Iowa State fans have been treated to two different types of Deonte Burton this season.

Some nights, Burton has no trouble racking up points, finding the bottom of basket in tough situations and sparking big runs for an undersized Iowa State team. Other nights, Burton’s play sags along with the team’s performance.

On Friday night, fans saw the good version.

Burton led the charge for Iowa State (10-4, 2-1 Big 12) in its 79-70 victory against Texas (7-8, 1-2 Big 12) at Hilton Coliseum on Saturday night, racking up a game-high 27 points on 12-of-17 shooting while snagging five rebounds.

Perhaps even more surprising, Burton was 3-for-4 from behind the 3-point line.

“[Burton] just kind of played within himself,” Iowa State coach Steve Prohm said. “I thought he really executed in half-court tonight. This was probably his best game offensively all year.”

Burton was especially key in an Iowa State lineup that featured four guards on the court for most the night. Burton’s size, which doesn’t jump off a lineup sheet, created a mismatch for a young and inexperienced Texas team.

The Cyclones had no problem exploiting it.

“It’s just hard to matchup because Burton really — I mean, he’s not a big guy,” Texas coach Shaka Smart said. “He’s strong, but he’s a perimeter player who does some really good things around there too. He’s a tough matchup.”

Texas’ inexperience was prevalent from the opening buzzer. The Longhorns racked up 12 turnovers in the first 20 minutes. Iowa State capitalized on the mishaps for 11 points.

The Cyclones ended the opening half on a Burton 3-pointer as time expired and went into the locker room up 40-31.

The Cyclones carried momentum out of the half, extending their lead to 49-35 just more than three minutes into the period. Iowa State maintained that lead and looked to be in the driver’s seat halfway through the second half.

But Texas kept squashing any opportunity for Iowa State to put the game away.

The Longhorns scratched and clawed and cut the Cyclone lead to four with just under four minutes left to play. A Matt Thomas 3-pointer with a minute and a half on the clock spurred a late-game push and the Cyclones emerged victorious.

Despite the small size, the Cyclones finished minus-six in rebounding margin. Eighteen of Iowa State’s 29 rebounds came from guards, including 10 from point guard Monte Morris, who finished the night just four assists shy of his second triple-double of the season.

Prohm said the team played more comfortable within the four-guard lineup, which has seen more playing time in the last few games. That lineup almost helped the Cyclones pull out a victory against No. 2 Baylor, which will likely be ranked No. 1 next week, on Wednesday.

Forward Merrill Holden, who opened the season as the starting forward, didn’t see the court Saturday night. Forwards Solomon Young and Darrell Bowie, who started, combined for just 25 minutes. 

“We’ve spent a lot more time on it in the last couple of weeks,” Prohm said. “I think offensively, when we have people five out and spread out, I think we’ve been good. Deonte’s decision making tonight was really good. He didn’t force things.”

Prohm has continually harped on Burton to stay in control. He talked to Burton earlier this week and challenged Burton to average a double-double at the beginning of the season. Burton seemed to hit that mark in the second half against Baylor on Wednesday, racking up nine points and four rebounds. 

Burton said some of that good performance carried over, but he credited his big game and restrained-yet-aggressive approach to a pep talk with his teammates before the game.

“My teammates gave me confidence before the game because we talked before the game and they told me that I need to pick it up,” Burton said. “And I did.”

It seems like Prohm is comfortable with the four-guard lineup going forward, especially while Burton is on his game. In a well-sized Big 12, a small lineup can provide a unique advantage — if done right.

“Going small, sometimes we give up size, but we do it enough in practice,” Morris said. “We were comfortable out there, and we knew that we had to rebound. We did rebound. We played our strengths and we ran the ball and opened it up tonight.”