Matt Thomas earned his starting job just five games ago, when Naz Mitrou-Long announced that he would miss the remainder of the season due to hip problems.

And since then, Thomas has adjusted to his new role quickly.

Since the CyHawk game on Dec. 11, Thomas has scored in double-figures four times, including a then-career high 19 points against the Hawkeyes.

And on Wednesday, Thomas proved his worth yet again, dropping a career-high 22 points in a near perfect showing.

“It always helps when that first one goes down,” Thomas said. “It’s easy, I just have to hunt my shots, move without the ball and just find spots where I can get looks.”

Thomas led Iowa State (12-2 overall, 1-1 Big 12) to a 76-69 win against Texas Tech (11-2 overall, 1-1 Big 12) in their conference home opener. It wasn’t smooth sailing, though.

Iowa State jumped out to an 18-point lead in the first 12 minutes of the game, taking complete control. However, that was short-lived. Texas Tech went on a pair of mini-runs to end the half, sending the Cyclones into the locker room with a 40-30 lead.

But then, the Red Raiders opened up the second half with a 9-2 run, bringing them right back within striking distance. Senior Georges Niang, as well as several others, blame a defensive lapse.

“I just think we were lackadaisical defending, and that starts with me,” Niang said. “There’s little stuff that we all need to work on, but obviously that all starts on the defensive end.”

From there, nearly every time Iowa State was poised to go on a run and pull away, Texas Tech was able to find an answer and keep it close.

It wasn’t until the 92 second mark when a Thomas corner three followed immediately by an Abdel Nader dunk that the Cyclones were able to finally pull away and seal the deal.

Thomas’ final three point bucket — his sixth on the night — capped off a career best shooting night for him, something that seemed to come at a perfect time.

“I’m finding my rhythm, I feel good out there,” Thomas said. “I just have to keep building, and keep getting better every day.”

The Cyclones had good offensive stretches amongst the bad ones again Wednesday night, something that Thomas said he understands is going to happen throughout the season.

What matters to him, though, is how they respond to it.

“We got off to a good start for sure — shots were going in,” Thomas said. “Second half, we obviously missed a few shots. [We] took a few quick shots and probably could have moved the ball around a bit more. … It’s going to happen in the Big 12 like that. You just have to grind it, and show grit and find a way to win.”

And in a league as tough as the Big 12, Niang said he knows it’s going to be as tough — if not tougher — than it was for the Cyclones on Wednesday night.

“In this league, you can’t take anybody lightly,” Niang said. “We’re fighting for our lives at this point, so we have to play harder than anybody else.”