JOHN TRANCHINA

STILLWATER, Okla. (AP) — Phil Forte scored 20 points — seven of those during a decisive seven-minute stretch in the second half — and Oklahoma State kicked off the Big 12 Conference schedule with a 61-47 victory over Kansas State on Saturday.

Le’Bryan Nash scored 11 points and had six rebounds for the Cowboys (11-2, 1-0 Big 12).

Thomas Gipson scored 14 points to lead Kansas State (7-7, 0-1), which lost its third straight contest.

Trailing 29-27 at halftime, Oklahoma State made a strong push early in the second half, going on a game-changing 25-4 run that included 15-straight points. The Cowboys built up a 54-37 lead after Jeff Newberry connected on a 3 from the left baseline with 11:16 to go.

The game hadn’t seen more than a six-point lead before that OSU run.