Recap: No. 6 Iowa State men's basketball falls at No. 2 Houston

No. 6 Iowa State lost at No. 2 Houston on Monday night 73-65 in Big 12 men's basketball.

Houston took over sole possession of first place in America’s toughest basketball conference. The Cyclones fell to 20-6, 9-4. Houston is 23-3, 10-3.

This was only the third time in Iowa State history that the Cyclones were involved in a road game involving two top-10 teams (the others: losses to Kansas in 1957 and 1997).

Here's a look at how the game unfolded:

Peterson: Iowa State basketball has nothing to be ashamed of after loss at No. 2 Houston

Final: Houston 73, Iowa State 65

Second half, 1:41 mark: Houston 67, Iowa State 59

It has not been Tamin Lipsey's night, but Keshon Gilbert has done his best to make up for it. Looking like Houston is going to hang on for its 20th consecutive win at home. Iowa State has given the Cougars a really good battle. Need some magic to pull off this one, though.

Second half, 4:00 mark: Houston 59, Iowa State 52

Iowa State has been incredible on the boards. Houston is a dominant rebounding team, but tonight the Cyclones have a +12 advantage in that category. Very impressive.

Wow, Tre King sure knows how to pick his spots. He's not known as a 3-point shooter, but he hit some big ones against Kansas a few weeks ago and tonight he's doing it again, 3-for-3 against Houston. He's keeping ISU in this game.

Free-throw shooting has been atrocious for both teams. ISU 6-of-11, Houston 13-of-20.

Do the Cyclones have one last push?

Second half, 7:47 mark: Houston 53, Iowa State 47

Oooooooh those missed free throws. The Cyclones aren't getting many opportunities tonight, so they need to take advantage and hit 'em. So far, they're not. They've made 6-of-10.

Good news is, the Cyclones are finally starting to get some calls on the offensive end.

Houston seems content firing up 3-pointers at times. That might not be a bad thing for ISU (Cougars are 6-of-22 from long range).

Meanwhile, Tre King(!) with a big trey at the 8:10 mark to make it a four-point margin.

Jamal Shead is a problem for ISU tonight. He leads Houston with 19 points.

This is a really good game.

Second half, 11:43 mark: Houston 46, Iowa State 41

Things might be getting a little too physical. Keshon Gilbert was practically tackled on a baseline drive (a foul was called, mercifully). He recovered quickly enough to hit a 3-pointer a few seconds later. Credit Iowa State strength and conditioning coach Pete Link.

Then Curt Jones hit a 3 to cut the lead to 46-41. Houston keeps trying to pull away, but the Cyclones are battle-tested and won't go away easily.

Iowa State is finding its stroke from outside, sitting at 6-for-13 now. Maybe that's the path to victory, after all.

Second half, 15:48 mark: Houston 40, Iowa State 32

T.J. Otzelberger and his Cyclones have to appreciate how Houston is playing tonight. The Cougars are as physical as you can get (ask Tamin Lipsey how that screen felt) and they seem to always have a defender (or two or three) exactly where they need to be. That's exactly how the Cyclones play, except Houston is doing it just a little bit better tonight.

Tre King hit a much-needed 3-pointer to cut into Houston's momentum for a second or two.

Halftime: Houston 28, Iowa State 23

Iowa State coach T.J. Otzelberger was fired up after his Cyclones held the Cougars scoreless on the last possession of the half. Iowa State trails by just five points and Otzelberger has to feel good about where his team is at despite shooting 33% from the floor and getting just three free throws (Houston shot 15).

BIG 3-pointer by Curt Jones with 33 seconds left in the half cut the deficit to 28-23. Jones has both of ISU's 3-pointers tonight.

First half, 1:40 mark: Houston 26, Iowa State 20

Defense never takes a day off, especially when the officials allow plenty of contact. And defense is keeping Iowa State in this game. Milan Momcilovic, too (7 points). Cyclones are in good shape and right in this game.

Free throws: Houston 15, Iowa State 3

First half, 3:15 mark: Houston 24, Iowa State 16

Hello, Milan Momcilovic! The freshman from Wisconsin had a big 3-point play -- a 15-footer + 1 -- to get Iowa State within 22-14. Then he hit another jumper on the next possession. Cyclones need him to get hot and stay hot.

If you love defense and physical play, this is the game for you. So far the Cyclones and Cougars have combined for 15 field goals and 14 turnovers.

Iowa State star sophomore Tamin Lipsey is off to a particularly rough start. 0-for-6, three turnovers.

First half, 7:10 mark: Houston 19, Iowa State 8

Kelvin Sampson's team appears poised to avenge its Jan. 9 loss in Ames. The Cyclones notched a 57-53 victory that night. Iowa State has some work to do, particularly on the offensive end.

ESPN's Fran Fraschilla is right: Iowa State needs to drive hard to the basket and try to get Houston into foul trouble. Easier said than done, but probably a better strategy than heaving up 3-pointers when they're not falling (0-for-6).

(Although tonight's refs appear to be content swallowing their whistles unless they see blood. At least when ISU has the ball. Free throws: Houston 10, Iowa State 0.)

Houston has won 19 in a row at home, the nation's longest home winning streak. The Fertitta Center is only about half the size of Hilton Coliseum, but it does get loud in there.

T.J. Otzelberger's team just has to continue to battle, try to keep that margin within single digits at halftime and see what happens. Maybe those shots that aren't falling now (4-for-17 from the floor) will start going through the net later on.

First half, 12:00 mark: Houston 11, Iowa State 4

Points are going to be hard to come by, it appears. Iowa State is 2-for-8 from the floor. Houston is 5-for-13. The teams are a combined 1-for-9 from 3-point range and they have nine turnovers between them.

Tre King scored the Cyclones' second basket on a nifty assist from Keshon Gilbert.

Side note: Remember when refs used to call a technical foul for hanging on the rim?

First half, 15:55 mark: Houston 5, Iowa State 2

The home team has a little more bounce in its step in the early going. But true to form, not much offense and a lot of defense so far. Rob Jones with a steal and then finishing with an athletic move to get the Cyclones on the board. Emanuel Sharp has a 2 and a 3 for Houston.

8:00 p.m.: Tip-off soon

As usual, the scheduled tip-off time was just a rumor. Looks like we'll get started around 8:07.

A pregame note per ESPN: Iowa State is 7th in the country in points per game allowed. Houston ranks first in that category.

So expect a low-scoring game, obviously. Over/under is 133 per DraftKings, which feels a little high, actually.

Iowa State is an 8-point underdog at tip-off.

Boog Sciambi and Fran Fraschilla on the call. One of our favorite broadcasting tandems.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Recap: Iowa State basketball falls at Houston