AMES, Iowa -- With a roster that only goes about seven deep on most nights, No. 13 Iowa State found out Wednesday night what life was like without star forward Georges Niang, who was sidelined with foul trouble for all but four minutes of the first half.

It wasn't easy, but the Cyclones' supporting cast made due, weathering each run that Texas Tech made before pulling away late to win their Big 12 home opener 76-69 at Hilton Coliseum.

Niang, a pre-season All-American, picked up his second personal foul just 2 minutes, 7 seconds into the game and went to the bench, not returning to the floor until late in the half.

When Niang did return, he quickly picked up a third foul and returned to the bench.

"We're comfortable playing with each other, so, when one of us goes out, we don't really look at as a negative," Iowa State forward Jameel McKay said. "We'd love to have him out there but we've got to move on. We just kept playing."

Guard Matt Thomas scored a career-high 22 points and hit six 3-pointers, and McKay added 19 points, 14 rebounds and four blocks to lead Iowa State (12-2, 1-1 Big 12) and help make up for Niang's early absence.

Initially, those two were a big reason Niang's foul trouble didn't seem to effect the Cyclones as they built an early lead. The lead would grow to as much as 18 points before Texas Tech (11-2, 1-1 Big 12) began to close the gap with a sizeable run of its own to close the half.

After Morris' 3-pointer pushed ISU's lead to 31-13 with about eight minutes to play before the break, Texas Tech guard Toddrick Gotcher hit a runner, guard Zach Smith followed with a layup and forward Justin Gray made a pair of free throws to highlight a 10-0 Red Raider run that cut the deficit to 10 at halftime.

A zone defense seemed to fuel the Red Raiders during that run.

"It caused a lot of stops and turnovers for us to convert on the offensive end," Gray said. "Overall, I'm impressed with our pressure and how we didn't fold when we went down by 18."

Iowa State was able to maintain its 40-30 halftime lead behind Thomas, who had 13 points in the first half, and McKay, who had 12 before the break.

After Niang hit a fall-away jumper, Gray answered with a runner and a 3-pointer that pulled the Red Raiders to within two at 49-47 with 12 minutes to play. It remained a one-score game until McKay hit a pair of free throws, Niang added a hook and Thomas hit a 3-pointer in the corner, pushing ISU's lead briefly to nine points.

But once again, Texas Tech would make a run to get back into the game.

Gotcher hit a layup, forward Aaron Ross put back a miss, Gray hit a pair of free throws and Smith got by the defense for a dunk during an 8-1 run that pulled the Red Raiders back to within 62-60 with just under five minutes left.

"I was proud of our kids the way they battled back after they struggled in the first half," Texas Tech head coach Tubby Smith said. "We were down, I think 18 at one point in time, but we showed a lot of heart and a lot of toughness. We gave ourselves a chance, we just couldn't pull it out."

Thomas' sixth 3-pointer of the night put ISU up 72-65 with 90 seconds to go, and after Texas Tech turned it over, Morris found forward Abdel Nader for an alley-oop dunk that all-but ended the game.

"Like coach said, we just weren't getting consistent stops there until late in the game," Thomas said. "It's gonna happen in the Big 12 like that. You've just got to grind it, show some grit and find a way to win."

Gray led the Red Raiders with 14 points and nine rebounds. Gotcher finished with 12 points and eight assists for Texas Tech.

NOTES: Texas Tech's win over Texas on Saturday was its 10th consecutive win, a stretch the program hadn't matched since the 2003-04 season when they won 12 in a row. ... Iowa State was coming off of a tough 87-83 loss at then No. 3 Oklahoma on Saturday ... Iowa State shot 27 of 68 from the field, including 8 of 22 from 3-point range ... Texas Tech's bench outscored Iowa State's 22-2 ... The lead only changed hands one time. ... F Jameel McKay's four blocks were a season-high. ... G Matt Thomas became the sixth-different Cyclone to score 20 points in a game this season