Monté “Man-Man” Morris has been here before. It was his fourth game against the Mountaineers, but against one of the most aggressive defenses in the nation, Morris had one of the best performances of his career.

With 19 points, five assists and three steals, Morris took control of No. 21 West Virginia (19-6, 7-5 Big 12), leading No. 14 Iowa State (18-6, 8-4 Big 12) to a 20-point victory, 79-59.

Morris has 29 assists to just two turnovers against West Virginia in his career, serving as the closest thing to kryptonite that the Mountaineers have faced. Hitting 4-for-4 from deep, Morris had one of the best shooting nights of his career.

“I give my credit to this guy right here,” Morris said, patting coach Fred Hoiberg on the back. “At this level, it’s all confidence and when you see one go in and you’re going in there late-night shooting, it pays off like it did tonight.”

While Morris deflected credit to Hoiberg and the game plan entering the game, his play is what gave the Cyclones a much-needed win before hitting the road against Oklahoma State and Texas in the coming week. With a firm grasp on third place in the Big 12, Morris will likely continue to be the team leader as the conference season winds down, and Hoiberg endorses it.

“I thought Monté gave us an opportunity to win the game because of the fact he went toe-to-toe with Juwan Staten,” Hoiberg said. “Monté’s not going to back down from anybody. He’s going to battle and scratch and fight, and I thought he did a great job with that.”

But Morris didn’t do it alone. Jameel McKay, nicknamed “Showtime,” served as a trusty sidekick to his roommate, Morris, who he calls “Mr. Big Game.” McKay finished with 12 points, eight rebounds and made 8-of-9 free throws after struggling from the line in the majority of his games. When Morris and McKay weren’t scoring offensively, they caused problems defensively as Morris grabbed three steals and McKay blocked five shots on the defensive end.

In fact, the team played one of its best defensive games of the season. Against a team that struggles to make shots, the Cyclones held the Mountaineers to just 37.9 percent shooting and forced 19 turnovers. The 59 points allowed is the fourth-best mark of the year and second in Big 12 play. West Virginia only shot 12 free throws the entire night, while Iowa State made 21 of their 30.

Offensively, the bench contributed one of the best games of the season, scoring 32 points on 12-of-19 shooting between Abdel Nader, Bryce Dejean-Jones and Matt Thomas.

“Everyone who went in the game, I thought made a positive impact,” Hoiberg said. “I thought Bryce was phenomenal, I thought Abdel Nader played one of his best games and Matt Thomas hit that 3 right before halftime, giving us some momentum. … Those are huge contributions.”

With McKay sliding into a starting spot ahead of Dejean-Jones in the past three games, the bench production has soared with Dejean-Jones creating a different spark entering the game. It’s a change that Hoiberg says he’s happy with and could make all the difference as the team heads into its final stretch of games.

The Cyclones will take on the Cowboys (17-7, 7-5 Big 12) at 8 p.m. Feb. 18 in Stillwater, Okla.