STILLWATER, OKLA. ? Third-ranked Texas ran out of time before No. 16 Oklahoma State ran out of players.

The Cowboys had three frontcourt players foul out, but Victor Williams and his fellow guards made enough plays down the stretch to give OSU an 82-77 victory in a game it couldn’t afford to lose.

Williams, who missed eight minutes of the second half after picking up his fourth foul, made a big three-pointer and added four free throws in the final 30 seconds as the Cowboys (20-5 overall, 9-3 Big 12 Conference) ended a two-game losing streak.

“We had lost two big games in a row, and this was like a must-win situation for us,” Williams said. “For us to get the win kind of shows us the character of the team.”

Texas (18-5, 9-3), arguably the deepest and most talented team in the conference, nearly erased a 15-point deficit, but came up short despite a career-high 32 points from T.J. Ford.

James Thomas had 21 points and 17 rebounds, and Brandon Mouton scored 19 points for the Longhorns, who closed within a point in the second half but never did take the lead again after making the first basket of the game.

“They were more aggressive than we were,” Ford said. “They came out and played hard for 40 minutes, and we did not. When you set the tone, a lot of things are going to go your way.”

Texas had won two straight in Stillwater, and it looked as though the Longhorns might make it three after surviving a torrid first half by the Cowboys.

Williams scored 13 points, and Melvin Sanders, who finished with 19, had a dozen as the Cowboys shot 60.7 percent in the first half including 9-of-17 from three-point range.

Texas guard T.J. Ford, right, passes the ball as he collides with Oklahoma State forward Andre Williams in OSU's 82-77 victory. The Cowboys beat the Longhorns Saturday in Stillwater, Okla.

They twice led by 15 before settling for a 14-point cushion at halftime. Texas wasn’t shabby, either, shooting 52 percent, but Oklahoma State was able to get open shots and knock them down three days after shooting a season-low 28 percent in a loss to No. 5 Oklahoma.

“That’s probably as well as we’ve played all season,” Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said. “In the second half, Ford kind of took the game over, and we couldn’t contain him.”

Williams, defending Ford, got his fourth foul at the 14:44 mark and sat for eight minutes, returning with Oklahoma State leading, 68-58.

Ford, who went past defenders whenever he wanted, scored six points in a 9-0 run that got the Longhorns within 70-69 with 3:35 left.

Then Williams hit a three at the 3:06 mark to give Oklahoma State some breathing room.

“Being in big games, you’ve got to step up and hit big shots,” Williams said.