LINCOLN, NEB. ? Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton had no difficulty assessing his fourth-ranked Cowboys’ performance in a 74-67 loss to Nebraska on Tuesday night.

“I told the squad this ranks as one of the 10 worst performances of any team I’ve had that’s any good,” Sutton said. “It was just a bad game, and it came at a bad time.”

Not only did the loss drop the Cowboys into a tie with No. 8 Kansas University atop the Big 12 Conference standings, it could damage their hopes of a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Oklahoma State plays Sunday at KU.

Joe McCray scored 17 of his 22 points in the second half, and Aleks Maric added a career-high 15 to lead Nebraska to its first win over a Top Five opponent since a 98-91 victory over No. 3 Missouri in the 1994 Big Eight tournament. It was Nebraska’s first win in 20 games against Top Ten opponents.

“We needed a great, great effort to have a chance to win,” Nebraska coach Barry Collier said. “Our guys believed they could do that, and four or five minutes at a time we came at them.”

Oklahoma State, which averaged 82 points in winning its last six games by an average of 15, was held under 70 points for only the fourth time this season.

The Cowboys (20-4, 10-3 Big 12) turned in a sloppy effort that saw them commit 19 turnovers and go eight straight possessions without scoring to start the second half.

The Huskers (12-12, 5-8) used a 12-0 run from a 32-32 halftime tie to break the game open, and the Cowboys never got closer than the final margin.

Nebraska’s biggest victory in Collier’s five years came on the same day a columnist for the Omaha World-Herald, the state’s largest newspaper, called for his firing.

“We don’t pay a lot of attention to that,” Collier said.

Sutton said he was well aware of the heat Collier had been taking and that if he had to lose to one team in the Big 12, he was glad it was Nebraska.

“They’ve had a tough season, and they are a better ballclub than their record would indicate,” Sutton said. “Barry is a very, very good coach. I hope these people get off his case and start showing him some appreciation.”

Texas A&M 75, Iowa State 59

College Station, Texas — Antoine Wright scored 21 points, Joseph Jones added 17, and Texas A&M went on a 17-0 run in the second half to end Iowa State’s seven-game winning streak.

Wright started the decisive spurt with a layup and Jones ended it with a putback, turning a close game into an improbable rout for the resurgent Aggies (17-7, 6-7).

Led by first-year coach Billy Gillispie, Texas A&M now has tied San Diego for the nation’s biggest turnaround with a 10-game improvement from last season.

Coming off an impressive overtime victory Saturday at then-No. 2 Kansas, Iowa State’s remarkable turnaround following a 0-5 start in the Big 12 came to an ugly end in College Station.

The Cyclones (15-9, 7-6) went more than 13 minutes without a basket during one miserable stretch in the second half and finished the game by shooting 28 percent — easily their worst performance of the season.

Texas Tech 69, Texas 65

Lubbock, Texas — Jarrius Jackson scored 22 points, leading Texas Tech to its first conference victory over Texas since Bob Knight arrived in 2001.

Knight raised a clenched fist in response to cheers from remaining fans as he left the court as the arena cleared out.

The only time Tech (17-7, 9-4) has beaten Texas since Knight’s arrival was in March 2003 at the Big 12 tournament. The victory Tuesday night put Tech in a tie for third place in the conference with Oklahoma, which plays March 5 at Tech.

It was also the first loss in Lubbock for Rick Barnes, who is in his seventh year coaching Texas (18-8, 7-6). It ended a three-game win streak for the Longhorns.

Missouri 63, Colorado 54

Columbia, Mo. — Jason Horton made three straight three-pointers midway through the second half, helping Missouri blow open a close game.

Horton scored 14 points — all in the second half. Jason Conley had 13 for the Tigers (14-3, 6-7), while Linas Kleiza added 10 points and 10 rebounds for his seventh double-double of the season.