Two of the nation’s best met up Saturday night as Georges Niang’s No. 11 Iowa State (11-2, 0-1 Big 12) opened up Big 12 play on the road against Buddy Hield’s No. 3 Oklahoma (12-0, 1-0 Big 12).

Niang may have gotten the best of Hield by scoring 29 points for Iowa State, but Hield hit a pair of free throws with 3.5 seconds left to put the Sooners up by four and seal the 87-83 win at home against the Cyclones. 

Hield, who scored 22 points, led the way for the Sooners, who remain undefeated on the season and will likely be the No. 2 team in the nation when the next AP poll is released Monday.

Niang got it going on the offensive end early, scoring 15 points on 7-of-10 shooting in the first half. Buddy Hield nearly equaled Niang’s first-half scoring total with 14 points but did so on 6-of-14 shooting.

Niang’s hot hand on offense helped the Cyclones pull ahead to a 41-37 halftime lead.

Oklahoma came back strong, tying the game up 73 at the six-minute mark in the fourth quarter. Deonte Burton converted a layup to go back up two, but a Sooner 3-pointer gave Oklahoma a one-point lead.

The Sooners got on a roll with a 13-4 run and led 81-77 with 4:08 to go. Iowa State would force a tie, but the Cyclones couldn’t get over the hump and regain the lead late in the game.

Deonte Burton had just five points in the first half off the bench but proved to be a crucial piece for Iowa State. Burton made his presence felt, scoring 19 points in the game to aid Niang on the offensive end.

Burton played the role of Niang’s sidekick for the Cyclones, but the Sooners had a two-headed monster in Hield and big-man Ryan Spangler, who scored 20 points and pulled down 12 rebounds for Oklahoma.

The Sooners were also boosted by Isaiah Cousins, who scored all of his 15 points in the second half.

Oklahoma will travel to Lawrence, Kan., to take on the the Jayhawks, who are likely to be the new No. 1 team, on Monday. 

Iowa State will next be in action when it gets Texas Tech at home Wednesday night.