MILWAUKEE — The Cyclones overcame a lot to get the second round of the 2017 NCAA Tournament, but they couldn’t get past the Big Ten regular season champions, even after a huge late-game comeback. 

No. 5 Iowa State (24-11, 12-16 Big 12) fell to No. 4 Purdue (27-7, 14-4 Big Ten) 80-76 at the Bradley Center on Saturday night after eliminating a double-digit halftime deficit.

The loss ended the collegiate careers of one of the best senior trios in the history of the program. Monte Morris, Naz Mitrou-Long and Matt Thomas — the winningest senior class in program history — all fell one win short of their third Sweet 16 berth. 

In a battle between two starkly different offense, Purdue won out in the first half. The Boilermakers focus their offense around the post, particularly around its two big men Caleb Swanigan and Isaac Haas. 

Swanigan and Haas, who stands at 7 foot 2, put up 19 of Purdue’s 44 first-half points. 

The Cyclones shot 3-for-11 from the 3-point range and struggled to get any transition offense started. Iowa State got within three points, but Purdue went on a 15-5 run to close out the half.

The Boilermakers led 44-31 going into halftime. 

Purdue continued its domination going into the second half. The Cyclones went 4-for-11 from the field in the first five minutes of the game, allowing the Boilermakers to build up a 56-39 lead. 

Iowa State showed signs of life around the halfway mark of the second half, cutting the deficit down to 12. The Cyclones continued to surge forward, going on a 12-0 run to cut the deficit down to three with eight minutes to play. 

Iowa State stayed within a possession with under four minutes to play and took the lead at one point. But the Boilermakers responded and pulled out the win.