Boulder, Colo. ? Anyone looking to define “on fire” need only watch tape of Saturday’s game between Colorado and Missouri.

The Tigers’ Clarence Gilbert hit 12 3-pointers, a Big 12 record, and had 40 points as Missouri beat the Buffaloes 96-83.

MISSOURI'S CLARENCE GILBERT, BACK, pressures Colorado's Michel Morandais on Saturday in Boulder, Colo. Gilbert scored 40 points, including 12 three--pointers, a Big 12 record, in MU's 96-83 win.

“The shots went well for me tonight,” Gilbert said. “I just took what the defense gave me and I got good shots.”

The previous Big 12 record for 3-pointers by one player in a single game was 10, by Al Coleman of Texas in 1997. Missouri had 20 3-pointers total, also a Big 12 high. The old record was 18.

Missouri coach Quin Snyder said that once it became apparent Gilbert couldn’t miss, the team’s strategy was simple.

“When you’ve got a guy like that, you’ve just got to keep going to him,” Snyder said.

Gilbert hit four free throws in the last two minutes, his only points that didn’t come from beyond the arc. His 12 3-pointers came on just 17 attempts, a phenomenal 70.5 shooting percentage.

Missouri (19-9, 8-6 Big 12) dominated from the perimeter, but Colorado (13-12, 4-10 Big 12) kept the Tigers within sight thanks to sophomore Michel Morandais’ career-high 33 points.

Colorado trailed by up to 16 in the first half but came alive halfway through the second. Stephan Pelle blocked a shot, drew a foul from Arthur Johnson and made both free throws. Morandais then stole an inbound pass and sank a basket, narrowing the score to 67-61.

Buffs coach Ricardo Patton said he was impressed with his players’ ability to keep the game close despite Gilbert’s hot hands.

“We just played a much better team today, a much deeper team,” Patton said. “We did as good a job as we could have done as far as effort.”

No. 6 Oklahoma 96,

Texas 78

Norman, Okla. Ebi Ere scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half, and Aaron McGhee had 20 points and 10 rebounds as sixth-ranked Oklahoma beat Texas to lock up the No. 2 seed in the Big 12 tournament.

Quannas White added 20 points for the Sooners (22-4, 11-3 Big 12), who used a season-high 12 3-pointers to win their 21st straight at home and beat Texas for the seventh consecutive time.

T.J. Ford had 22 points and eight assists for Texas (17-10, 8-6), which lost for the third time in four games. Brandon Mouton, who had averaged 18 points in the previous eight games, scored 15 but was just 4-of-12 from the field.

Iowa St. 73, Kansas St. 71

Ames, Iowa Omar Bynum caught a touch pass from Shane Power and made a layup with .5 seconds left to give Iowa State (12-16, 4-10) a victory over Kansas State.

Kansas State (11-14, 5-9), which led by 13 points in the first half, had tied the score at 71 when Larry Reid came off a screen and hit a 3-pointer with 6.2 seconds remaining.

Spurning a timeout, Iowa State’s Ricky Morgan rushed the ball up the floor and passed to Power along the left baseline. Power caught the ball as he jumped and passed it in one motion to Bynum on the other side of the basket for the game-winning shot.

Kansas State could manage only a desperation heave at the buzzer, the ball falling short.

No. 13 Oklahoma State. 77, Baylor 64

Stillwater, Okla. Ivan McFarlin had 20 points and 14 rebounds, and Victor Williams scored 18 points as No. 13 Oklahoma State won its fourth straight game. The Cowboys (22-6, 9-5 Big 12) beat the Bears (14-13, 4-10) for the 10th straight time and handed them their fourth straight loss overall and 16th in a row on the road. .

Texas Tech 74,

Texas A&M 53

Lubbock, Texas Will Chavis scored 18 points 12 on 3-pointers and Kasib Powell added 15 as Texas Tech beat Texas A&M and notched its fourth straight win. The victory gave Tech its first 20-win season since 1995-1996 when they finished 30-2.