Kansas State held off a late rally by Oklahoma State to score a 75-71 victory Wednesday in the opening game of the Big 12 tournament at Kansas City, Mo.

The Wildcats, who had two big runs in the first half to open a 40-23 halftime lead, will play top-seeded and No. 1-ranked Kansas in the second of Thursday's quarterfinals.

Kansas State, which struggled offensively all season, shot 50 percent from the field for the game. The Wildcats (17-15) were led by forward Dean Wade with a career-high 20 points. Guard Jonathan Edwards had 17 points, and forward Wesley Iwundu added 14.

Oklahoma State (12-20) was led by forwards Joe Burton and Jeffrey Carroll with 13 points each. Guard Tyree Griffin added 11 points, and forward Leyton Hammonds scored 10.

The Cowboys cut the lead to nine points on several occasions midway through the second half, but they couldn't get any closer until 2:34 remained in the game, when Burton's free throw cut it to 67-59. The Cowboys kept chipping away, eventually getting the deficit down to four points.

The Wildcats used a 10-0 run to assume a 12-4 lead early in the first half. After Oklahoma State scored four consecutive points, Kansas State scored the next nine points. The Wildcats led by as many as 18 points in the first half. Wade had 12 points in the half, including hitting both of his attempts from 3-point range. Iwundu had 10 points at intermission.

Meanwhile, Oklahoma State went almost 11 minutes before reaching double-figures, getting its 10th point on Carroll's drive with 9:04 left in the half. He had 10 points before the break.